St. John mosquitos????

[PatrickMcc]

I have been reading this board in prep for a trip next February and I am surprised by the complaints about mosquitos. We went to St John almost every year between 1983 and 2001 and never had a problem. We stayed at Cinammon for several years in February and can remember sitting out at night in front of our camping cottage and being amazed that there were no bugs. We also stayed at Maho, rented houses in Great Cruz Bay in April and condos at Lavender Hill and Battery Hill and never had mosquitos. My question is: Has the mosquito problem become much worse in recent years, even in the dry season?

[Jen East End]

We have been on St. John in May for the past three years. We have stayed on Kiddle Bay, Maho Bay and the East End. I have yet to see a mosquito or receive a mosquito bite. I believe they show up mainly after very rainy periods which we have luckily not encountered yet. I am much more bothered by noseeums! (not sure how to spell that) Anyone know a good bug spray that actually prevents them both from biting?

[CarolJLF]

We have spent time on St John every Winter/early Spring since 2000. We usually rent villas out beyond Coral Bay or in the North Shore area and have NEVER had any mosquito problems at all. In fact, we have often commented on how nice it is to be able to spend the evenings on the deck without getting bitten to death.

[Muhaha]

I was one of several complainers last summer. The skeeters were thick in June and July, but that was due to a ton of rain in June. However, I stayed at the end of January on the north side and did not see one single mosquito for the entire week.

As many have told me, it does seem to depend on the weather.

[EastEnder]

There is a direct correlation between amount of rain fall and mosquitoes. Currently there is hardly a blood sucker on the island, which has received a few tenths of an inch of rain fall in the past month. Last June/July was brutal at times and we'd received several inches of rain.

Avon's Skin So Soft works pretty well as a non-toxic repellant. However, it won't keep them from feasting if they're out en masse.

[P-600]

We were on island in January and didn't have any problems with mosquito's or no see um's.
I was told by an island resident to use Gin directly on your skin and the no see um's will stay away. Thought that was interesting.

[PatrickMcc]

Thanks everyone. Unless there is a lot of rain next January or February it doesn't look like we will have to worry.

[PatrickMcc]

Thanks everyone. Unless there is a lot of rain next January or February it doesn't look like we will have to worry.

[jmq]

It is a wild card. If it rains a lot about 6-10 days prior to your visit, be prepared some degree of skeeter problems that can range from somewhat annoying to maddening.