living on St John

Do you have any specific questions? What Charles says is true...it is both beautiful and expensive. Less "conveniences" than STT or STX also. If you have more specific questions, I'd be happy to try and answer them.

There have been quite a few post about this lately (costs to live and to relocate)....try reading a couple of pages before you clarify your questions 🙂

Thanks!

We have looked into cost and relocation etc and seem to be all set in terms of those kinds of questions. I was just hoping people might have experiences about way of life and day to day living on the particular island. I definitely know it is expensive but very beautiful. Is it a different lifestyle than STT or STX?

different lifestyle? might want to clarify that. To live on stj you are going to have to work like a dog to be able to afford it (unless you are already affluent) so you wont have time for lifestyle. 😉 Least amount of locals living there as it is just too expensive, so you have a small mixed pop of locals and transplants year round and alot of people who work there live in stt.

All of the comments are some what correct , but it is all perspective and how well you plan.
I lived there for 9 months and yes it is expensive , mostly the rent & food , but there are ways to cut corners
if you are a simple person and dont require all the finer things in life
example > You might like shampoo that cost 20.oo a bottle here and there may only get the cheap kind for almost the same price.
I could ramble on for days >
I think two heads are better than on on STJohn slpit the cost and for a back up .
Plan alot and work alot. get to know people and you can find some deals (rent wise) . It is comparable to NewYork city prices.

Yolanda is right...it's all perspective and how well you plan.
Betty says "To live on stj you are going to have to work like a dog to be able to afford it (unless you are already affluent) so you wont have time for lifestyle."
My fiance and I both work professional 9-5 jobs and we survive just fine. We are not "working like dogs." Then again, we are lucky to both have professional jobs in fields we enjoy.
Charles says, "You will carry lots of plastic bags from the ferry every week."
I have lived here almost two years and have gone to St. Thomas TWICE for groceries, and even then I didn't feel it was entirely necessary. We have found ways around spending tons of money at Starfish on groceries...cvs.com and drugstore.com to name a few (both carry toiletries, and CVS carries candy, snacks, cereal, etc.) and they both ship here quickly and inexpensively.
Charles also says, "There is no Hospital on ST John." No, we don't have a full-service hospital but there is a 24-hour clinic, Myrah Keating, with two excellent doctors who both live on island. Yes, in a serious emergency, you will likely be transported to St. Thomas for treatment. There are also two full-service dentist offices (that I know of), two excellent family practice offices and an optometrist is coming soon.
Charles also says, "Limited amount of Restaurants on ST John." I don't know how many restaurants are on STT or STX, but for being a tiny island, St. John actually has a TON of restaurants. A lot of them are in the more expensive range, so you may not eat out often, but there is definitely no lack of selection...I can think of four restaurants alone in The Marketplace (chinese, sushi, deli and vegetarian/Mediterranean).
Of course there are negative things about living here...the island is small, so it's hard to go anywhere without knowing anyone (if you like anonymity, this can be a bad thing). Some people tend to get "rock fever" after being on the island too long, but I have yet to experience this. There is no movie theater, and not a ton of entertainment, so if you need stimulation 24/7, this is not the place for you.
I could go on and on...if you have more questions, please feel free to ask!

Not trying to argue with you Andrea, but we dont see alot of people on this board that are talking about relocating to stj who do not have two professional jobs to look forward to. I would think if your jobs pay well that once you left them their would be steep competition for them. If you can live their and easily afford it more power to you (it is a beautiful island and I'm glad you can), but are you the norm or the exception?

I agree with you on the restaurants, I have many favorites there. Always looking forward to my next vacation there.

I lived in St. John for one year, I am from Michigan and was scared to death to make the wrong decision of moving. I however went with it. I do not regret it and consider it to be one of the best years f my life. It was also one of the hardest. Nothing ventured.......nothing gained.

Betty, I did mention that we are both lucky to have professional jobs. I have no doubt that if either of us left our jobs, there may, in fact, be steep competition between those wanting to fill the jobs.
We are definitely not the norm when it comes to people in our age group (mid to late 20s), who mostly work in bars/restaurants and probably do have two jobs or more, but I just wanted to point out that there are professional jobs to be had and you can live here and not have to work like a dog, even if you are the exception.

Andrea was in no way trying to criticize you for having professional jobs, I'm sure whoever you work for they are lucky to have you. Was just trying to make a point that it was not the norm. But I understand you are also trying to make a point to give people hope.

Thanks everyone for some of the great replies. My husband and I live simply and enjoy reading and outdoor activities so we do not ever require much in the way of entertainment. He will be in the army over on STT and I am a certified fitness instructor and own a studio here in Mass. Our eating tastes are simple and we really enjoyed the dinners at the mojo cafe on our last trip. Very delicious and reasonably priced. Neither of us are designer people and require designer possesions. Hopefully STJ is right for us and we are willing to work hard and experience another part of life since we are only in our late twenties. It is great to hear others have made it and enjoy it or at least do not regret the decision to give it a try.

Thank you very much Andrea for your thoughtful reply as well as to everyone else!

Hi Sara,

If you don't mind me asking, what did you do on STJ in terms of employment or what brought you out there?

quick question,

does anyone ever have friends or relatives ship over goods like hygeine products or dry goods to you using the flat rate shipping boxes or usps? we werer thinking preplanned shipments of the things we like which we may not be able to get or are more expensive could just be packaged up and shipped over by my mother. most likely she would even pay for it! LOL

If your mom would pay for it, by all means go for it. Our parents send us goodie packages now and then, but like I said in my previous post, we use cvs.com and drugstore.com for toiletries, household supplies and snacks, which I would highly recommend.