We tried Trunk Bay first but parking was a nightmare so we headed on down (up, down, up down) the…read moreroad to Maho Bay. We found a parking spot in a lot and only had a short walk to set up our camp in some nice sun/shade. There are a lot of kids and families here, so expect playing, screaming, etc. but eventually they have to eat something so you'll get some nice quiet. We snorkeled right in front of where we were sitting and saw sea turtles munching on the sea grass. So cool. The beach is not super wide but it's enough to plunk down a chair and have a little shade. Perfect. Water is calm. It's the first place we saw donkeys on the island. We loved it.

Beautiful beach with crystal-clear, lovely water and breathtaking scenic views. The atmosphere is…read morepeaceful and perfect for relaxing or enjoying nature. However, the bathrooms were a bit scary and could definitely use improvement.

Such a BEAUTIFUL BEACH - highly recommended beach... also with a gift shop with souvenirs and…read moresnacks and more   - - -   June, 2025 Visit   - - -   Short Review,   Cinnamon Bay Beach...   ... has an island you can swim / snorkel to... many fish to see closer to the island   ... has a view of Great Thatch, British Virgin Islands   ... has indoor facilities... gift shop, snack bar (indoors and outside), campsites   ... not crowded       - - - Additional information: - - -   My wonderful wife planned a relaxing trip for us to St. John's, US Virgin Islands (just east of Puerto Rico), in June, 2025; we had a great time... such a beautiful island!     We snorkeled two beaches on St. John, and we enjoyed them both.   Cinnamon Bay Beach stuns you with its beautiful colors... the beach has light tan sand, helping make the water is a light green-blue color... stunningly beautiful!!     - - - Why Cinnamon Bay Beach - - -   Most of St. John is a National Park and most of the northern part of the island provides a nearly continuous beach... nearly continuous because peninsulas that extend into the water separate each beach from the other.    We looked at the map and read the reviews and picked Hawksnest and Cinnamon Bay beaches  because they looked more likely to have slightly smaller crowds, as cruise ships apparently visit other beaches (at least when we visited).  When we visited we were not alone and it was also not crowded.   Both are within a couple miles of each other, so while they are similar in overall look and feel - similar color of the water and sand, similar plants, etc., they are unique in what you can see underwater when you're snorkeling, and unique in the views from the beach.     - - - Taxis to and from - - -   To get to and from Cinnamon Bay Beach, you can drive or take a taxi.  The taxis on St. John, at least the ones we saw, are all trucks, with the driver in the cab, and the passengers sitting, open air, in the back... on benches with a roof over our heads.  The taxis run all day and will stop at multiple beaches to drop off and pick up passengers along the way.      - - - Cell / Mobile service - - -   Cell phone service is present, but the signal is a bit weak - 1 to 2 bars of signal strength.      - - - The beach - - -   Even if you never get in the water, the scene is beautiful... the water color is such a beautiful shade of blue...   Enya's "Caribbean Blue" (from 1991 album "Shepherd Moons") was playing in our heads, and was surely inspired by waters like these...   The sand is light and soft   Beautiful green trees and plants along the beach.     - - - The view from the beach - - -   Cinnamon Bay Beach is a beautiful beach and view of the British Virgin Islands' (BVI's) Jost Van Dyke in the distance and Great Thatch island closer... both BVI; St. John's Whistling Cay is visible, closer to the left, and Mary Point, closer to the right; Cinnamon Brach curbs east, and out into the water to a point that becomes Maho Bay and we stayed within Cinnamon Cay..     - - - The water... snorkeling - - -   On any given day, the water quality and aquatic life are things you cannot control.  The day we visited water quality and aquatic life were both goo -  the water was so clear and we saw so many fish, especially as we snorkeled out toward the island... which is much closer than it looks.. 5-10 minutes of calm to quicker leg kicking should get you there.     - - - Snorkeling - what we saw - - -   While snorkeling we were blessed to see: ⁃            a stingray swam by right as we started out !! ⁃            many more parrotfish-like blue-green-purplish fish and others ⁃            on the way back in, two squid!!     - - - Back on the beach - - -   We enjoy laying back and relaxing... and taking photos of our feet as they point toward the sand + surf... and we captured another one here on Cinnamon Bay Beach.   What a great afternoon!     - - - The surf, the lack of on St. John - - -   We have been blessed to visit the Caribbean a couple times and have noticed that there is not much surf, not many waves. On an early trip someone explained that the Caribbean is just at a position in the ocean that the rides are not small; brief internet searches suggest the tide only varies a few inches to a foot or so... such small changes don't lead to many waves. You'll likely see and enjoy hearing waves "lapping at the shore," but you're not likely to do much body surfing... if you have a boogie board, while you could bring it on your flight, you'll likely be better off leaving it at home. - - - Gift Shop - t-shirts, hat pins and more - - - - - - Thank you - - - Thank you to all the park team members who maintain Cinnamon Bay Beach, and to the taxi drivers getting us visitors to and from the beach! ----- ----- -----

Full disclosure I didn't actually swim at this beach but I spent an hour or so here because it's…read moreactually a huge beach! The internet says it's one of the most famous ones and I can see why - the water is crystal clear, bright blue (as are most of the other national park beaches lol). It's spacious though, and in addition to the beach itself, there is a snack vendor area where you can buy lunch (like sandwiches and drinks), and a gear rental place for snorkeling etc. They also have a small restaurant adjacent to the campground cafeteria area which does breakfast and dinner (but not lunch). They have pretty clean bathrooms and showers too, and the most parking of all the beaches that I went to. They even had an info booth; the lady there was fairly knowledgeable about the park although I don't think she was an actual ranger (she wasn't in the ranger outfit). There's also a little area right at the entrance to the beach that is part of some ruins, it's a nice photo op spot. Overall this is a great beach! Def recommend.

Great place to snorkel.. Beautiful short little hike from the parking area to get to the perfect…read moresnorkeling area are you are you in your group... i'm so sorry I don't have any of the gorgeous pictures they are on our GoPro waterproof camera most of them were underwater pics! Saw turtles and probably 20 different types of beautiful colorful fish...

You'll need to park at the Annabelle plantation parking lot for this hike. We were trying to get to…read morethis hike but we accidentally went on the plantation hike, so be aware those are two different things. After parking, make a right and walk on the road and you'll see an opening to the beach. This is the beggining of Waterlemon hike. Although I didn't hike it, I did spend time at the entrance of the hike enjoying the views and water. It seems to be a low difficulty hike, and is maybe a mile to Waterlemon beach.

One of the top 10 beaches I've ever been to! The water was absolutely beautiful, and the scenery…read morewas breathtaking. We only came here to enjoy the water, and honestly, it did not disappoint! There's parking available, and if you're cruising, there are plenty of taxis that can drop you off and pick you up. There are also spots around the beach for food and drinks, which is convenient if you want to spend more time here. The water was so clear and beautiful, and the whole beach was just gorgeous. Definitely a beach I'd love to visit again!

I call Magen's Bay paradise! One of my favorite Caribbean…read morebeaches and my mother's favorite beach in the world. We have visited several times while cruising. We usually take the group transport offered from port and pay the entrance free. The rest is a day to enjoy the calm waters and a day of relaxation.

Sapphire Beach is stunning! Come for the sunset and you'll definitely end up staying. Soft light,…read moreblue water, with easy, breezy island energy. There's parking right by the beach followed by a beautiful walk through the cabanas that sets such a peaceful tone. The event space is dreamy! Open, airy, and perfectly placed. Once you step onto the sand the water is clear, glowing blue. Simple, stunning, and a really nice place to unwind.

It's a perfectly nice beach. Supposedly one of the nicer beaches on the island. It is not the best…read morebeach I've ever seen but it is fine. The water is clear and clean. If you go early you can get a spot under the trees because the sun is intense. The beach gets busy but is not overcrowded. The best part IMO is the beachside bar. I have to check it out and write a review.

Hull Bay Beach is a quieter but no less beautiful beach on the north side of St. Thomas. The roads…read moreare a little trickier to navigate to get here, but there is ample parking. The Shack at Hull Bay is here as a great option for food but otherwise there are no restroom amenities. My pups enjoyed it here as a dog-friendly beach.

Before Abi Beach came along Hull Bay was the only beach that you could bring your dogs to. I…read morehonestly didn't like it that much because on the weekends EVERYONE living on this island with a dog would set up tents, grill and camp out all day. Positives are that your fur baby will have a blast with dog friends and come home tired. Downside is that it's noisy, crowded, and you have to come early to get a good spot and parking. Waking up on weekends early is not something I do. This is a locals beach, I haven't really seen the tourist groups come out here (they stick more so to Magen's Bay next door) so when cruise ships are in, this beach won't get over crowded. It is very rocky in the water and on the beach so watch out, but there is no charge to access this area. The big bonus with this beach is Hull bay Hideaway restaurant, which serves up awesome affordable grilled beach grub and a shaded eating area that your fur baby is allowed, in order to get out of the blazing sun in the early afternoons. If you have a boat there is also a ramp to lower it into the water in the parking lot area. Overall if you're only here on St.Thomas with a cruise ship stick to Magen's Bay if you live here and have dogs this is a beautiful beach to spend the day. #St.Thomas #USVI

This is a nice quiet beach compared to many in the area. There is an entry fee and has facilities…read more Everyone visiting was treating the beach and it's surroundings as well.

Hidden inside Lindquist Beach, part of the peaceful shoreline of Smith Bay Park, is one of those…read morerare places on Saint Thomas where the crowds seem to disappear. The sand stretches out wide and pale, the water sits calm and glassy, and the trade winds drift through the sea grapes like a quiet whisper. It's the sort of beach where time slows down, where you spread out a towel, listen to the gentle surf, and realize you've stumbled into a corner of the Caribbean that still feels wonderfully untouched. I remember being here with my wife somewhere between the warm sun and that impossibly blue water, the day turned quietly romantic. We wandered down the beach laughing, the breeze tugging at her hair, and at one point she reached for my hand and pulled close enough that the world seemed to shrink to just the two of us and the sound of the tide. We lingered there a while, wrapped in the moment, the kind of simple, sun-soaked memory that makes a place feel a little magical long after you've left the sand behind.

I live here on st Thomas and this is probably my number 1 beach. It has great snorkeling, and has a…read morelittle something for everyone, in the middle of the beach is great for just sitting in the water or on the beach as there are not many rocks. The left has big rock as and coral all along in the water where you can find octopus, crabs, fish, stingrays. If you are more adapt at snorkeling you can go out towards the left and past the university dock and there is some great snorkeling there with sea cucumbers, giant pufferfish, eagle rays, some have reported lion fish over in that area even. The right of the beach is filled with rocks, coral and sea glass on the sand. I will leave some photos of all the creatures Ive got on my GoPro. Also tons of sea turtles

Exceptional out of the way beach with a local vibe…read more What we loved: * accessible from the terminus Jitney cab university stop (just a short walk up over a hill) * shaded areas to put out your towels * clear calm water perfect for snorkeling * bathrooms with shower to rinse off * cool handmade signs to promote maintaining the environment Loved visiting Brewers Bay Beach which felt clean safe and family friendly. We felt 100% safe leaving our backpack on the shore while snorkeling and swimming. Saw plenty of fish! There were food trucks as well as a kayak rental option but we did not partake of either.