We have been chartering in the BVI for nearly 20 years and always fly thru SJU into Beef Island and taxi to the charter company for a sleep aboard.

It looks like it would be alot simpler to fly into STT, but the earliest practical flight looks like it arrives at 3:35 PM. It looks like the last ferry leaves at 4:15. Does this leave a reasonable amount of time to get from the airport to the ferry? It seems like this would be "tight".

Any helpful info and or thoughts about STT vs. SJU would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

It's your vacation.

It can/may be " less expensive" to go thru STT, but it can/may also be a whole lot more complicated, both inbound and outbound, and the complications may eliminate any savings.

You can also originate your charter in St. Thomas rather than the BVI.

As I said, it is your vacation. Your choices.

If you do carry-on bags only it's doable if your flight is on time. Personally, I wouldn't attempt it as I would be uptight all day about missing the ferry. Not the way I want to start a vacation. We have a similar late flight into STT later this month. We are doing a water taxi to Tortola.

Your worst case scenario is the 5pm ferry from Red Hook, but once again, if you're delayed, that plan goes right out the window.

Don't forget to consider your return. Clearing Customs twice in St. Thomas, plus the 3 hour advance check-in, and you will lose a day on the end of your trip. At Beef Island, you basically show up an hour early and are good to go.

No worries. I have been coming through STT for 20 years arriving between 3:00 and 4:00PM with enough paraphenalia to sink a battle ship and have yet to be marooned on STT. Call Kevin as many here do and he will shepherd you to the best connection.

Yes, good to go SJU where you have to clear customs and then check back in again. We have done both and I don't see the advantage.

yep when you live in Charlotte that nonstop to stt is just too easy even if you have to figure out how to deal with the ferry or water taxi.

the 3 hour advance check in is rubbish, unenforceable. We have never arrived at STT more then 1 1/2 hours prior to departure, never had a problem

You no longer need to clear customs twice in STT - just got back last week - no customs clearance needed at STT for our return flight - we cleared in off the ferry the night before and that was it.

This is what is currently posted on the AA website

St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands (STT)

Special notice
The minimum times for check-in and baggage check have changed for St. Thomas (STT):

For check-in: 180 minutes (3 hours) prior to departure

For boarding passes or to check bags: 90 minutes prior to departure

I interpret this to mean that if I check in online I only need to be there 90 minutes before departure to check bags.

Thanks for all the replies. Maybe a little more detail about the situation would make it easier to understand why I'm considering travel thru STT.

6 of us are booked to fly into EIS thru SJU the 1st week of January for a 11 day charter. We have all done it many times before so not new to chartering in the BVI.

When we purchased the tickets months ago, we were booked DSM-ATL-SJU-EIS. Its a 2 stop trip to EIS from DSM no matter what you do.

Now the airline has canceled the ATL leg and rebooked us thru ORD. It is never a good idea to fly thru ORD in January if you really want to make sure you will get somewhere. Especially if you want to make a tight connection in SJU. The thought of sleeping in the airport @ SJU makes my back hurt.

Soooo, I got to reading and looking at STT. We can fly thru STT for a little more $$$ with only one 2.5 hour stop in ATL which means alot less chances of travel delays.

All this would work great except we have never ferried from ST. Thomas to Road Town, so I thought I'd look for some guidance from the minds at TTL.

I guess it looks like the consensus is that going to STT is too much trouble and we'd be better off taking our risks with ORD & SJU.

Anyway, thanks again for all the good advise.

54 days, not that I'm counting.

<img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/dine.gif" alt="" />

We're in the same situation as you: two stops no matter what. For three of our four upcoming trips, we're overnighting in San Juan. Not great, but cheaper and we arrive in daylight. Like you, we avoid any winter connection through Chicago.

Are you flying Delta? I just checked random dates in early January and see flights that leave at 5:54 am from Des Moines and get you to EIS the same day through Atlanta and SJU. Would it be possible to go through Houston? Maybe you can call your airline and see what they can do for you.

1st time to BVI I took the ferry from STT and it was delayed and caused me to miss my flight back. Had to pay $200 for a motel and $200 for a new ticket. Plus I was a day late getting back. Was still cheaper that a ticket to Beef Island.

2nd time few straight into BVI. It cost more $$$ but I got more time on the island. San Juan was a bit of a pain though.

3rd time chartered straight out of St. Thomas. BEST OPTION! I will be doing it this way from now on. Plus St. John is nice!

RatmansWife.....We are flying American....

Leave DSM @ 535AM arrive EIS @ 610PM

How does staying in San Juan overnight workout to be cheaper ?

Thanks,

First time we flew into San Juan, spent the night, and said never again. Have done the STT-ferry route the last two times and it's worked wonderfully. Seems like vacation begins once you get to the ferry dock. Chartering out of St. Thomas sounds even better!

Thanks to the tips from folks here over many years, I've become pretty good at searching fares and options. Lately, the cheapest fares have involved overnighting in San Juan and taking the early morning Seaborne flight. Even factoring in the hotel, we save $$$.

Being on an out island, it's much better to arrive before nightfall, which makes even the 6:10 pm arrival a close call. And that is often the most expensive flight.

If you have enough people, another good option is flying to St. Thomas and chartering a plane to Beef Island. We did that in March and it was wonderful.

Could American route you through Dallas, with an overnight there?

We have always flown into STT in the afternoon around 3 and caught the ferry to Road Town with 3 kids in tow. It has never been an issue for us. Knock on wood but we haven't had any problems in 10 trips down in the past few years. We always carry on our bags and hustle out of the airport. It is doable. Heading down next week and I hope I didn't jinx anything.

We have a winner <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Grin.gif" alt="" />

[/url] by [url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/captainjay/]captainjay, on Flickr

Friends Don't let friends ride ferry's.

"For check-in: 180 minutes (3 hours) prior to departure"

That is to factor for the time it can take to get from the curb through the lines of the day to the gate to board. Each Day and Time of Day is Different. Sometimes SST can be a bit of a zoo.

"For boarding passes or to check bags: 90 minutes prior to departure"

That is the point where the computer may lock a traveler out no matter how long they have been in line. During periods of heightened security, that decision can be made by a government 1,000's of miles away.

What worked for one person ten times has no relevance to any future group trying to get to their seat on the plane before the computer closes or the plane door closes.

Putting the ferry in your critical path has a history of leaving inbound travelers in STT the first night and getting outbound travelers to St. Thomas too late to make their scheduled flight. When that happens the burden is all on the traveler to sort out. Many do just fine with the STT and the ferry combo. Many end up very disappointed. Yes, It is your vacations and emotions. +1 on "Friends do not let the friends ride the ferry"!

Just more BS as you don't have a clue. NEVER had a problem with the RIGHT ferry in 13 years since 2002!