ST. THOMAS, US VIRGIN ISLANDS

St. Thomas is the busiest of the three United States Virgin Islands. With 28 square miles of lush green hills and sandy beaches, St. Thomas and the nearby island of St. John see nearly 1.7 million visitors a year, far more than their sister island of St. Croix. The island's main town, Charlotte Amalie, bustles like any small city with vacationers shopping and residents heading off to work. Traffic can pile up along the waterfront Route 30, called Veterans Drive, and the city's main parking lot adjacent to Fort Christian is often filled. Despite the surface buzz, it is easy to find quiet pockets away from Charlotte Amalie and other busy areas.

The island, a Danish colony until the Unites States bought it in 1917, is home to just over 51,000 people. Many residents work in the tourism industry, at businesses dependent on the tourism industry or for the local government.

Hotel visitors and guests heading for a sailboat charter usually arrive at the modern Cyril E. King Airport, located at the western end of the island. Most... more