Things to Do on St. Croix Beyond the Boat: Towns, Rum, Rainforest and Festivals

Our crew spends most days on the water, but some of our favorite St. Croix days happen on dry land. This guide is the companion to our list of things to do in St. Croix: where that one starts with Buck Island and the national parks, this one is about the island between boat days. Towns to wander, rum to taste, a rainforest drive, gardens, beaches, food and the festivals worth planning a trip around. Hours, fees and dates for places we don’t run change often, so check with each one before you go.

Christiansted: the boardwalk and the old Danish town

Start on the Christiansted boardwalk, where the harbor, the shops and the restaurants all meet. Just behind it is Christiansted National Historic Site. Established in 1952, it was the first National Park Service unit in the U.S. Virgin Islands, and its more than seven acres on the waterfront tell the story of the Danish era (1734–1917). Fort Christiansvaern, once home to the Danish governor, is the centerpiece, but give yourself time for the Danish Customs House, the Scale House, the old Danish West India and Guinea Company warehouse and the Steeple Building, a church completed in 1751 whose steeple was added in the 1790s.

The fort charges an entrance fee for adults, and children under 16 get in free with an adult; see the park’s plan your visit page for current fees and hours. Then wander the old streets, find a shady lunch spot and finish back on the boardwalk as the boats come in. Christiansted is also where our Half Day Snorkel leaves from, so a morning on the reef and an afternoon in town fit together nicely.

Frederiksted: the pier and the west-end pace

On the other side of the island, Frederiksted moves at a slower pace. The Ann E. Abramson Pier is St. Croix’s only cruise ship port, stretching more than 1,500 feet into the sea, and it’s also a favorite spot for snorkeling and diving around the pilings. One rule to know: when a cruise ship is docked, only passengers and crew can go on the pier, and swimming, snorkeling and diving around it aren’t allowed. Fort Frederik, the island’s other main Danish fort, is in town too; our things to do guide has its history. Stay for sunset: the west end looks straight out at it.

Rum distillery tours: Cruzan and Captain Morgan

Rum is part of St. Croix’s story, and both of the island’s big distilleries welcome visitors.

• Cruzan Rum Distillery. At Estate Diamond, on the west side of the island, Cruzan runs a guided walking tour of its working distillery that lasts about an hour and ends with rum samples and cocktails at the tasting bar in its renovated visitor center. Reservations are required, and you book on Cruzan’s website. Children are welcome on the tour and get juice or soft drinks instead of rum.
• Captain Morgan Experience Center. Just off the Melvin Evans Highway on the south shore, this is a guided rum experience of about 45 minutes, with the brand’s history, an overview of how the rum is made and a tasting. It all happens inside the experience center rather than in the distillery itself. Reservations are recommended (Captain Morgan Visitor Center FAQ).

If you’re tasting, plan a designated driver or a taxi. Remember, too, that on St. Croix you drive on the left.

The west-end rainforest and Mahogany Road

Head north from Frederiksted and the dry, sunny coast gives way to the island’s wettest, greenest corner. Mahogany Road (Route 76) climbs inland from the coast road under a tall canopy of mahogany and other big trees, one of the prettiest drives on the island. Take it slowly.

About two miles up the road is St. Croix LEAP, the Life and Environmental Arts Project. For decades this open-air woodworking shop has turned storm-felled and salvaged mahogany and other local hardwoods into serving boards, tables, clocks and carvings. Recent visitors describe a quieter place than the old guidebooks do, so check that it’s open before you make a special trip.

Plantation history: Estate Whim and the botanical garden

Two west-end stops tell the story of St. Croix’s sugar era, with very different moods.

Estate Whim Museum, owned and run by the St. Croix Landmarks Society, is the only sugar plantation museum on the island. The NPS notes that its restored 18th-century buildings tell the stories of the Europeans who sought their fortunes here and of the enslaved Africans whose skill and labor built the estate and worked its fields. It also holds a rare book library and archives (NPS nearby attractions).

The St. George Village Botanical Garden covers 16 acres planted with more than 1,000 Caribbean and tropical plants and trees, set among the ruins of Estate St. George, one of the island’s early sugar plantations. According to the garden, the estate was burned in the 1878 Fireburn, its sugar factory closed in 1916, and the land was donated in the 1970s to create the garden. Its small museum, in a building that once housed enslaved workers, displays artifacts from the Amerindian people who lived on the site long before the Danes. Bring water and a hat, and give yourself a couple of unhurried hours.

Sandy Point: check before you go

Sandy Point National Wildlife Refuge, at the island’s southwestern tip, is, according to the NPS, the largest leatherback nesting beach in the U.S. and its territories. It’s also one of the island’s most beautiful stretches of sand, which is why access is carefully managed. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service closes the beach from roughly mid-April to August every year to protect nesting turtles and hatchlings. The rest of the year it has typically opened only on weekends, so check the refuge’s current schedule before you drive out. There’s little shade and no facilities, pets aren’t allowed, and nothing (umbrellas included) can be staked into the sand.

Sunrise at Point Udall

Point Udall is the easternmost point of the United States, and getting there for sunrise is a St. Croix rite of passage, especially on New Year’s morning. Look for the Millennium Monument, a giant sundial built for the New Year of 2000 to mark where the first sunrise of the new millennium touched American soil. There’s no admission charge, and on a clear night it’s a great place for stargazing too.

Two beaches with very different moods

• Rainbow Beach is about a mile north of the Frederiksted pier on Route 63. The water is calm for swimming, paddleboarding and snorkeling, and there’s a beach bar and restaurant with chair, umbrella and water-sports rentals (GoToStCroix). It gets lively on weekends and cruise ship days, and the bottom is rocky in places, so watch your step.
• Cane Bay, on the north shore road (Route 80), is famous among divers for the Cane Bay Wall. About 100 yards out, the reef drops from around 40 feet to more than 3,200 feet, and divers reach it from the beach or by boat. The north shore can get surge and swell, so check conditions and never swim alone.

Eat like a Crucian

Don’t leave without a paté, a fried pastry filled with spiced beef, chicken, conch, saltfish or vegetables, or a johnnycake, the island’s fried bread, alongside chicken roasted over an open fire. Fish and fungi, a cornmeal and okra side, is a true Crucian plate, and kallaloo is a hearty stew of local greens and okra. Our captain has a couple of favorite spots of his own: see our St. Croix local food guide.

Festivals worth planning around

• Crucian Christmas Festival. St. Croix’s carnival builds through December and peaks in the first week of January. It centers on the Festival Village in Frederiksted, with nightly music and food, J’ouvert in the early morning and the Children’s and Adults’ parades along King Street (GoToStCroix).
• Jump Up. Several times a year, downtown Christiansted closes its streets on a Friday evening for a street party with live music, steel pan, food and craft vendors and mocko jumbies on stilts. It has traditionally been held four times a year, but dates change, so check the schedule.
• AgriFest. The St. Croix Agriculture and Food Fair is held each February at the Rudolph Shulterbrandt Agricultural Complex in Estate Lower Love (UVI). Come hungry: it’s a great place to try local dishes and produce.

Mix in a day on the water

The best St. Croix trips mix land and sea. Snorkel the reef at Buck Island in the morning on our Half Day Snorkel (3.5 hours, from $75), then spend the afternoon in Christiansted. End a day of exploring on a two-hour sunset cruise (from $35), or plan your own day on a private charter (from $900 per boat). See all our Buck Island tours to compare. With several boats departing from both Christiansted and Green Cay Marina, please check your confirmation for your departure point, or call us at (340) 773-2628 with any questions.