Buck Island Tours from St. Croix If you like nature. You will love this place.

Yes. Repeat guests get 50% off during the same vacation. 50% off applies to public Buck Island snorkel tours only for repeat guests during the same vacation. Does not apply to sunset sails or private charters.

Buck Island Reef National Monument is about 1½ miles off St. Croix and is reached only by boat, either a private vessel or an authorized concession boat. Our half day cruise always leaves from Christiansted harbor; the Full Day Sail and all other Wave Dancer trips depart Christiansted now and from Green Cay Marina starting Nov 1, 2026; many other private charters leave from Green Cay Marina. For all other tours, please check your confirmation for your departure point, or call us at (340) 773-2628 with any questions.

The National Park Service lists two ways to get there: your own boat (with an NPS anchoring permit) or an authorized concession boat. Caribbean Sea Adventures is an authorized NPS concessioner, so our tours and charters are your ride there and back.

It depends on the boat. Celebration (the Half Day Snorkel) takes about 30 minutes and Mile Mark about 45 minutes. Under sail it’s an hour-plus on the Full Day Sail, and about 1.5 hours on a private sail, depending on the wind. Buck Island is about 1½ miles off St. Croix.

Half day: drinking water, snorkel gear, lessons, a guided tour of the underwater trail and Cruzan Rum Punch on the cruise back to Christiansted harbor. Full day: water, snorkel gear, lessons, a guided tour of the underwater trail and a relaxing couple of hours at Turtle Beach, with an optional short hike to the observation deck. National park fees are included; crew gratuity is not (20–25% is recommended).

No worries! We’ll teach you the proper way to snorkel and help you feel comfortable, and a guide will be in the water with you. We’re happy to assist guests with physical limitations to the best of our ability.

Snacks or lunch, reef-safe sunscreen, a hat, a beach towel and your bathing suit. Buck Island is uninhabited with no visitor services, so bring what you need. Don’t forget cash for tipping your crew. We provide snorkel gear, but you’re welcome to bring your own.

All vessels are equipped in accordance with U.S. Coast Guard regulations. The provided life jackets may not be comfortable for young children, so we recommend bringing your own that your children are comfortable wearing; they’re required to wear them for most of the tour.

Public trips: cancel 48 hours or more ahead for a 100% refund, or within 48 hours for a 50% refund; day-of cancellations and no-shows are not refunded. Private charters: 48 hours or more ahead for a 100% refund. If we cancel for weather, we’ll reschedule or refund you in full.

No. Our full-day trips (the Full Day Sail, Snorkelers in Paradise and Beach & Hike) stay at Buck Island instead of leaving for a lunch stop, so you get more time on the water and the beach. Leaving lunch out keeps the price lower and lets you bring the food and drinks you love, and nothing you’re allergic to.

For most visitors, yes. You snorkel a protected elkhorn coral barrier reef on a marked underwater trail and relax on Turtle Beach, rated by National Geographic as one of the world’s most beautiful beaches. It suits first-time snorkelers and families. Read a captain’s honest answer.

There’s no National Park Service entrance fee, but you need a boat. The Half Day Snorkel is $95 per adult, $75 for ages 3–17 and free for ages 0–2, with park fees included. Private charters start at $900 per boat.

Yes, Buck Island is only visited on day trips: it’s uninhabited, with no visitor services. Choose a 3.5-hour half day, a 5 to 6-hour full day, or a private charter for your own timing.

Yes. The marked underwater snorkel trail runs through the calm lagoon behind the barrier reef, with underwater signs that tell you what you’re seeing. Our guides swim it with you. See our underwater trail guide.

President John F. Kennedy established Buck Island Reef National Monument in 1961 to preserve “one of the finest marine gardens in the Caribbean Sea.” An elkhorn coral barrier reef surrounds about two thirds of the island, and hawksbill, green, leatherback and loggerhead turtles use its beaches.