Coral Bay is a town on the island of St. John in the United States Virgin Islands

United States Virgin Islands

The Virgin Islands of the United States are a group of islands in the Caribbean that are an insular area of the United States. The islands are geographically part of the Virgin Islands archipelago and are located in the Leeward Islands of the Lesser Antilles.The U.S...

. It is located on the southeastern side of the island. Though it was once the main commercial and population center on the island due to its sheltered harbor

Harbor

A harbor or harbour , or haven, is a place where ships, boats, and barges can seek shelter from stormy weather, or else are stored for future use. Harbors can be natural or artificial...

, it has fallen from prominence with the introduction of a ferry service to Cruz Bay

Cruz Bay, United States Virgin Islands

Cruz Bay is the main town on the island of Saint John in the United States Virgin Islands. According to the 2000 Census, Cruz Bay has a population of 2,743 people....

, which is now the largest town on St. John.

Orientation

Coral Bay is on the southeastern side of St. John. It is a popular hangout for American mainland ex-pats, sailors, artist types and more who live on sailboats or up in the hills. A traffic jam in Coral Bay probably refers to a herd of goats or a few donkeys in the middle of the road. (There are no stop lights anywhere on the entire island of St. John, and only one barely recognizable 'yield' sign coming into Coral Bay).

Coral Bay is more of a "community" (or, rather, "general area") than town, though more and more homes are beginning to pop up along the hillsides.

It is around a 30 minutes drive (8 miles) along Centerline Road from the main town (Cruz Bay) where the ferries come in from St. Thomas.

Many St. John vacationers do not venture out to Coral Bay.

Amenities

Coral Bay is home to the legendary "Skinny Legs Bar and Grill", "The Donkey Diner" and "The Tourist Trap" as well as some other interesting restaurants/dives such as "Island Blues", "Shipwreck" and "Miss Lucy's". Concordia Eco-Resorts (a sister resort to Maho Bay Eco-Resorts on the islands north shore) is just on the southeastern tip of the island, about 3 miles south of the crossroads where Coral Bay begins.

A small police sub-station arrived in 2005. It was abandoned shortly thereafter.

Eight tuff miles

Each year in late February, the Virgin Islands most famous race (the '8 TUFF MILES'), runs along Centerline Road from Cruz Bay and ends in the Moravian Church ballfield in Coral Bay (next to Skinny Legs). The 2011 race was won by Christopher Reis in 46:00, shattering the course record from the year before.

Emmaus Moravian Church

The Emmaus Moravian Church in Coral Bay is on the List of Registered Historic Places in the United States Virgin Islands and holds an interesting place in St John's history. The Church stands next to the Caroline Estate plantation, the site of a 1733 slave revolt that resulted in the murder of the plantation owner and his 12-year-old daughter. This church is said to be haunted.

External links

• Official tourism page