Virgin Islands (US) Driving Advice and Car Hire Info
Driving in US Virgin Islands
The US Virgin Islands drive on the left (the only US territory to do so) and you can use the licence of your own country to drive here.Main roads in the US Virgin islands include Highway 66 which is the main east–west route on St. Croix linking locations on the southern coast, including the Henry E. Rohlsen International Airport, and the island’s principal towns Christiansted and Frederiksted. In St Thomas, Highway 30 is the main route which cross the island and links the international airport with Charlotte Amalie and the cruise ship port. On St John’s Highway 10 is the main road and is usually knows as the Center Line Road by locals, as it runs through the middle of the island. Highway 10 runs from Highway 20 in Cruz Bay across St. John, entering Virgin Islands National Park along the way.
The Islands are mountainous (particularly St John) so roads can be steep and winding and many aren’t lit so driving here at night may cause some challenges. Roads are in reasonable condition but expect the odd pot hole. Also they may become slippery after rain. Drivers may tailgate, drive at high speed and attempt to overtake in dangerous locations but generally driving style is fairly laid back and shouldn’t cause you too many problems. As in many Caribbean Islands, drivers will pull over or stop in the middle of the road without indicating if they see a friend walking by, so leave plenty of room from the car in front, especially in towns. The Islands are small, so though roads often aren’t well signed, its difficult to get lost. Another potential anomaly of driving abroad here is you may find that your rental car has its steering wheel on the left. Coupled with left hand driving this can make overtaking difficult should you feel the need to do so, so only overtake where you have a clear view of the road ahead.
Check with your rental company if they allow cars to be taken between Islands. If they do, check that you won’t be responsible for recovery costs in the event of a breakdown. The Red Hook ferry company runs a small car ferry (referred to as a barge) from Charlotte Amalie in St Thomas to St John’s. This appears to be the only car ferry running at present.
Although I try and keep the information in the site updated as much as possible, in a rapidly moving world, situations can change daily. Therefore please use the site as an approximate guide, and in conjunction with other resources in order to form your view on driving conditions, roads, safety etc.
US Virgin Islands Car Rental –
Hertz have branches on St Croix and St Thomas and Dollar have a branch on St Thomas. Budget have outlets on St Thomas and St John.
We currently have no local car rental partners in the US Virgin Islands. If you are a local car rental company who would like to feature on DriverAbroad.com please check details on our Partnering page or contact us on ADriverAbroad@Outlook.com
Virgin Islands Self Drive Rules (US Virgin Islands)
Some of the companies will allow cars to be driven on different Islands. You should check with them at the time of booking
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