Cruz Bay, United States Virgin Islands
Encyclopedia
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...
. According to the 2000 Census, Cruz Bay has a population of 2,743 people.
Cruz Bay, located on the west coast of Saint John, is the island's largest commercial center and the location of the main port on Saint John. The primary access to Saint John is through Cruz Bay Harbor. Frequent barge and ferry
Ferry
A ferry is a form of transportation, usually a boat, but sometimes a ship, used to carry primarily passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo as well, across a body of water. Most ferries operate on regular, frequent, return services...
, including car ferry, service connects Saint John to the neighboring more-developed island of Saint Thomas. Ferries also run regularly between Cruz Bay and Tortola
Tortola
Tortola is the largest and most populated of the British Virgin Islands, a group of islands that form part of the archipelago of the Virgin Islands. Local tradition recounts that Christopher Columbus named it Tortola, meaning "land of the Turtle Dove". Columbus named the island Santa Ana...
, Virgin Gorda
Virgin Gorda
Virgin Gorda is the third-largest and second most populous of the British Virgin Islands . Located at approximately 18 degrees, 48 minutes North, and 64 degrees, 30 minutes West, it covers an area of about...
, and Jost Van Dyke
Jost Van Dyke
At roughly 8 square kilometers, and about 3 square miles Jost Van Dyke is the smallest of the four main islands of the British Virgin Islands, the northern portion of the archipelago of the Virgin Islands, located in the Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea. Jost Van Dyke lies about 8 km to the...
in the British Virgin Islands
British Virgin Islands
The Virgin Islands, often called the British Virgin Islands , is a British overseas territory and overseas territory of the European Union, located in the Caribbean to the east of Puerto Rico. The islands make up part of the Virgin Islands archipelago, the remaining islands constituting the U.S...
.
Cruz Bay is home to numerous shops and restaurants which are frequented by tourists and locals alike. The Virgin Islands National Park
Virgin Islands National Park
Virgin Islands National Park is a United States National Park covering approximately 60% of the island of Saint John in the United States Virgin Islands, plus a few isolated sites on the neighboring island of St. Thomas...
Visitor Center, the Elaine Sprauve Library, a post office, and a bank are also located in Cruz Bay.
The National Park Service has its headquarters near the waterfront in Cruz Bay as does U.S. Customs and Immigration.
Climate
Government
- St. John: US Virgin Islands - Official site for United States Virgin Islands Department of Tourism
- Virgin Islands: American Paradise - Official site for National Park Service, US Department of the Interior
- Reef Fishes of St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands - Official site for US Geological Survey, Biological Resources Division
Official tourism guides
- Cruz Bay Visitor Center - Official site
- US Virgin Islands Tourism Association - Official site