COKI BEACH, St. Thomas VI, There are better. Let me tell you why and where.
Written: Oct 17 '03 (Updated Mar 14 '05)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: VERY clear water!
Cons: Not a comfortable place to park or leave personal possessions.
The Bottom Line: St. Thomas has many beaches. St John is just a twenty minute ferry ride away with Fantastic beaches. You don't need to go to Coki Beach
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| popsrocks's Full Review: Coki Beach |
My wife and I have been to the US Virgin Islands a couple of times. We went primarily for snorkeling and to see and enjoy the beaches. We visited many of them.
On what is known as the East End of St Thomas are a few lovely beaches. Coki Beach is also on the East End.
BEACHES OF ST THOMAS
We stayed at the Sapphire Beach and Marina in St Thomas. It was a great place to snorkel. The hotel was right on what is known as Sapphire Beach. It is considered one of the best beaches on St Thomas. I agree. We could walk out from our suite and swim or snorkel on either side of the beach area. It was awesome!
We also visited The Ritz-Carlton property on the East End. That beach wasn't as nice as Sapphire Beach but still had much to offer. It was clean, very safe, and has good snorkeling.
A quick note here. I want to mention that ALL beaches in St Thomas and St John are public beaches. There aren't a lot of local people on the beaches at hotels, yet some still come. Yes, even at the Ritz there are people who use the beach who are not staying at the hotel. We enjoyed watching the young kids playing in the water for hours.
We also spent a good part of one day at Magen's Bay. This was a more public beach. Locals and tourists alike were there. A few locals also had an outdoor bar and some food to offer. This is considered one of the most beautiful beaches in the world. The view of it from the overlooking mountains is breath taking. Up close, it's a very nice beach. It's long with a lot of space. There is plenty of parking and there is also a fee to enter.
St John has the best beaches. It has many beautiful beaches and fantastic snorkeling. Most of the Island of St John is a US National Park. Due to this it has the most pristine beaches too. Another wonderful part of our experiences there was that we would drive up to some beaches and there would be few if any other people there. I gave some information about it in my review of St. Thomas, and more on my reviews of St John.
COKI BEACH
I wanted to give some brief information about the other beaches we visited as a comparison to Coki. I suppose if you came off a cruise ship, and had never seen any US Virgin Island Beach before, you would be crazy about Coki.
Having been to a few other beaches in the US Virgin Islands I can compare. Unfortunately, Coki is at the bottom of our list of best beaches.
ARRIVAL
We had rented a car for a couple of days when on St Thomas. We enjoy getting out on our own without any restrictions. Coki Beach is easy to find, well kind of easy. It's right off one of the main drags that take you from the airport and Charlotte Amalia area going to Red Hook on the East End. Red Hook is a small town where you pick up the ferry to St John and other VI points.
There is a very small sign that marks Coki Beach, very small. There is, however, a good size sign marking the Aquarium. Look for it, this is where you turn. Drive down a bit. You will see a cemetery on the left. Look for a kind of parking spot. You are there!
The first thing that struck me was the beaten down feeling of the area. The parking lot is in front of the cemetery, that's were we parked, has broken bottles and litter in it. There are other places to kind of squeeze your car into when all is crowded. We saw this as we were leaving. There is no assigned area.
I didn't mention that we had arrived fairly early at 10:45 AM. We knew that this is a popular spot. Cruise ships have tours to here and the Aquarium is just a hundred yards or so further down to the point. It is very popular! Getting there before the crowds was important to us.
While parking our car and looking around we were being spied on by many locals. This is a place where they try to sell you or rent to you what they can. These guys were not pushy at all. It's just that they just never took their eyes off us. There seemed to be competition on the beach on who would rent you equipment and any other gear.
Some of their eyes turned away when we took our own gear out of our car. Others followed us.
Now I had read in either Fodder's or Frommer's Guide that you needed to be careful of valuables left in a car. This was the only place on the island, and during our stay, that I felt this an appropriate warning and to take heed.
Though it's certainly not fool proof, we always rent a hard top vehicle when away. The "rag tops" are too easy to cut open with a knife.
I wouldn't be going out with a whole lot of cash or carrying around passports or anything of real value. We had our necessities and a few bucks in my bathing suit pocket.
This area is a bit cluttered and messy looking. Hey, you are no longer on a resort. From your surroundings you know that it's so!
RENTALS
The beach area is actually on a narrow strip of land going out onto a point of land. There is the beach to the left and a smaller beach area to the right of the narrow road that makes its way to the point. Here at the smaller beach you can rent Jet Skis and other water sports equipment. Don't look for a greeting area, desk, or shop of any kind. This is all mostly open air with a little shade here and there under some crude looking structures.
To the left of the road is a shaded area where some local guys will rent you snorkeling gear if you need it. I strongly recommend purchasing your own gear if you are going down to the islands to do some snorkeling. At least have your own personal mask and snorkel. You can take a chance with fins unless, as a man, you have very large feet. You woman can always wear a man's fin.
I also noticed that many cabs would pull up with people and then go to one of the guys renting things. It seems the cabbies must get a little part of the action.
THE BEACH
The beach is nice looking. Nothing special after visiting many of the other VI beaches. You can see a small picture of it at the head of this review. The round structure in the water in the distance is the Aquarium. The picture makes it look real fine. I notice the picture doesn't show you what is just to the right of the beach. In that area is the bar and a grill area. This is all in what most call the "snack shack". We had a drink there. The price was reasonable and the drink was good. Rest rooms are there too.
The beach may be one to one hundred and fifty yards long. There were a few trees on it for shade. Believe me, you need it during the peek hours of the day.
We left a bare minimum of our stuff under the tree, walked to the water, put on our gear, and swam out toward the point. We were drawn that way because that is where the Aquarium is. We heard that divers are just outside the windows of the place under water. They give food to the fish in the water to entice them closer to the crowds viewing them from inside underwater glass panels.
Snorkeling
Though we looked, there weren't all that many fish in the beach area. As we neared the Aquarium we did see more and more fish. They were pretty, colourful, and not in the least bit people shy.
There wasn't much in coral formations. I will say that this little bit of water was the clearest and cleanest I have ever seen! It was truly CRYSTAL clear.
Unfortunately it was also the only beach were I saw littering on the bottom of the bay floor. I saw coke bottles and cans. No, I don't think that's why they named the place Coki beach. There were also corrugated tin sheets in the water. I wonder if they were blown in from a recent hurricane. They should be removed. They were an eye sore.
There was a small reef area out and to the left going toward the south west. There were a few nice formations but not all that noteworthy.
The beach water drops of gently so it's a good area for first time snorkelers. I would look for a different beach though. Most are easy to get in and out of.
I want to state here that I was not threatened in any way while at this beach. I was, however, uncomfortable. If you ever listen to a cop giving advice, they usually say to "trust your instincts when it comes to trouble". My instincts said stay away.
If you are looking for just gorgeous beaches, fantastic snorkeling and a laid back atmosphere St John is the place to go. If you want a mix of fine restaurants, great shopping, nice beaches, and good snorkeling then stay in St Thomas.
No matter which island you pick, you still have to take a day trip to the other!
Other Virgin Island reviews by popsrocks
US Virgin Islands An overview
St. Thomas VI An Island that has action!
Magen's Bay One of the ten best beaches in the world. National Geographic
Sapphire Beach and Marina One of the best beaches on St Thomas right out side your beach front room.
Antilles@Sapphire Beach, St Thomas VI
The Ritz Carlton, St Thomas The finest of luxury
St. John VI The island that is quiet and pristine.
Westin Resort, St John VI US Virgin Islands National Park This park is awesome with private beaches and fantastic snorkeling!
The BATHS of the British Virgin IslandsLike nothing else you have ever seen!
Recommended:
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