virgin islands villas
St. John · Areas

Great Cruz Bay, St. John

A sheltered bay on the south side of St. John with the Westin at its head, 12 minutes by car from Cruz Bay. Most of the houses on the hill above face the water, and most of the rentals are the resort's own units, listed by their owners. A car is recommended.

Estates and places here: Chocolate Hole (the Great Cruz Bay side), Virgin Grand Estates, The Westin, Contant (the Great Cruz Bay side), Contant. These are the names on addresses and deeds; a villa in any of them is listed under Great Cruz Bay.

Car recommendedRolling hillsBeach on foot14 min to Cruz Bay ferry12 min to Cruz Bay town

Staying in Great Cruz Bay

Great Cruz Bay is the resort side of St. John. The bay on the island's southwest coast has the Westin St. John Resort Villas at its head and houses on the slopes behind, 12 minutes by car from Cruz Bay town and 14 from the ferry by our measurement. It suits a family that wants a pool and calm water.

Most of the rentals here are the resort's own villas, listed by the owners who hold them, with private houses on the hill behind; Virgin Grand Estates is the name on many of those addresses, and Contant on some. The sand at the head of the bay is public shore under the Open Shorelines Act, but the land behind it is the Westin's, with no public path or parking to it, so whether your house comes with a way down to the beach and the use of the pool is the first question for the owner, not something the address settles. Indo House, the four-bedroom villa we own and manage, sits on the water here, and its listing says that access to the Westin's beach and facilities comes with the house; a house on the hill may not include it, so ask. By our measurement the roads roll rather than climb, so an ordinary rental car copes on the main road, and the nearest beach outside the resort, Hart Bay, is 12 minutes by car.

Rent a car, in Great Cruz Bay, St. John as everywhere else on the island. The Westin's beach is on foot from the units around it, but everything else is a drive: Cruz Bay town 12 minutes, the ferry dock 14, and the National Park beaches on the far side of town, Caneel Bay at 19 minutes, Hawksnest at 20 and Trunk Bay at 24. Trunk Bay charges $5 a person aged 16 and over and has taken card or mobile payment only since October 1, 2026, per the National Park Service. Ask the owner about the driveway before you choose the car. A taxi from the Cruz Bay ferry is $9 for one person, and for two or more $8 each to Great Cruz Bay or $7 each to the Westin, plus $3 a bag, on the Virgin Islands Taxicab Commission's tariff in force since October 2022. If you bring a car from St. Thomas, the barge lands at the Theovald Moorehead Dock and Terminal at Enighed Pond, on the road into town: $65 a car one way on the Big Red Barge and Love City Car Ferries rates pages, three operators, the first boat out of Enighed at 5:30 am and the last from Red Hook between 6 and 7:30 pm depending on the company, per the Virgin Islands Port Authority's posted schedule as of October 2026.

The tradeoff: the resort beside you. The bay is calm and the pool is large because a resort keeps them so, and its beach and pool are shared with every unit on the property, while the town you would walk to for dinner is 12 minutes away by car, so an evening out means a car and a sober driver. If walking to dinner is the point, stay in Cruz Bay; if the Park beaches matter more than the pool, look to Peter Bay on the North Shore; for the quiet of the east side, Coral Bay is 28 minutes from Cruz Bay over the mountain road. Whichever house you choose, shop in Cruz Bay on the way in.

Suits a family that wants a pool and calm water, a house rather than a hotel room, and the ferry 14 minutes away.

Getting around

Plan on a car in Great Cruz Bay: the roads roll rather than climb, the beach is on foot and Cruz Bay is 12 minutes by road.

Drive toMinutes
Cruz Bay ferry14
Cruz Bay town12
Hart Bay Beach12

Measured on the island's roads.

How to get to Great Cruz Bay from St. Thomas

The usual way: a taxi to the Red Hook ferry terminal (36 min), then the ferry to Cruz Bay (20 min, $8.15 a person), then 14 minutes by road from the dock to Great Cruz Bay. About 70 minutes from Cyril E. King airport to the villa, more on cruise-ship days. Six other ways across are below, with times and fares.Every route
From Charlotte Amalie waterfront
  • FerryThe Charlotte Amalie ferry

    The boat if you are stepping off a cruise ship or staying downtown: it leaves from the waterfront terminal, twice a day each way.

    1. Ferry, Charlotte Amalie to Cruz Bay45 min

    Plus $4 a bag; $3.50 child; $6 for residents 60 and over with the elderly IDTwo a day each way: 8:45 and 11:15 am from Cruz Bay, 10 am and 12:30 pm from Charlotte Amalie (Transportation Services of St. John)Varlack Ventures lists its own Charlotte Amalie run as suspended for the off-season, as of October 2026; check its page before you plan on that boatNo reservationTimes (Transportation Services of St. John and Varlack Ventures)

    45 min$13 a person$12 resident
From Cyril E. King airport
  • FerryTaxi to Crown Bay, then the Inter Island boat

    The closest boat to the airport and the fastest door to dock, but two sailings a day, four Friday to Sunday. It lands at Cruz Bay Creek, not the main ferry dock.

    1. Taxi to Crown Bay Marina8 min
    2. Boat to Cruz Bay Creek35 min

    Boat only; $15 senior, $10 child 3 to 11. The taxi to Crown Bay is $8 for one rider, $6 each for two or more.3:30 and 5:30 pm daily; 9:45 am and 2:15 pm Friday to SundayCheck in 30 minutes before departureTimes (Inter Island Boat Services)

    43 min$20 a person
  • FerryTaxi to Red Hook, then the ferry

    The route most guests take. The taxi is the long part; allow extra on cruise-ship days and at school-run time.

    1. Taxi to the Red Hook ferry terminal36 min
    2. Ferry to Cruz Bay20 min

    Ferry only, plus $4 a bag. The taxi to Red Hook is $23 for one rider, $17 each for two or more.Ferry hourly, 5:30 am to 10 pmNo reservationTimes (VITRAN, run by Transportation Services and Varlack Ventures)

    56 min$8.15 a person$6 resident
  • FerryTaxi to Charlotte Amalie, then the ferry

    Rarely the best choice from the airport: the terminal is closer than Red Hook, but the crossing is twice as long and only two boats a day leave Charlotte Amalie.

    1. Taxi to the Charlotte Amalie ferry terminal12 min
    2. Ferry to Cruz Bay45 min

    Ferry only, plus $4 a bag. The taxi to the terminal is $11 for one rider, $9 each for two or more.Two a day from Charlotte Amalie, 10 am and 12:30 pm (Transportation Services of St. John)Varlack Ventures' Charlotte Amalie run was suspended for the off-season in October 2026; it usually sails again from about November, so check its page firstTimes (Transportation Services of St. John and Varlack Ventures)

    57 min$13 a person$12 resident
  • Water taxiTaxi to Crown Bay, then a private water taxi

    Your own boat on your own schedule, any hour with notice. Priced by the boat, from $695, so it makes sense for a full house arriving together. The operator does not publish the crossing time, so no total is shown.

    1. Taxi to Crown Bay Marina8 min
    2. Water taxi to Cruz Bay

    The boat, not the seat; the operator quotes from $695 from Crown Bay and from $495 from Compass Point Marina. The land taxi to Crown Bay is $8 for one rider, $6 each for two or more.By reservation; 24-hour service with notice

    from $695 a boat
From Red Hook, St. Thomas
  • FerryThe Red Hook ferry

    The default way over: hourly until 10 pm, no booking, and it lands at the main dock in the middle of Cruz Bay.

    1. Ferry, Red Hook to Cruz Bay20 min

    Plus $4 a bag. Varlack adds a fuel surcharge from June 12, 2026.Hourly, 5:30 am to 10 pm from Red Hook, 6 am to 10 pm from Cruz Bay; an off-season timetable runs from late July, usually to the end of October, so check the operator's current scheduleNo reservation; buy at the windowTimes (VITRAN, run by Transportation Services and Varlack Ventures)

    20 min$8.15 a person$6 resident
  • Car bargeThe car barge

    Only with your own car, or a rental whose company allows the crossing: National and Discount Car Rental say theirs may go (their own pages, 2026-10-09), so ask yours first. Most people rent on St. John. The crossing time is not published, so no total is shown.

    1. Car barge to the Theovald Moorehead terminal at Enighed Pond

    Times (Big Red Barge, Love City Car Ferries and Global Marine)

    $65 a car one way, $80 round trip, on the Big Red Barge and Love City Car Ferries rates pages (checked 2026-10-09). Each company sells its own tickets.

Fares change; the operator's page has today's. Road legs measured on island roads. Taxi fares are the Virgin Islands Taxicab Commission's tariff, in force since October 2022: per person, less each for two or more traveling together, plus $3 a bag. Checked 2026-10-09.

For a villa at the Westin St. John Resort Villas, the resort is the one to ask about power cuts and water; the private houses on the slopes around the bay store rain in cisterns, and only some have generators, so ask the owner. Phones are patchy along the low road past the bay, by our read, and steadier up the hill.

Beaches near Great Cruz Bay

Questions about Great Cruz Bay

Where is Great Cruz Bay?
Great Cruz Bay is the large bay on the southwest side of St. John, US Virgin Islands, with the Westin St. John Resort Villas at its head. It is 12 minutes by car from Cruz Bay town and 14 from the ferry dock by our measurement. Chocolate Hole is the next bay toward town.
Is Great Cruz Bay the same as Cruz Bay?
No. Cruz Bay is the ferry town on the west end of St. John; Great Cruz Bay is the resort bay to the south, 12 minutes away by road. They share a name and a coastline, not a center, and a listing that says Cruz Bay may be either, so check the map on the page.
Do you need a car in Great Cruz Bay?
Yes, rent one. From the units around the Westin the beach is on foot, but town is 12 minutes by car, the ferry 14, the nearest beach outside the resort, Hart Bay, 12, and the National Park beaches start at 19 minutes. The roads roll rather than climb by our measurement, so ask the owner whether the driveway needs four-wheel drive before you choose the car.
What is Virgin Grand Estates?
The hillside of private villas above the Westin St. John at Great Cruz Bay. It is not a separate area on this site: a villa there is listed under Great Cruz Bay and appears in the grid on this page. Ask the owner whether the house comes with access to the resort's beach and pool, because the address alone does not say.
Is there a beach at Great Cruz Bay?
Yes, at the head of the bay in front of the Westin. The shoreline is public, and a small free lot at 18.32061, -64.78601, a dropped pin rather than a named lot, is a minute's walk from the sand; the resort's own lot is for its guests and for activities that leave from the Westin. The nearest beach outside the resort is Hart Bay, 12 minutes by car, and the National Park beaches start at Caneel Bay, 19 minutes.

Written by Virgin Islands Villas.

See rentals

Every rental here is listed by its owner. See the real nightly rate, then ask them about your dates. No service fee.

Great Cruz Bay, St. John, USVI: Guide and Vacation Rentals