Necessities -- What are they?

Money.

What island are you talking about? I'm on the south side of STT so have no issues with mold/mildew. The north side can have that problem. What's important to bring varies from person to person.

We lost all of our old videotapes due to the humidity. If you have old home movies that haven't been transferred, i would suggest that you leave them in the states. I'm not sure if anyone else has had that problem. I haven't had books go bad - only ones that were accidentally left in a shower. I've heard that people keep paper in the refrigerator (printer paper, etc...) to keep it from bending or getting ruined. I've alsways lived here, so there's nothing that i wish i had and didn't get or that i was happy to have brought with me...well, sometimes i wish we had a Target, but that's too much to pack, especially with the airline baggage fees 😉

I agree with nforbes about not bringing movies - and I will add pictures to that too. Leave any pictures/home movies of value some place safe on the continent.

It has been mentioned before, but you'll probably be just fine without most of your stuff. I don't miss most of ours.

That said, several possessions have made it "feel like home" to us: the treasured knick-knacks, family photos, our porch furniture and my big comfy chair. These have allowed us to feel settled more quickly and they are fairly portable, which has been a plus as we've moved twice since getting here.

Leave the desktop computer behind and come with a laptop.

If you're going to be renting for a while, which is a good idea, you won't know exactly what each house/apt will have in its kitchen kit, so leave some well packed & clearly marked boxes of Kitchen Stuff with someone who can ship them to you as needed. You can buy what you need when you get here, but it's kind of sad how attached you can feel to a favorite toaster from home!

And since no one has yet mentioned it: bring money.

I believe you and I think along the same lines, nforbes.

I am headed to St. Croix, Trade.

Books tend to mold or mildew faster here. If you have valuable books, leave them somewhere safe & climate controlled.

Safe Travels! Welcome to St. Croix!

For books you want to keep mildew free, I have them in large ziplocks with absorbent silica gel packs you find in new shoes. And I wipe the covers with a soft cloth every other month or so. If you don't have to worry about shipping, buy a decent generator in the states, they are cheaper and you will use it.

I live on stx and have lived west, center-north and east. I'm a bookworm so I've got a lot of books and I've never had a problem, but I've heard other stx'ers complain about it on this board. Don't know anyone in real life that has had a problem. If you aren't the type that rereads them donate them to a charity. Other ship them media mail by usps, much cheaper. The only problem i've had with paper products is envelopes sticking together, so i but the kind now that you rip off the sticker.

Don't go crazy trying to ship stuff down here. You will go back stateside for trips. You can order stuff on the internet. Don't bring too much, especially til you know this is home. You really need less here not more stuff. Bring the stuff thats important to you. Bring your hobby stuff ( do you sew, quilt, etc..), bring entertainment stuff (tvs, video games, computers), etc.....don't bring enough for a large home, chances are good your new home will be smaller with less storage. Good Luck.

patience and a sense of humor

Betty, your best post ever. I agree completely. I have hundreds of books. No problem. I reread so if anyone wants to borrow books please come visit me. Arts and crafts are expensive here so like Betty says bring what you are interested in. Also a generator is a must.

Generator is a good one. Just need a small one if you're renting. The bigger it is the more it cost to maintain. If you''re just renting you just need enough to run the pump and run the fridge for about eight to 10 hours depending how old your fridge is. And maybe the a/c at night if its really hot, but its not usually worth the noise, the wear and tear on your machine and possible suffication.

We need a book club...

The fewer things you feel are necessities, the better your chances of living in the USVI successfully.

I am a jewelry maker, planning on bringing some supplies. I mail order most my stuff so there should not be a huge uptick in cost. I am also all for a book club. I am torn between heading to Half Price Books to pair down the collection or bring them all and introduce some new reading material to either the local library or just whoever tells me they are interested in reading that book first. My coworker from Puerto Rico said get rid of everything now but people keep talking about expense on the island and I am curious. . .Would I just be bringing more trash since they are technically not my necessities or am I providing inexpensive entertainment for members of the island community. I will be a long-term islander barring a promotion. Considering I just received one, it is unlikely that another will follow in less than a couple years.

The animal shelter flea market (on STX) has a large selection of books and they gladly accept donations of books to add to their selection. I would not say that bringing books would be bringing more trash. It could provide income to help the animals on island.

Leave it stateside, you're just adding to your expenses. You can't worry about others enjoyment. It's expensive to live here, gotta start thinking like an islander and get thrifty. Only bring what you need and things you enjoy and use regularly.

You're coming, I assume, for a change of life so start changing your thinking now. You will be amazed at what you don't miss and what you do. Its a little different for everyone. But I think most would agree you can live with much less stuff

betty the bookclub meets tonight at 6:30 at undercover books in gallows bay

Ahhh...that's too bad, I've got to go out with the hubby and some of his co workers that are in from stateside. Let me know if they pick a better book then the one you mentioned in the stx today thread. I have another friend that always offers to get me in hers, but the books they read are pretty dreadful. Thats the only bad part about the book clubs 😉 Give me a book club that appreciates someone like isable allende, lisa see, etc and i'm in. If i'm going to read regular fiction I need some meat to it.

If you're hard to fit in clothing or shoes, etc. stock up up there. If you regularly take medicine & can get prescriptions filled for a year's worth, do it. Also if you take over the counter stuff regularly you can get that much cheaper up there also.