Things to do nearVirgin Islands National Park

Virgin Islands National Park was established in 1956 after philanthropist Laurance Rockefeller purchased land on St. John and donated it to the American people, preserving more than half the island from development at a time when Caribbean tourism was beginning to accelerate. Today the park encompasses roughly 7,000 acres of land and an additional 5,600 acres of submerged lands and waters, making its coral reef ecosystems among the most legally protected in the Caribbean. On land, visitors move through a layered landscape shaped by centuries of Danish colonial sugar production, and the crumbling stone walls of plantation windmills and factory buildings appear at intervals along the trails, particularly along the Reef Bay Trail, the park's longest and most storied route.

Snorkelers and divers find a world of elkhorn coral, sea turtles, spotted eagle rays, and reef fish in the bays that indent the island's northern shore. Trunk Bay, with its marked underwater snorkel trail, is the most visited, while Cinnamon Bay and Maho Bay offer quieter alternatives with their own distinct character. The park's visitor center in Cruz Bay provides maps, ranger programs, and exhibits on the island's natural and cultural history.

Above the beaches, the forested interior holds surprising quiet, and the sound of bananaquits and other native birds carries through the trees on the winding ridge trails. Virgin Islands National Park stands apart from most American national parks in the sheer sensory contrast it offers, where a single afternoon can move from coral reef to colonial ruin to panoramic ocean view, all within a few miles of each other.