Beaches
If you are visiting St. Thomas for the day or a week, these are the beaches that you must visit if you want the idyllic island experience. Each beach has its own character and feel. And each beach is a stand out for different reasons. This is your guide to beaches on St. Thomas.*
Magens Bay Beach
Simply the best wave at your doorstep
If you are traveling to St. Thomas, you’ve probably already heard about Magens Bay Beach. If you haven’t, it is widely considered one of the best beaches in the Caribbean.
Nestled on the central-north side, Magens is not more than 15 minutes from most places in St. Thomas. So what makes Magens one of the best? It starts with the sand. The sand at Magens is often described as being like talcum powder. It is soft and super fine.
The beach is approximately .8 miles long, so there is plenty of it. The beach is also relatively flat with plenty of room to stretch out. Next, the water. Magens Beach is in a large bay protecting it from the sea, making the water pleasantly calm. On many days, the water is as smooth as glass. The fauna is spectacular.
Secret Harbor
Simply the best wave at your doorstep
Situated on the east end of St. Thomas, Secret Harbor is a condo resort beachfront. Aside from the resort there is also a restaurant directly on the beach. As such, the beach tends to be busy, but for good reason. This palm tree-lined beach is gorgeous.
If you aren’t staying at the resort, good luck with parking. If you can’t find parking in the very limited spaces provided you have to park on the street up the hill and walk down.
The beach is on the smallish side, but this shouldn’t deter you from checking it out. They have some decent snorkeling and a short swim from shore there is a dock in the middle of the bay to take a break from snorkeling or for sunning yourself.
Lindquist Beach
Simply the best wave at your doorstep
Lindquist Beach is on the north side, toward the east end of St. Thomas. Lindquist has some of the most beautiful views and sand on St. Thomas. Seemingly a short swim away are the British Virgin Islands and St. John.
The water is a sparkling blue and the sand is as fine and soft as you can find. There are picnic tables dotting the beach that are first come first serve. The snorkeling at Lindquist is decent with some reefs to the left of the beach and some rocks and reef further out from the beach.
The bay is not as protected as some of the other beaches, so the water can get rough on occasion, but it makes for some excellent waves! Life guards are on duty during regular beach hours 8 am to 5 pm. Several of the now famous Corona beach commercials were filmed at Lindquist. The far left of the island is a perfect spot for weddings or photo ops. Beach Admission is $2 per person.
Sapphire Beach
Simply the best wave at your doorstep
A little furthest to the east of Lindquist is Sapphire Beach Resort. One of the best beaches on St. Thomas if you want great snorkeling and amenities. Incredible views of the British Virgin Islands and a idyllic shoreline, make Sapphire a beautiful beach. But don’t plan on finding a quiet or secluded spot on the beach.
With this being a resort, beach traffic is a little more congested than most beaches, but that is not to say it is overcrowded. The sand is powdery and the water as blue as anywhere on the island. Occasionally swells kick up some waves, but nothing that should scare swimmers away. The snorkeling is above average for St. Thomas. While much of the coral has been bleached, there is plenty of marine life including sea turtles!
Morningstar Beach
Simply the best wave at your doorstep
Morningstar is the beach attached to the Marriott Frenchman’s Bay Resort. The beach, like all beaches on St. Thomas, is open to the general public. If you travel there by car there is a parking lot for public parking.
The sand is not as pretty as some of the northside beaches. It is a little more on the tan-brownish side. Also, there is minimal snorkeling opportunities. If you head to the left side of the beach there are some rocks with coral and sea life. The water tends to be on the rougher side of the scale, but still rather tame compared to many state-side ocean beaches.
The view on the beach is to the south and offers sightings of St. Croix on a clear day. In the early morning or late afternoon, you can watch the mammoth cruise ships coming and going in the harbor.
Lindbergh Beach
Simply the best wave at your doorstep
A less crowded resort beach is Lindbergh Beach by the St. Thomas Airport. Some of the loveliest waters you can find outside of Magens are at Lindbergh. The sand is also wonderful. There are 2 small resorts on the beach, Emerald Beach Resort and the Island Beachcomber.
There are some snorkeling opportunities on a calm day along the left side of the beach near the rocks. The beach is nestled in a bay, so the water is stays a little calmer even when there is a surge. Lindbergh is one of the longer stretches of beach on St. Thomas so there is room to spread out. On the weekends, though, the right side of the beach is popular with locals. Parking is plentiful with a small lot towards the center of the beach and also street-side parking stretching along the beach to its far end.
Neltjeberg Beach
Simply the best wave at your doorstep
No signs mark the way to this, in my mind, one of the best beaches on St. Thomas. Unless you live in St. Thomas or are staying at a villa in this remote part of the island, you would probably never get a chance to enjoy this stunning secluded beach. The path to get there is at times treacherous and is not recommended unless you have an SUV with 4WD. There is a generous beach that is both long and deep. The views are mainly of the uninhabited Inner Brass Island. Towards the left side of the beach is some decent snorkeling if the conditions are right. I’ve also enjoyed some great fishing here. If the water isn’t too rough, you can kayak or paddleboard over to Inner Brass and have a true island adventure.
Brewers Beach
Simply the best wave at your doorstep
Past the airport heading towards the West side of St. Thomas is a gem of a beach. Nestled on the campus of the University of the Virgin lands is Brewers Beach. This medium-sized beach offers front row seating of the airport runway as private leer jets, major airlines and tiny puddle jumper planes land across the bay. But the sound of the plane traffic shouldn’t interrupt your serenity on this beautiful beach. The beach is extremely deep with plenty of shady trees set back from the water.
The water is a lovely greenish-blue and is usually pretty calm and there is some marine life for snorkeling. On clear days you have nice views of the rocky shore of western St. Thomas and the Puerto-Rican island Vieques. During the week the beach is relatively quiet as it is not frequented by vacationers, but on the weekends it can get busy as locals flood this stretch of sand.
Bolongo Bay
Simply the best wave at your doorstep
Home to one of the best beach bars/restaurants in the Caribbean, Iggie’s is a great reason to put Bolongo Bay on your list of beaches to visit. The right side of the beach has a large section of desirable sand. Beach chairs and umbrellas are plentiful.
Unfortunately the right side of the beach has some pretty nasty coral. What I mean by nasty is that the water is shallow and rough and the coral is jagged and treacherous.
The left side of the beach doesn’t have as an expansive stretch of sand, but the water’s edge is calm and easy to traverse. There are stretches of coral throughout the bay and the water stays flat or close to it most of the time.
Hull Bay
Simply the best wave at your doorstep
If you ask most north side locals, their favorite beach they’ll tell you Hull Bay. What makes Hull Bay a favorite is not its water, its beach or views, what makes it special is it’s vibe. Hull Bay has a true beach and surfer town feel. The water is decent and the sand is average. About a quarter of the waterfront is covered in pebbles and rocks at the water’s edge. There are some nice snorkel spots and the rocks along the edges of the bay are great for fishing. If you are a surfer, this is probably the best spot on St. Thomas to find some waves.