Secret Harbor vs Sapphire Beach - rare St Thomas question!

[hockeyboy]

Hi,

I'll be in St. Thomas next week on a cruise.

I'm either going to go to Sapphire Beach or Secret Harbor.

The most important feature is snorkeling.

I know neither is as good as St. John, but which of the two on St. Thomas have the best snorkeling?

Going to St. John that day is not in the cards (so don't suggest it).

Thanks!

Mike

[Iluvstjohn]

Whooohooo! Well kooky here...a STT question! I don't know of either but I am sur people will chime in

[augie]

Shouldn't this be on the STT forum?

J/K - I'm sure one of our STT aficionados will chime in.

Bueller?

[hoosierdaddy]

Our first real vacation was to St. Thomas and we stayed at Secret Harbor. It was in 2002. I had never snorkeled before and tried for the first time at Secret Harbor. I loved it and have been hooked ever since. I don't remember enough to tell you how it compaires to other spots I have since snorkeled but I do remember how facinating it was and how easy of a snorkel it was. I also like how quiet secret harbor was the week we were there. I have never snorkeled at Sapphire so I cannot compare the two. Hope this helps.

When you get back feel free to let us know how it was.

[liamsaunt]

I have stayed at Secret Harbour twice. The snorkeling is good. Not as good as St. John, but good. The water is nice and calm. There is coral to the right as you are looking at the water. Keep going along those rocks around the point as far as you feel comfortable and you will find some good stuff. I once saw a huge barracuda over there! When you are coming back to shore go across the sea grass and look for turtles and rays. If you go slow once you get back in the shallows, you will see tons of little fish living in the sea grass.

The other positive for Secret Harbour is that there is a very good casual beachside restaurant there (Blue Moon) where you can get lunch and drinks. There is also a dive shop where you can rent floaties and beach chairs as well as snorkel gear if you need it. Just remember that the chairs on the beach and the hammocks are for overnight guests and resort residents only.

[luv2travel]

Snorkeling is pretty good at both spots. The surf tends to be "rougher" at Sapphire while Secret Harbor has little to non.

[paulandtracie]

We have snorkeled both and both can be good but sapphire can get pretty breezy because it is more open so you get waves sometimes. I agree with the above post about Secret Harbor, nice beach and the Blue Moon Cafe is excellent! We also saw turtles and barracuda there.

[paulandtracie]

We have snorkeled both and both can be good but sapphire can get pretty breezy because it is more open so you get waves sometimes. I agree with the above post about Secret Harbor, nice beach and the Blue Moon Cafe is excellent! We also saw turtles and barracuda there.

[Berlingirl]

Stayed at both and snorkeled at both. A few years ago I would've said Secret Harbor, but time has changed the dynamic of that little cove and it's not like it used to be. For sheer variety, I like Sapphire better for beach, however love the resturant at Secret Harbor for food. Secret Harbor now also has people there to make sure that those staying there have the only chair and umbrella access. If your going to eat and swim...Secret Harbor...or just swim...Sapphire. Dont' know if there is a new resturant at Sapphire which might change that though...

[STTlover]

My vote is Sapphire There is a 2 large reefs with tons of life to look at and also to the far left there are grasses that are teaming with rays and turtles.

On a side note, Blue Moon is to change hands in May and will be a different restaurant.

[Connie]

The snorkelint at Sapphire is huge.

When you're looking at the water you have a huge reef right off the shore and over the right.

If you swim out towards you're left and over the sea grass you will most likely see gigantic turtles and stingrays.

If you continue onto your left, you will reach another coral bed that is very pristine and has alot of sealife.

Whatever you choose, have a great time!

[Berlingirl]

On a side note, Blue Moon is to change hands in May and will be a different restaurant.

Oh No STTlover ...say it isn't so...have loved the casual vibe of Blue Moon for the last decade (or more) and hope the new owner doesn't change too much!

[STTlover]

From what I gather, the owners of the resort want the owners of the restaurant to make a lot of changes which the current rest. owner is not comfortable with. So basically the resort said okay we'll just not renew your lease. Apparently the owners of Pesce in Red Hook will be taking it over.

[jimg20]

I have not been to Secret Harbor, but I have snorkeled Saphire. It is my favorite STT beach. I have never seen the surf that others talked about. The last time we were there was 2007. The reef to the right is excellent. It was full of life when we were there. The coral was healthy and the other marine life was plentiful. I found it to be somewhat similar to STJ's Hawksnest Bay (the public one not Caneel's).

Have a great time!

JIM

[Coden]

I was at Sapphire in January. It was very wavy, there is a huge reef on the right. There is also a chuck wagon type set up on the left. We had a wonderful mahi-mahi sandwich, french fries, a blind monkey?, beers, etc.

We were there just for the day, also from a cruise ship, we spread out our towels and sat underneath trees for the shade.

It is quite a drive there, 4 of us hired a private driver and it was $20 r/t p/p...we had a very, very nice driver.

Is your ship docking at Havensight or Crown Bay?