Americans are not generally known for their restraint when it comes to development, so St. John in the U.S. Virgin Islands is a pleasant surprise. Just 20 square miles, the island is devoted primarily to National Parks, and has some of the best beaches and finest snorkeling in the world. It also is home to some nice, small-scale eco-friendly lodgings, most more aptly described as campgrounds or villas than resorts:
Maho Bay Camps and Estate Concordia Preserve
Actually two resorts under the same umbrella, Maho Bay features 114 tent-cottages ensconced in the lush jungle of the Virgin Island National Park and connected to one another by a series of wooden walkways through the bush. Concordia Eco-Tents, on the Estate Concordia Preserve is a little more upscale, featuring 25 multi-level, full-amenity private accommodations powered just ten minutes away from downtown Coral Bay. Both resorts offer more traditional "studio" accommodations for the tent-wary.
Botanical Villas
© Botanical Villas
Want to get your hands dirty? Botanical Villas, in addition to having traditional pay guests, welcomes those who want to work you stay by gardening, painting, and tending the resort. The Peters Bay getaway features two-to-four person cabins or one-to-two person eco-tents in addition to bare sites for hardier campers. Cabin rates start at $57.50, while a bare site (bring your own tent), runs a mere $12.65 per person. Botanical Villas has a strict no-alcohol or other drugs policy, however, so if you plan on boozing at the beach, you might want to stay elsewhere.
Trinidad Charlie's Cottages
Fans of farming and horticulture might want to consider Trinidad Charlie, a 24-year-old agricultural project featuring dozens of fruit trees, palms, and peppers (the last of which Charlie uses to make his signature hot sauce). The farm is also home to two tented eco-cottages wih full kitchens, located in the middle of the owners' private garden. High-season rates are $800 per week for two people; $550 in the low-season.
Virgin Islands Environmental Resource Station (VIERS)
© VIERS
For serious eco-tourism, try the Virgin Islands Environmental Resource Station (VIERS) in remote Lameshur Bay. Founded in 1966 as a biology field-research camp, VIERS has a complete focus on the environment, providing workshops and seminars, encouraging green best practices, and hosting scientists from around the world. VIERS has a dozen rustic living cabins in addition to a central complex with a dining hall, library, showers, and an office/store. Three meals a day are provided, though guests are expected to pitch in with the dishwashing and housekeeping duties. Rates start at $66 per night.
Cinnamon Bay
© Cinnamon Bay Campground/Caneel Bay Resort
The Cinnamon Bay Campground, located along the longest stretch of beach in St. John merges rough eco-tourism with a relaxed, beach-bum attitude. With birdwatching, hiking, snorkeling, and tours of local ruins and Taino Indian sites, there's there's still plenty to do, but you just won't feel any pressure other than to bask in the natural beauty of Cinnamon Bay. Accommodations run from $30/night for a bare site to $100/night for a beachfront cottage. The campground is closed Sept. 7 to Oct. 28.
