St. Thomas beaches
Magens Bay is the beach St. Thomas is known for: lifeguards, showers and a $7 entry as of October 2026, 14 minutes from Charlotte Amalie. Snorkelers head east to Coki Beach or Sapphire Beach. Hull Bay and Brewers Bay are the quiet ones on the island, and Honeymoon Beach on Water Island is a ferry ride from Crown Bay.
Every beach compared
| Beach | Area | Today | Entry | Parking | Restrooms | Shade | Snorkeling | Crowds | From Charlotte Amalie |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| East End | |||||||||
| Sapphire Beach | Sapphire Bay | Exposed | Free; a public beach, per the Department of Planning and Natural Resources (as of October 2026) | On site, with no fee or count published (as of October 2026) | yes | some | 4 / 5 | busy | 23 min drive |
| Coki Beach | Smith Bay | Sheltered | Free | Very little, with a charge for a space; the amount is not published as of October 2026 | yes | sparse | 4 / 5 | busy | 20 min drive |
| Secret Harbour Beach | Secret Harbour | Sheltered | Free; no day pass (the resort's own FAQ, as of October 2026) | The resort publishes no visitor parking as of October 2026; its FAQ gives each condominium a space for its guests and tells day visitors to take a taxi | limited | some | 4 / 5 | moderate | 27 min drive |
| Lindquist Beach | Smith Bay | Some swell | $7 per person for non-residents, $2 for residents with local ID, children under 12 free (the Magens Bay Authority, as of October 2026) | $2 per vehicle, at the lot just west of the beach (the Magens Bay Authority, as of October 2026) | yes | some | 4 / 5 | quiet | 21 min drive |
| Vessup Beach | Red Hook | Exposed | Free | Informal, at the end of Vessup Beach Road; no lot (as of October 2026) | none | some | 2 / 5 | moderate | 27 min drive |
| Northside | |||||||||
| Magens Bay | Northside | Sheltered | $7 per person; residents $2; under 12 free (the Magens Bay Authority, as of October 2026) | $2 per vehicle, in the lots along the park road; no count is published (the Magens Bay Authority, as of October 2026) | yes | some | 3 / 5 | ship-days | 14 min drive |
| Hull Bay | Hull Bay | Sheltered | Free; no public body posts a fee or hours, as of October 2026 | Unpaved lot beside the boat ramp, shared with trucks and trailers; potholed after rain, per the Department of Planning and Natural Resources in August 2023 | none | plenty | 4 / 5 | quiet | 12 min drive |
| Southside | |||||||||
| Bolongo Bay | Bolongo | Some swell | Free | The resort publishes nothing on parking for visitors as of October 2026; call +1 340 775 1800 before you drive | limited | some | 3 / 5 | quiet | 14 min drive |
| Morningstar Beach | Frenchman's Bay | Some swell | Free; the resort publishes no day pass and the shoreline is public by law (as of October 2026) | Valet at $40 a day is the only option the Buoy Haus publishes (its own FAQ, as of October 2026); no visitor rule is published | yes | sparse | 2 / 5 | ship-days | 11 min drive |
| Limetree Beach | Frenchman's Bay | Some swell | Free; the resort publishes no entrance fee, as of October 2026 | The resort publishes no parking rule for visitors as of October 2026; local accounts describe a free visitor area, so ask at the entrance or call +1 340 776 4770 | limited | some | 3 / 5 | quiet | 14 min drive |
| West End | |||||||||
| Brewers Bay | Bordeaux | Sheltered | Free | Roadside, parallel, along the beach road | yes | some | 4 / 5 | quiet | 13 min drive |
| Water Island | |||||||||
| Honeymoon Beach, Water Island | Water Island | Sheltered | Free; the ferry is $20 round trip for a visitor (Water Island Ferry fares, as of October 2026) | None at the beach, which no road from St. Thomas reaches; cars are left at Crown Bay Marina, where the ferry leaves | limited | some | 3 / 5 | moderate | 9 min drive + 10 min ferry + 5 min walk |
Today is the 7 am reading of Oct 16: whether the morning swell runs onto the beach, from the way each bay opens (our read from the map) against the wave direction at the nearest ocean cell; each beach page has the numbers, the rip current call and the water test. Rows show a dash where a fact has not been checked yet. Each beach page carries the date its facts were verified.
St. Thomas beaches on a map
East End beaches
The East End is the far end of the island from Charlotte Amalie, and four of its five beaches score 4 of 5 for snorkeling in our table, all within ten minutes of the Red Hook ferry terminal by car. One of the four, Lindquist Beach, is shut: the Magens Bay Authority closed it for sargassum on July 9, 2026 and had posted no reopening as of October 2026, so call the Authority first.
5 beaches, 20 to 27 minutes by car from Charlotte Amalie
- Sapphire Beach
Sapphire Beach, St. Thomas, sits on the island's East End, 4 minutes by car from the Red Hook ferry terminal.
- Coki Beach
Coki Beach is a public beach on the northeast side of St. Thomas beside Coral World Ocean Park, 20 minutes from Charlotte Amalie by car.
- Secret Harbour Beach
Secret Harbour Beach, St. Thomas, is free and open to the public with no day pass, as the Secret Harbour Beach Resort's own FAQ states as of October 2026.
- Lindquist Beach
Lindquist Beach is Smith Bay Park on the East End of St. Thomas, 3 minutes by car from the Red Hook ferry terminal and 21 from Charlotte Amalie.
- Vessup Beach
Vessup Beach is the undeveloped strand on the bay east of the Red Hook ferry terminal on St. Thomas, 6 minutes by car from the ferry.
Northside beaches
Two bays over the ridge from town make two different days. Magens Bay has the gate, the lifeguards and the crowd when a ship is in; Hull Bay has the fishing boats, the ramp and no fee, 17 minutes by car from Magens Bay.
2 beaches, 12 to 14 minutes by car from Charlotte Amalie
Southside beaches
Each south shore beach sits in front of a hotel or a resort, and the sand is public all the same under the Open Shorelines Act, checked October 2026. Chairs, pools and parking are the resorts' to set, so read the beach's page before you drive.
3 beaches, 11 to 14 minutes by car from Charlotte Amalie
- Bolongo Bay
Bolongo Bay beach is 1,000 feet of sand on the south side of St. Thomas, 14 minutes by car from Charlotte Amalie, in front of the Bolongo Bay Beach Resort.
- Morningstar Beach
Morningstar Beach, St. Thomas, is the beach below Frenchman's Reef on the south side, 11 minutes by car from Charlotte Amalie.
- Limetree Beach
Limetree Beach, St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, is the cove in front of Limetree Beach Resort by Club Wyndham on Frenchman's Bay, 14 minutes by car from Charlotte Amalie.
West End beaches
Brewers Bay is the beach for a departure day, 8 minutes by car from Cyril E. King Airport by our measurement, with lunch from the food trucks parked on the beach road and nothing sold on the sand itself.
One beach, 13 minutes by car from Charlotte Amalie
Water Island beaches
Water Island is a ferry ride from Crown Bay Marina, and the timetable sets the length of the day: the last boat back is 6:15 pm on the Water Island Ferry's own schedule as of October 2026.
One beach
Questions people ask
- What is the best beach on St. Thomas?
- It depends on the day you want. For swimming, Magens Bay, with lifeguards, restrooms, showers and a sandy middle, and the most company when a cruise ship is in. The best St. Thomas beaches for snorkeling are the six that score 4 of 5 in our table: Coki Beach, Sapphire Beach, Secret Harbour Beach and Lindquist Beach, closed since July 9, 2026, on the East End, Hull Bay on the north side and Brewers Bay by the airport. The Magens Bay Authority closed Lindquist Beach for sargassum on July 9, 2026, and no reopening was announced as of October 2026; call before you drive.
- Do you have to pay to go to beaches on St. Thomas?
- At two of them. Magens Bay and Lindquist Beach are run by the Magens Bay Authority, which charges $7 a non-resident and $2 to park, as of October 2026; Lindquist has been closed for sargassum since July 9, 2026, so call before you drive. The other beaches in the table are free to enter, since Virgin Islands law keeps the shoreline public; what costs money there is parking, a chair, or the ferry to Water Island.
- When are the beaches on St. Thomas most crowded?
- When ships are in port. The Magens Bay Authority says its beach gets crowded at cruise arrivals, and Coki Beach and Sapphire Beach are marked busy in our table. The Virgin Islands Port Authority publishes the Crown Bay ship schedule by date, which is worth reading before you choose a beach day.
- Does St. Thomas have nice beaches?
- Yes, and they differ more than their photographs suggest: a staffed park at Magens Bay, snorkeling off the sand at Coki Beach, a fishing-boat beach at Hull Bay, turtles the University of the Virgin Islands has tagged since 2014 at Brewers Bay, and a beach bar across the water on Water Island.