Which Island?

"We originally were planning on moving to Whaiheke Island, New Zealand but a last minute request by my aging father has caused me to delay that until he is no longer with us anymore. It's really our parents, their age, and proximity is really a determining factor. USVI became a natural spot because of the lack of quarantine for our animals, no immigration concerns, no language concerns, and it is close to Eastern Standard Time"

Dan: I am sorry I caused so much trouble. This is what you said- you wanted to live in the VI because they are closer to your parents, there is no quarantine or immigration concerns and the time difference is not great. Then in the next breath, you said you thought Tenerife was a good idea. Do you see how I perceived your answer? If you want to live in the American tropics, what about a nice place on Maui or Kauai? I really apologize.

dnt: I am going to deal with you later! Behind the woodshed! :X

Right on. We have a history in Tenerife and the Canary Islands. My wife's sis and hub live in Lanzerote (sp?) and we have spent time in Playa de las Americas, Los Christianos and we both speak excellent Spanish. We are also citizens of the EU.

I've received heaps of interesting information concerning USVI. How do the posters that live there like it? So far most posts have hit bullet points, most of which I have brought up. Really the question is do you like living in the USVI, where would live if you could in the USVI and what recommendations do you have?

I've been here 27 years in St. Thomas & love it. It's not perfect but I've made a good life for myself here & I'm not hiding under the bed in fear 24/7. I've survived bad attacks in other places & while there may be a few other safer islands in the Caribbean, our crimes are known & not hushed up the way they are elsewhere.

I don't have children so that's another ball of wax but there's always a nice small-town feel living here. Everywhere you go after you've been here a while you run into people you know. With the internet, the shopping problems common years ago are a thing of the past along with more shopping options here for residents. Usually good plane connections most everywhere from here, too.

I wouldn't live on St. Croix or St. John but most of the people there wouldn't live here either so that's an individual choice that nobody could decide for you. Good luck whereever you wind up.

Oh, one more thing. Nobody here cares what kind of car you drive or what kind of shoes you're wearing or where you live. There are activities & organizations to join for just about anything you're interested in. You might be eating breakfast with an ex-governor sitting at the next table in the local greasy spoon & I bumped into the current gov's wife a month or so ago at a local shopping spot & stopped & had a chat. That doesn't happen in most places.

Ditto Trade's ever wise comments. I think a lot of us came here because: a. we wanted a different life experience, 2. we wanted to live in the tropics, c. we wanted to stay in "kinda" America and not too far FROM "real" America.

And NOBODY envies EastEnder's singing voice. :@)

Right on Trade & EE.

Trade... why wouldn't you live on St. John?

Years ago I was offered a job there & it just wasn't for me. This was before I bought a place here & frankly, it was just a little too "closed" for me. Just not my vibe but it certainly is other peoples'. I'm not one to knock other VI's & don't appreciate it when others knock STT.

Well said, Trade.

One of the best things about St. John is that it's a really small community. One of the worst things about St. John is that it's a really small community. *-)

St. John is the most beautiful and expensive. St. Thomas is a nightmare. To me St. Croix is the best, which is why I live here. In any case you will need to send your children to private schools.

STT is a great place to go for a weekend, but quality of life is much better on STX.

I have lived on STX for about eight years. A few years ago, I was offered a job on STT. After pricing homes, real estate, groceries, gas, etc, comparing STT vs. STX, I had to remain on STX.

Staying on STX vs STT means more money in the pocket=better quality of life. I would rather play more, than work more 8-).

I don't know about that quality of life thing & living here on STT is certainly no nightmare.

I don't know about that quality of life thing & living here on STT is certainly no nightmare.

I laugh when someone points out negatives of one of our sister islands. I think all of it is an acquired taste, so to speak. I know that I loved my brief time on st john and my much longer time on st croix. I must admit, that every time i make a visit to st thomas I feel like a
a frightened and confused child. That is mostly due to the heavy traffic and scary tourists ...oh my. I don't think we are in Christiansted anymore Dorothy

However, where ever you live in the islands you probably have figured out the best way to be happy. One person's nightmare is another persons dream.

I think Dan decided on a different island. One with a better quality of life than stinky St Croix. 😛

I think Dan and STC will be better off.

Uttica:
Staying on STX vs STT means more money in the pocket=better quality of life. I would rather play more, than work more .

As I said, STX is cheaper than STT in almost every way.

More money to save + more money to spend + more money to pay off any bills = higher quality of life.

The math is there, can't disagree with the math.

STX may be "cheaper" than STT, but plenty of people have sufficient income to save, spend, and meet their financial obligations while living on STT. In any case, not everyone defines "quality of life" in monetary terms, and there are also a number of folks who believe "you get what you pay for." So for "can't disagree with the math" to be meaningful to people other than yourself, you need to quantify "quality of life" more comprehensively.

I've spent time on STTand STJ andlive on STX. STT and STJ have their allure. If I had a choice and $ was no object I'd be limin on STJ but I happy and fufilled living on STX for the rest of my life and vacation on Oahu. I've delevoped an inate fear of sub-divisions and shopping malls and high rise buildings. I have to be able to see an infinite horizon line.

I'm pretty sure (real) quality of life doesn't eminate from a place.

I wonder where Dan wound up?

Hey Bombi --

I believe Dan decided to compromise and move to Tenerife.

where is Tenerife? Africa?

LOL... Thanks for all the info. We still haven't decided actually. We are doing a recce later this year that consists of the following islands:

1. STX/STJ
2. Nevis
3. Exuma
4. Curcao SP?
5. Anguilla

Here is a really good link for those that want to move to the Caribbean but aren't sure where to end up:
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/traveler/features/islandsrated0711/islands_caribbean.html

Also, concerning the schooling thing... Nikki and I have decided that since we do not have kids yet that we aren't going to put as much emphasis on school. We are still 5+ years and if we homeschool for the first 2-3 years, it won't be the end of it. Maybe by then we will make the move to Waiheke, which is our favourite place in the entire planet.

LOL... Thanks for all the info. We still haven't decided actually. We are doing a recce later this year that consists of the following islands:

1. STX/STJ
2. Nevis
3. Exuma
4. Curcao SP?
5. Anguilla

Here is a really good link for those that want to move to the Caribbean but aren't sure where to end up:
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/traveler/features/islandsrated0711/islands_caribbean.html

Also, concerning the schooling thing... Nikki and I have decided that since we do not have kids yet that we aren't going to put as much emphasis on school. We are still 5+ years and if we homeschool for the first 2-3 years, it won't be the end of it. Maybe by then we will make the move to Waiheke, which is our favourite place in the entire planet.

Hey Dan
Great list, I looked at several over the years and loved some of them, but it just never worked out. I don't know Nevis or Curacao except by very brief looks. Exuma and all of the Bahamas outer islands ( we spent time on the Abacos) are really nice, low key and mostly rural. The Bahamas are farther north (like Turks & Caicos, another possibility) so the winter waters are a bit cooler if that makes a difference.

Anguilla was our first choice for a long time. The island is scruffy looking, nothing as beautiful as St John but the beaches and water are better. The problem there is much like the BVI's, they are a British Island and not very welcoming to Continentals. They love the Continentals money, but make it difficult to own a home or participate in the local government. Speaking of British Islands, I wonder how they are all viewing the "take over" of Turks & Caicos by the British government? This is a big event that is not getting much notice. Apparently the government corruption there finally got noticed. Wonder if that will ever happen here?

We finally came back to St Croix because it is USA ( that might not be as important to you). It is developed, but NO highrise hotels or condos, no overdevelopment, still feels rural. Friendly people, almost a village feeling at times. You have heard about the crime problems, but it has never touched us (early to bed....) we hope the police will improve and begin to clean things up. Real estate is fairly priced . As an example, you can find a nice newer beach front house for under 2 million dollars (some as cheap as $700,000). On St John there are very few beach front homes and they start at about 5 millions dollar. Houses on St John cost roughly twice what they do on St Croix. Good luck with your search.

LOL... Thanks for all the info. We still haven't decided actually. We are doing a recce later this year that consists of the following islands:

1. STX/STJ
2. Nevis
3. Exuma
4. Curcao SP?
5. Anguilla

Here is a really good link for those that want to move to the Caribbean but aren't sure where to end up:
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/traveler/features/islandsrated0711/islands_caribbean.html

Also, concerning the schooling thing... Nikki and I have decided that since we do not have kids yet that we aren't going to put as much emphasis on school. We are still 5+ years and if we homeschool for the first 2-3 years, it won't be the end of it. Maybe by then we will make the move to Waiheke, which is our favourite place in the entire planet.

Hey Dan
Great list, I looked at several over the years and loved some of them, but it just never worked out. I don't know Nevis or Curacao except by very brief looks. Exuma and all of the Bahamas outer islands ( we spent time on the Abacos) are really nice, low key and mostly rural. The Bahamas are farther north (like Turks & Caicos, another possibility) so the winter waters are a bit cooler if that makes a difference.

Anguilla was our first choice for a long time. The island is scruffy looking, nothing as beautiful as St John but the beaches and water are better. The problem there is much like the BVI's, they are a British Island and not very welcoming to Continentals. They love the Continentals money, but make it difficult to own a home or participate in the local government. Speaking of British Islands, I wonder how they are all viewing the "take over" of Turks & Caicos by the British government? This is a big event that is not getting much notice. Apparently the government corruption there finally got noticed. Wonder if that will ever happen here?

We finally came back to St Croix because it is USA ( that might not be as important to you). It is developed, but NO highrise hotels or condos, no overdevelopment, still feels rural. Friendly people, almost a village feeling at times. You have heard about the crime problems, but it has never touched us (early to bed....) we hope the police will improve and begin to clean things up. Real estate is fairly priced . As an example, you can find a nice newer beach front house for under 2 million dollars (some as cheap as $700,000). On St John there are very few beach front homes and they start at about 5 millions dollar. Houses on St John cost roughly twice what they do on St Croix. Good luck with your search.

Thank you for well thought response Ms. Info. We are looking forward to our Recce. We are expanding our list to include Dominica & Belize.

So, STT is off the list!
I guess that means we won`t run out of ice & hamburger rolls as fast!:@)

Dan: The National Geographic article is interesting. It doesn't tell you about immigration and labor laws, which are preyty tough in most of the Caribbean. If you are just spending 5 years on the beach, you should put St Barts and Mustique on your list! 😉