What Non-perishable Foods to bring & save money too

Dear Gary,

Not sure what your situation is, but when we moved to the VI, we paid by the pound. I thought the same way you did, and wound up bringing a bunch of things I regretted.

I would recommend you bring fresh(er) spices, vanilla beans, etc. if you like to cook. I don't think you'll really save that much on things like peanut butter by shipping it there. Groceries are expensive in the VIs....my advice would be to bring specialty items that are lightweight (if weight is an issue) and hard to find, rather than staples.

I'd go to Bed, Bath & Beyond or Pier 1 and get mosquito netting for around the bed. BB&B sells a square one for $50 that was "on sale" in St. Thomas for $125! That's lightweight and definitely useful.

Good luck!

Best,

LR

Is mosquito netting a must for December thru May?
Thanks!

Dear loyal reader, my container has no weight restrictions. We did not experience the need for netting at sugar beach but I am sure when we buy we will need it. If no restrictions on weight then what. tks

Gary,
If you're bringing a 40' container w/no weight restrictions, you might want to purchase a generator. Even if you're starting off at Sugar Beach, when you buy property, you're gonna' need one. Unless the property you buy comes with one. If that's the case, then you can sell it for what you paid for it. Another item would be a power washer. You'd be surprised how often you'll need one. Power washing pool decks, sidewalks, exterior of your house. I use my power washer on average every 3 months to rid my property of mold/mildew. A good UPS back up power supply is a must for electronics . Gotta' protect your tv/stereo/computer from brownouts and power surges (thank you WAPA!) I also agree that a mosquito net for over the bed is a must. Even at the condo (Sugar Beach) if you sleep with the windows open mosquitos, no-seeums, and other flying insects can still get in. Good bed sheets are hard to find here. I bought Martha Stewart sheets at K-Mart and they were horrible. I ended up ordering on line from Linen Source and got fabulous cotton 800 thread count for about what the K-Mart sheets cost. As for non-perishable foods, if you drink a specialty soda ("Squirt" for example) they are not readily available on island. You can find most cooking items on St. Croix (albeit at a higher price--one of the "joys" of island living).

Yes. We have mosquitos all year round. They're worse after the rain...and we've had a very rainy last couple of months of STX. Even if living in an a/c condo.

We live in a house without A/C and we've never had any problem with mosquitos in the house. We live on the edge of the rainforest and do have them around the house. During the rainy season it's almost impossible to sit on the gallery in the evening.

Screen doors - I was quoted $260 for a 6' sliding screen door on STX.

Getting back to non-perishable foods...the last time I was in STT there were no pretzels in the grocery store. Can you imagine all that beer and no pretzels. Not sure how it is now, but about a year ago we were pretzeless.

ok. this isn't a food but........if you've got some extra space and they're not charging you by weight then you may consider paper products like paper towels, toilet paper, etc. I can imagine these items take up significant space in a container with a grocer's order/shipment.....or, maybe I'm not aware of all the overhead/costs. At least on STT, I find these items priced at a premium.