When talking about the US Virgin Islands, most people refer to the 3 main islands of St. Thomas, St. John and St. Croix. But most people don’t know that there is another island, sometimes referred to as the 4th Virgin Island. It’s hardly known at all even though it’s in extremely close proximity to one of the other islands. You can see it from the shore of Charlotte Amalie in St. Thomas: Water Island, US Virgin Islands 4th island.
If you haven’t heard of Water Island before, you aren’t alone. I didn’t know it existed until I started researching the Virgin Islands and stumbled upon a site that said there were FOUR main US Virgin Islands. I don’t know if I would necessarily classify it as a main island myself, but there are plenty of sites that do.
For instance, there is no main town on Water Island, very few cars and for the most part, the residents have to take the ferry over to Charlotte Amalie for shopping. But there are people who live there, a few places to stay, two restaurants, a scheduled ferry, etc. It’s just not what I think of as a main island, especially when coming from St. Thomas.
About Water Island, US Virgin Islands
Water Island is located directly south of St. Thomas. It was acquired by the US government in 1944 to improve coastal defenses during WWII and was apparently bought for only $10,000. The island is a fraction of the size of St. Thomas, being only about 2.5 miles long and between ½-1 mile wide. The Department of the Interior took over in 1950 and that’s when some development started taking place.
Do people live on Water Island? Yes. There are about 200 people who live on Water Island throughout the year, but not all of them live there full time. Many of the houses on the island are pretty large and sit high up in the hills. The north eastern part of the island is a private community so I don’t think you can access that part.
While it’s a bit off-the-grid, you can still find things like a post office with mailboxes and a mini mart for some food supplies. Both of these you’ll see immediately upon landing. The post office doubles as a library, with books on top of all the mail boxes. And the mini mart is located just past the mail room. There’s a nice beach and two restaurants but other than that, there’s not a whole lot on the island. Which is part of the appeal, I suppose.
How to Get There
The ferry from St. Thomas to Water Island is only a 10 minute boat ride. You’ll need to get to the Crown Bay Marina in Charlotte Amalie where the ferry departs. There’s plenty of parking and it costs $15 for the day. Then head to Tickles Dockside Pub near the water–look for the big red roof on the corner.
If you’ve already taken a day trip somewhere else, you might be looking for something a bit larger, but the ferry to Water Island is not a big ferry boat. It’s more like a little, rusted tug boat. It fits maybe 20-25 people (surprisingly) and you probably don’t need to worry about it filling up. Roundtrip tickets are $15 for adults ($5 for children). Make sure you bring cash with you to pay for your tickets and you can pay when you arrive.
The Water Island ferry schedule is very consistent, leaving every hour on the hour from Crown Bay Marina from 8:00am-6:00pm. (On Sundays and holidays, it operates from 9:00am- 6:00pm.) You’ll arrive at Phillips Landing on Water Island (named after the developer, Walter Phillips).
When you’re ready to return, you’ll just need to show them the return card they hand you when you initially pay for your trip. So make sure you don’t lose that card!
Also, because a lot of people come over on a day trip, they are likely staying for as long as they can, which means the ferry could fill up towards the later part of the day. If you want to make sure you get on the ferry back, you might want to head back to the dock a little early. They do offer after-hour boat rides in case you want to come back later, but you’ll have to arrange that will the captain and it will probably be an extra fee.
Getting Around Water Island
One of the best parts about Water Island is that there are hardly any cars on the island. The main mode of transportation? Golf carts! The main place to rent golf carts is Rachael’s Rentals which is just at the top of the hill when you get off the ferry. Golf cart rentals are $55/day and I’d reserve it ahead of time to make sure you get one. They’re a hot commodity on the island!
For the most part, the roads look like the picture above. If you rent a golf cart, you can drive around to see the views of the island and explore a little more easily. I think we saw one actual car (a small truck) when we were there–otherwise, you’ll see that each house on the island has at least 2 golf carts to get around. There aren’t any stoplights or anything like that, but you may see the occasional stop sign that says ‘Stop, den go!’ I love places where golf carts are the main mode of transportation.
But do you need a golf cart to get around? It depends what you want to do and how much you like walking. We opted to not get one and explore by foot instead. Is it doable? Sure. We got there early so we had the time to explore and walked to the fort and back on different roads. It probably took us about 30 minutes to walk to the fort. The road was at an incline but not drastically steep.
Things to do on Water Island, US Virgin Islands
There aren’t too many things to do on Water Island but it’s still a cute place to explore. I’d say more like a handful of things to do, which is why this island makes a good day trip from St. Thomas.
Hang out on Honeymoon Beach
One of the main draws in coming over to Water Island is Honeymoon Beach. Even on days where it was rainy in the morning and cloudy in the afternoon (like when we went), you could still tell it was one of the prettier beaches in the US Virgin Islands. I think on sunny days, you’d get a really beautiful spot.
Honeymoon Beach is just a short walk from the ferry–up and down a hill. So if you’re planning on just hanging out on the beach, there’s no need to rent a golf cart. Plus, if you arrive at a certain time, the restaurant has free shuttles that will pick you up and take you to the beach. I assume it’s when the restaurant is open which is between 10:30am-8:30pm. We came over on the 8:00am ferry and it was definitely not operating ha.
The beach has several tiki umbrellas to provide shade and lots of activities to do. They have a sand volleyball court and I think even ping pong tables under a tent. You can rent kayaks, paddle boards, snorkel gear and beach chairs/umbrellas. They have a floating bar and live music at times–I think it can be pretty lively, though it was pretty quiet when we were there.
Visit Fort Segarra
When the government acquired Water Island, Fort Segarra was built to improve the coastal defenses during WWII. However, the war ended before the guns were installed on the emplacements. One of the main things to see is the observation tower at the top of the hill. It gives you a great view of the rest of the island and of St. Thomas behind it.
If you wander around the fort, you’ll find small openings with ladders that leads underground, though I had no desire to go down them. For one, it’s pitch dark and two, the only thing you can see is a pile of trash (unfortunately) at the bottom. Further exploration of the area will lead you to gun emplacements and tunnels to underground bunkers.
The tunnels look pretty dark and scary too. If you do go inside, make sure to watch your step as there are a few holes in the ground covered by shifty wood planks. Most of the rooms have been boarded up and closed off, but it’s still a little creepy exploring. In case you were wondering what it looked like inside:
Get Lunch at Dinghy’s
Most of the events, rentals and everything happening on Honeymoon Beach is coming from Dinghy’s Beach Bar and Grill. It’s the only restaurant on the beach (and only one of two on the island) and sort of the go-to place if you need anything. They’re open from 10am-11pm and you’ll see a lot of boaters coming in just to stop for lunch.
The food and drinks were decent and not terribly priced. Most things on the menu are between $14-20. They’ve got beach chairs and rentals here, and apparently do the occasional movie night on the beach.
Or Grab a Bite at Heidi’s Hilltop Hideaway
There’s another restaurant on Water Island as well: Heidi’s Hilltop Hideaway. She used to be located on the other end of Honeymoon Beach but the restaurant was damaged during a hurricane. Eventually, she moved inland to a hilltop with a view. She serves lunch on Wednesdays and Thursdays, and is open throughout the day from Friday-Sunday (closed Mondays and Tuesdays). The consensus is that she has the best fish tacos.
Grab some Shaved Ice at the Crossroads
If you walk up the main road (which is called Main Road) on your way to the fort, you’ll eventually come to the Crossroads. The Crossroads is where you’ll find a shaved ice stand and a tiny art gallery. The little gallery has art from about 20 different local artists (which is quite a lot since the island’s population is only about 200). It was closed when we walked by, but then it was about 9:30am. I think it may only be open during the middle of the day from Fri-Sun.
Explore Limestone Beach
On the opposite side of the island from Honeymoon Beach is another beach, though it isn’t nearly as nice. Limestone Beach is a hike down a foot path and leads you to a rockier beach. You’ll want to make sure you have good shoes because it is a rock beach. It’s another place to explore and find sea glass but it’s not a beach to relax at.
Find the Carolina Point Plantation Ruins
At one point in history, Water Island had several plantations that were owned and operated by black men. One of those plantations has been turned into a private residence. Another one, Carolina Point Plantation, was excavated and the ruins are accessible for people to see. It’s about a mile and a half from the ferry location and I think you have to hike there and ditch the golf cart, as it’s along a dirt road. We hiked to the fort instead and since this is in the complete opposite direction, we didn’t get here. I was only able to find about 1-2 blurry pictures online, so I’m really curious as to what you would find there.
Staying on Water Island
Given the size of the island, I was surprised that there are actually places to stay here, but only a handful. You’ll want to book in advance since the options are limited. Also, on maps of the island, you’ll see the ‘Virgin Islands Campground’. I assumed it was a campground that people could…camp at. But it’s actually an eco-sensitive resort where you can book cottages. Just to throw that out there in case you also assume people are pitching tents on the island–they aren’t.
Also, if you do plan on staying on the island, you’ll want to be mindful that some of the accommodations have minimum night stays.
Where to Stay:
- Virgin Islands Campground
- Water Island Hotel and Villas
- Or you can see who’s renting their house or boat on Vrbo (but make sure you zoom in on Water Island, otherwise you’ll get St. Thomas options)
Is Water Island Worth Visiting?
Before I went myself, I had read pretty mixed reviews online. Some people said it was their favorite day of their trip and others said it was an overpriced day trip with not much to do. And even after going, I feel a little indifferent about it. While it was fun to see and explore, I can’t say that it was the most fun thing we did. I think if we had rented a golf cart, we would have had a bit more fun driving around because golf carts are a fun factor by themselves.
It was definitely neat seeing another island–one that is more quiet and secluded. It’s cute and quaint and I was very curious to see this ‘4th island’. If you have the time, then it’s worth going over for a day to explore. But if you only have a few days in St. Thomas, I’d suggest exploring there and taking a day trip over to St. John first.
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Thank you, Madam ! This looks like a very romantic spot !