St. Thomas · Experiences

St. Thomas water sports: jet ski rental, parasailing and gear

Jet ski rental in St. Thomas leaves from four places: Lindbergh Bay near the airport, the Westin at Frenchman's Reef, and Compass Point and Sapphire marinas on the East End, at $125 to $190 a ski for the hour. Parasailing flies from Sapphire Marina, and paddleboards, kayaks and snorkel sets rent on the resort beaches.

Written by Virgin Islands Villas · Updated Oct 2026

Water sports on St. Thomas, side by side

Rates and phone numbers from each operator's own pages, or a recent local source where it prints none, on the day in the last column; a group size marked "about" is our read. Every listing is free; an operator can ask to be added or corrected through our contact page.
Name	What	Departs from	Group size	Rates	Phone	Checked
JetskiVI Map	Freestyle jet ski rental and guided rides past Water Island and Honeymoon Beach. 18 to drive alone; 15 to 17 with an adult 21 or over aboard.	Emerald Beach Resort, Lindbergh Bay	1 or 2 a ski	$100 for 30 minutes, $175 an hour; guided 45 minutes $125, 90 minutes $210; $15 a passenger	(340) 774-5840	Oct 2026
Tropical Adventure Map	Jet ski rental with a safety boat in and out of the marina, and a 1.5-hour jet ski shuttle to the Pizza Pi boat at Christmas Cove. Drivers 16 and over; ID and card in the booker's name.	Compass Point Marina	1 or 2 a ski; Pizza Pi shuttle up to 6 guests	1 hour $125 (SeaDoo) or $145 (Yamaha); Pizza Pi shuttle $145 (SeaDoo, one rider) or $175 (Yamaha)	(340) 474-9727	Oct 2026
Coastal Water Sports Map	Freestyle WaveRunner rental on the East End, 9 am to 4 pm Sunday to Friday, closed Saturdays; delivers WaveRunners to a beach house or villa.	Sapphire Marina, slip N-29	2 a WaveRunner	$130 a half hour, $190 an hour; a second rider free; $5 card fee	(340) 643-8257	Oct 2026
Cruz Bay Watersports	Guided jet ski tour past Hassel and Water Islands. 18 to drive; driver's license and card deposit; runs at a minimum headcount.	The Westin Beach Resort & Spa at Frenchman's Reef	1 or 2 a ski, 250 pounds combined	from $149 (sale; $169 list)	(340) 244-1493	Oct 2026
Parasail Virgin Islands Map	Parasail flights from the boat deck over Pillsbury Sound, about 1 hour 15 minutes to 1 hour 30 on the water. From age 4; combined weight 160 to about 550 pounds.	Sapphire Marina (Havensight closed as of October 2026)	up to 15 a boat; flights of 1 to 3	$120 a parasailor; $70 an observer; private boat $1,150 for up to 10 parasailers	(340) 227-8303	Oct 2026
Flyboard St. Thomas	Flyboard sessions, a board lifted by water jets from a personal watercraft, daily between 10 am and 4 pm.	Lindbergh Bay	1	$150 for 30 minutes	(340) 774-5840	Oct 2026
VI Jet Boat, Screamin' Eagle Map	A jet boat ride with 180-degree spins along the coast, about 40 minutes from boarding to landing; riders 42 inches and taller, and soaked unless you book the dry run.	Havensight, by the cruise ship dock	up to 22	$65 adults, $60 children; whole boat $966 for up to 21	(340) 775-9360	Oct 2026
Aqua Action Dive Center Map	Dive shop on the beach at Secret Harbour renting kayaks, paddleboards, snorkel gear, chairs and floats.	Secret Harbour	—	kayak $40 an hour (double $45); paddleboard $45 an hour; snorkel set $25 a day; chair $15, umbrella $10	(340) 775-6285	Oct 2026
Sapphire Beach Club Map	Beach rentals through Naia Boutique at the club, on the beach facing St. John across Pillsbury Sound.	Sapphire Beach	—	snorkel and mask set $15 a day; snorkel board $15 for 2 hours; chaise $15 a day; cabana $275 a day	(340) 714-7874, ext. 5	Oct 2026
WoW Water Sports Map	Kayaks, paddleboards and Sunfish sailboats on the sand at Magens Bay since 1976; no rental period is posted, so ask what the price buys.	Magens Bay	—	single kayak $30; paddleboard or pedal kayak $35; Sunfish $45	(340) 514-4167	Oct 2026
Dinghy's Beach Bar and Grill Map	Beach bar on Honeymoon Beach listing paddleboards, kayaks and snorkel gear; no prices posted.	Honeymoon Beach, Water Island	—	—	(340) 227-5525	Oct 2026

Jet ski rental in St. Thomas, launch by launch

Choose the launch before the company. On the south side, JetskiVI rents from Emerald Beach Resort in Lindbergh Bay, near the airport, and its guided rides run past Water Island and Honeymoon Beach; Cruz Bay Watersports guides from The Westin Beach Resort & Spa at Frenchman's Reef. On the East End, Tropical Adventure rents from Compass Point Marina and runs a jet ski shuttle to the floating pizza boat at Christmas Cove, and Coastal Water Sports rents freestyle hours from Sapphire Marina, closed Saturdays, and will bring WaveRunners to a beach house.

Cruz Bay Watersports, Tropical Adventure and Coastal Water Sports all ask for a credit card and a photo ID, and Tropical Adventure turns away a booking whose card and license do not match. Bring the card you booked with.

What a St. Thomas jet ski tour costs per person

The price is a ski, not a person, so two on one ski halves it. As published on each operator's own page on October 21, 2026:

Ride	Price for the ski	Two on one ski, each
JetskiVI, 45-minute guided cruise	$125, plus $15 a passenger	$70
JetskiVI, 90-minute guided ride	$210, plus $15 a passenger	$112.50
Tropical Adventure, Pizza Pi shuttle, 1.5 hours	$175 a Yamaha; $145 a SeaDoo, one rider	$87.50 on the Yamaha
Coastal Water Sports, freestyle hour	$190, a second rider free, $5 card fee	$97.50

Cruz Bay Watersports' guided tour is from $149, a sale price on a $169 list, and caps rider and driver together at 250 pounds, so most pairs ride one to a ski.

Jet ski rules in the Virgin Islands, in plain words

No government site publishes the territory's motorboat rules in full, so this is our reading of them: they keep jet skis off the beaches. Free riding starts 500 feet off the shore, cays included, and 200 feet beyond any reef. Inside the bays the skis launch from, Lindbergh Bay, Frenchman Bay and Jersey Bay among them, a ski runs out in a straight line at a slow, no-wake speed, so part of a rented hour is the trip to open water. The Mangrove Lagoon behind Compass Point is closed to motorboats. Two rules are posted where you can check them: the Department of Sports, Parks and Recreation keeps jet skis out of swimming areas, and the sign at the Magens Bay gate bans them.

To drive alone, by our reading, a rider must be 18; at 14 to 17 a rider needs a parent's written consent and the boating course that the Department of Planning and Natural Resources requires of anyone 14 to 18 who drives a jet ski. Every rider wears a life jacket. The rental desks set their own floors as well: 18 at Cruz Bay Watersports; 18 alone at JetskiVI, or 15 to 17 with an adult 21 or over aboard; and 16 at Tropical Adventure, where a driver under 18 still needs the course and a parent's consent.

Parasailing in St. Thomas, from Sapphire Marina

One company flies parasails off St. Thomas with a site of its own: Parasail Virgin Islands, from Sapphire Marina on the East End, over Pillsbury Sound with St. John and the British Virgin Islands in view. A flight is $120 a parasailor as of October 21, 2026, singly, in pairs or in threes, and the boat holds up to 15, so plan on an hour and a quarter to an hour and a half on the water for a flight of minutes. Riders go up from age 4 and land back on the deck, dry unless they ask for a dip.

The weather and the scale decide the day: the captain needs a combined weight of at least 160 pounds and no more than about 550, and the $60 deposit a person is not refunded on a cancellation of your own. Its Havensight launch near the cruise pier was closed in October 2026; call before planning around it.

Snorkel, paddleboard and kayak rentals on the beach

The gear rents on the sand at four beaches, at these prices as of October 21, 2026. At Secret Harbour, Aqua Action Dive Center rents a snorkel set at $25 a day and kayaks and paddleboards by the hour. The Sapphire Beach Club rents a snorkel and mask set at $15 a day through Naia Boutique. WoW Water Sports rents kayaks, paddleboards and Sunfish at Magens Bay, past the park's $7-a-person gate fee. Dinghy's, on Honeymoon Beach across on Water Island, lists paddleboards, kayaks and snorkel gear without prices.

Bolongo Bay's kayaks and boards are for the resort's guests. Lindquist Beach, whose rentals the Magens Bay Authority runs, has been closed for sargassum since July 9, 2026. At Coki Beach the vendors rent snorkel gear and floats with no prices posted; ask before you sit down.

Villas on St. Thomas

Every villa on the island is listed by its owner on St. Thomas vacation rentals. See rates and dates, then write to the owner.

Questions about water sports on St. Thomas

How old do you have to be to drive a jet ski in St. Thomas?

Eighteen to drive alone, by our reading of the territory's motorboat rules; at 14 to 17 a rider needs a parent's written consent and the boating course the Department of Planning and Natural Resources requires of anyone 14 to 18 who drives a jet ski, as of October 2026. The rental desks set their own floors: 18 at Cruz Bay Watersports, 18 alone at JetskiVI or 15 to 17 with an adult 21 or over aboard, and 16 at Tropical Adventure, where a driver under 18 still needs the course and the consent.

Do you need a license to rent a jet ski in St. Thomas?

No boating license for an adult, but a photo ID; a driver 14 to 18 also needs the boating course the Department of Planning and Natural Resources requires. Cruz Bay Watersports and Tropical Adventure ask for a driver's license, Coastal Water Sports for a driver's license or other photo ID, and all of them for a credit card, as of October 2026.

How much is a jet ski tour in St. Thomas per person?

Prices are a ski, so it depends on sharing. JetskiVI's 45-minute guided cruise is $125 a ski plus $15 a passenger, $70 each for two, and Cruz Bay Watersports' guided tour is from $149, both as of October 21, 2026.

How much is parasailing in St. Thomas?

$120 a parasailor with Parasail Virgin Islands from Sapphire Marina, as of October 21, 2026. A rider along for the boat ride is $70, photos are $40, and the whole boat for up to 10 parasailers is $1,150 with the crew's gratuity included.

Where can you rent snorkel gear on St. Thomas?

On the sand at Sapphire Beach, $15 a day from the beach club, and at Secret Harbour, $25 a day from Aqua Action Dive Center, as of October 2026. Coki Beach's vendors rent sets without posted prices. Nothing is rented at Brewers Bay or Hull Bay, so bring your own there.

Sources: Department of Planning and Natural Resources (checked Oct 21, 2026) · Department of Sports, Parks and Recreation (checked Oct 21, 2026) · Magens Bay Authority (checked Oct 21, 2026)