GENERAL
Capital
Charlotte Amalie (St. Thomas).
Geography
The 50 or so American Virgin Islands are surrounded by a sparkling turquoise sea, overgrown with tropical vegetation and are about 60 km east of Puerto Rico. They form the first link in the chain of the Leeward Islands. St. Thomas, one of the three main islands with an excellent deep sea harbor, is long, narrow and rises to a mountain ridge. St. John is largely covered by dense rainforest and has fine sandy beaches. St. Croix, the largest of the archipelago, consists of hilly land that was formerly covered by plantations.
Government
US territory. The islands have a lower level of self-government than Puerto Rico. Parliament (Senate) with 15 members who are elected every 2 years.
Head of state
Donald Trump, since January 2017.
Head of government
Governor John de Jongh, since January 2007.
Electricity
120 V, 60 Hz.
Time zone
Atlantic Standard Time: CET -5
GETTING THERE
Arriving by plane
Lufthansa (LH) (Internet: www.lufthansa.de), Austrian (OS) (Internet: www.aua.com) and Swiss International (LX) (Internet: www.swiss.com) offer daily flights from, along with other European airlines German, Austrian and Swiss airports to the USA. Daily direct flight service with American Airlines (AA) (Internet: www.aa.com) from Miami to St. Croix and St. Thomas. American Airlines and United Airlines (UA) also fly non-stop from New York to St. Thomas. deltaflies daily from Atlanta, Georgia to St. Thomas (Internet: www.delta.com). American Airlines offers additional flights with a stopover in San Juan, Puerto Rico to St. Croix and / or St. Thomas. Commuter flights from San Juan are operated by Air Sunshine (Internet: www.airsunshine.com), Envoy / American Airlines (Internet: www.aa.com), Cape Air (Internet: www.flycapeair.com) and LIAT (Internet: www. liat.com) and offered.
Flight times
Frankfurt – St. Croix: 14 hours (including a stopover); Zurich – St. Croix: 14 hours; Vienna – St. Croix: 15 hours 30 minutes
Arrival by ship
The largest passenger ports are Charlotte Amalie (St. Thomas) and Frederiksted (St. Croix). The American Virgin Islands are often visited as part of Caribbean cruises by the shipping companies Carnival (Internet: www.carnival.com), Celebrity (Internet: www.celebrity.com), Cunard (Internet: www.cunardline.com), Holland America (Internet: www.hollandamerica.com), Norwegian (Internet: www.ncl.com), Princess (Internet: www.princess.com), Radisson Seven Seas (Internet: www.rssc.com) and Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines (Internet: www.royalcaribbean.com) from Miami, New York, Port Canaveral or Fort Lauderdale (Florida) or San Juan (Puerto Rico). Information on cruise ships docking in the Virgin Islands is available from the US Virgin Islands Department of Tourism (see addresses). There are regular ferry connections between St. Thomas and St. John and the British Virgin Islands.
ON THE GO
Traveling by plane
National flight connections exist between St. Thomas and St. Croix and are operated by Cape Air (Internet: www.flycapeair.com), Air Sunshine (Internet: www.airsunshine.com) and Seaborne Airlines (Internet: www.seaborneonline.com) offered.
On the way by car / bus
Generally good connections between all major cities. Bus: On St. Thomas and St. Croix there are regular services on the following routes: St. Thomas: Charlotte Amalie – Red Hook, Charlotte Amalie – Bordeaux (St. Thomas) and city buses in Charlotte Amalie; St. Croix: Christiansted – Frederiksted; St. John: Cruz Bay – Coral Bay. Taxis operate standard routes at fixed prices on all three islands. Often several passengers share a taxi. Rental cars: Available at the airports and in the larger towns on St. Thomas, St. Croix and St. John. Jeeps or mini-mokes are popular and can also be rented. Documents: driver’s license from your own country.
Traffic regulations:
left-hand traffic.
Speed limits:
within built-up areas: 35 km / h,
outside built-up areas: 55 km / h.
On the way by ship
Passenger ferries operate from Red Hook, St. Thomas to Cruz Bay, St. John at 6:30 am, 7:30 am, and every hour from 8:00 am until midnight; from Cruz Bay to Red Hook (duration: 15-20 min.) from 6:00 a.m. to 12:00 a.m. every hour; from Charlotte Amalie (St. Thomas) to Cruz Bay (duration: approx. 45 min.) from 9 am every 2 hours and at 4 pm and 5.30 pm; from Cruz Bay to Charlotte Amalie every two hours between 7.15am and 1.15pm and at 2.15pm and 3.34pm.
Car ferries operate between Red Hook and Cruz Bay and between Charlotte Amalie and Cruz Bay.
MONEY
Currency
Information see UNITED STATES.
Credit cards
Mainly MasterCard and Visa, but also American Express and Diners Club are accepted. Details from the issuer of the credit card in question.
ATMs
ec / Maestro card / Sparcard
Attention: Travelers who pay abroad with their bank customer card and want to withdraw money should find out about the possibilities of using their card from their bank before starting their journey.
Bank opening times
Mon-Thu 9 a.m.-2.30 p.m., Fri 9 a.m.-4 p.m.
Foreign exchange regulations
No restrictions. The import and export of amounts with an equivalent value of US $ 10,000 or more (including bearer shares, travelers checks, money orders) must be declared. Warning: related persons are legally considered to be one person for foreign exchange purposes.
LANGUAGE
Overview
The official language is English. Spanish and Creole are widely spoken.
PUBLIC HOLIDAYS
DUTY-FREE SHOPPING
Overview
All gifts and spirits have to be cleared, otherwise customs regulations as for the USA.
For more information see USA.
ECONOMY
Economy
St. Croix Chamber of Commerce
3009 Orange Grove, Ste 12, Christiansted St. Croix 00820
Tel: 773 14 35.
Internet: www.stxchamber.org
St. Thomas-St. John Chamber of Commerce
PO Box 324, Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas 00804
Tel: 776 01 00.
Internet: www.usvichamber.com
Business contacts
St. Croix Chamber of Commerce
3009 Orange Grove, Ste 12, Christiansted St. Croix 00820
Tel: 773 14 35.
Internet: www.stxchamber.org
St. Thomas-St. John Chamber of Commerce
PO Box 324, Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas 00804
Tel: 776 01 00.
Internet: www.usvichamber.com
COMMUNICATION
Phone
International direct dialing.
Cellphone
GSM 1900. Network operator is AT&T Wireless (Internet: www.attwireless.com).
Internet
Internet provider is VIAccess (Internet: www.viaccess.net). There are internet cafes on all three main islands.
Post Office
Post office opening times: Mon-Fri 9 am-5pm, Sat 9 am-12pm. Airmail to Europe takes up to a week on its way.
Radio
Since the use of shortwave frequencies changes several times over the course of a year, it is advisable to contact Deutsche Welle customer service directly (Tel: (+49) (0228) 429 32 08. Internet: www.dw-world.de) to request.
SHOP
Overview
Luxury items up to US $ 1200 are tax-free and therefore inexpensive. Watches, jewelry, cameras, china, leather goods, perfume, spirits and designer clothing can be purchased cheaply. The best malls are in Charlotte Amalie and St. Thomas.
Shop opening times: Mon-Sat 9 am-5pm.
NIGHTLIFE
Introduction
Steel bands and limbo dances are popular. There are night clubs on St. Thomas; many hotels offer entertainment programs.
CULINARY
ACCOMMODATION
Hotels
The offer is broad, there are more hotels per square kilometer than on the other Caribbean islands. The overnight prices are based on the hotel class, but are generally higher than the prices on other Caribbean islands. The hotel association has a booking desk at the airport. Guest houses and holiday homes and apartments are available on St. John and St. Thomas. Information points: US Virgin Islands Hotel and Tourism Association, PO Box 2300, St. Thomas, VI 00803. (Tel: 774 68 35. Internet: http://www.virgin-islands-hotels.com/) or St. Croix Hotel Association, PO Box 24238, Gallows Bay, St. Croix, VI 00824. (Tel: 773 71 17 or 800 524 20 26).
Camping
There are two campsites on St. John. Cinnamon Bay Camp is located in the middle of St. John National Park. Places can be booked for stays of a maximum of 2 weeks. Advance reservation is recommended. Address: Cinnamon Bay Camp, PO Box 720, Cruz Bay, St. John, VI 00831-0720. (Tel: 776 6330. Internet: www.cinnamonbay.com).
The other campsite is on Maho Bay near a beautiful beach. Address: Maho Bay Camp, PO Box 310, Cruz Bay, St John, VI 00830. (Tel: 715 0501 or 800 392 9004. Internet: www.maho.org).
The Tourist Office tries to promote “soft tourism” on the islands; So-called “eco tents” are available on St. John.
CULTURE
Religion
Christians, mostly Protestants.
Social rules of conduct
Tip: 15-20% is common.
CLIMATE
Best travel time
Hot all year round, little cooling from the trade winds. It rains regularly in the lowlands, especially between August and October. Further information in the chapters Montserrat and Dominica.
COUNTRY DATA
Area code +1 340 Area (km2) 346 Population 103,574 Population density (per km2) 299 Population in 2015 Member of the EU No main emergency number 911
