Travel: The Virgin Islands National Park

Written By: Deena Bouknight | Issue: April 2025

Spring can still be a bit nippy on the Plateau, and winters can be downright unbearable at times. So, for individuals busting to be out of doors when our weather is too chilly, consider traveling to the Virgin Islands National Park, where a myriad of great hiking trails exist.

Of the 63 sites in the National Park Service, only two are not in the United States: American Samoa and Virgin Islands National Park. Both of these parks are located in what is considered American “territories” on an island. American Samoa is almost 7,000 miles away and requires many hours of air travel to get there, while the Virgin Islands National Park is a quick, few hours, non-stop flight to St. Thomas in the Caribbean and then a short ferry ride to St. John.

Virgin Islands National Park takes up most of St. John and includes lush tropical forests, protected feral and wild animals, well-maintained hiking trails, secluded snorkel-perfect coves, and preserved sugar mill ruins.

The island is not crowded and has only one main town, Cruz Bay, where the National Park Service’s visitor center is located. Pick up a map there and then begin knocking out short, manageable hikes throughout the almost 20-square-mile island.

Or download on a smartphone the National Park Service app as well as the AllTrails app and find the list of hiking trails, as well as descriptions, difficulty rating, approximate time range for hiking each one.

Some of the trails are right along the edge of a bay, where views of aqua and teal waters convey shallow and deep areas. Often, hikers will see turtle heads pop up or view stingrays “flying” above the water’s surface. Other hikes ascend to cliffs where there are 360-degree views of the Atlantic Ocean and the many mountainous islands nearby, including St. Thomas, Jost van Dyke, and Tortola.

A favorite hike is the 4.2-mile out and back Reef Bay Trail. While the descriptions of the Reef Bay Trail are a bit intimidating – “mostly downhill,” according to AllTrails, or “strenuous,” according to the National Park Service – anyone who has hiked the Whiteside Mountain Trail or any sections of the Bartram Trail will consider the Reef Bay trail moderate and doable.

For one, the trail is only downhill for about a quarter of a mile at the start. Then it mostly levels off for the rest of the trail.

Beginning at the trailhead on Centerline Road (due to its location in the center of the island) the trail meanders through lush forests replete with tiny, white-tailed deer, iridescent bridled quail-doves, and massive wood-ant tree nests. A short spur trail leads to a secret-garden-like waterfall with a deep pool at its base and petroglyphs covering a large boulder.

A bonus at the end of the trail, just before the dense tropical forest opens to a white beach and a brilliant blue cove, is the Reef Bay Sugar Mill.

Hikers will marvel at the mill’s unique construction showcasing shells, brain coral, multi-hued rocks, and red and white imported bricks. The wood-framed areas of these structures may have eroded due to its century-plus age, but the solidly built walls show little deterioration. Hermit crabs and crested anoles (lizards) creep or dart over, around, and through the ruins.

Plus, enormous gears, a boiler, iron kettles, and a steam engine fill the spaces. Components were manufactured in Glasgow, Scotland in 1861 by the W.A. McOnie Company, and both the date and the company name are still legible on the equipment.

Hikers that also like to snorkel would be wise to pack snorkeling gear in a backpack, as almost all of the hiking trails within the Virgin Islands National Park start at or lead to coves teaming with tropical fish and colorful plant life.