Trunk Bay, U.S.V.I/ St. John Closest Airport: St. Thomas Distance: taxi/ ferry 20 min. Nearest Village/City: Cruz Bay Shade: Light Chair Rentals: Yes Food/Water Available on Beach: Yes Watersport Rentals: Yes Shopping Area on Beach: No Vendors: No HOTEL ON BEACH: None. There are some excellent hotels on the small island of St. John such as the Hyatt Regency and Caneel Bay. Gallows Point is a rental condominium suite resort a 10-minute walk from Cruz Bay.TEL (809) 776-6434. LOCAL ATTRACTIONS: Marked underwater snorkeling trail for beginners maintained by the Parks Department. (actually 2/3 of St. John is designated National Park). While the coral reefs off Trunk Bay are protected, there has been so much underwater human traffic that the reef is in poor condition. Rental equipment is available. ACCESS TO BEACH: You see the sweep of the sand of Trunk Bay from a bluff as you drive there from Cruz Bay (10 minutes). Frequent open-air shuttle bus/taxis. A large parking lot for your rental vehicle. Hitchking is easy on friendly St. John QUALITY OF BEACH: A 'poster beach' seen in advertising photos for St. John around the world. This is a beautiful long stretch of - unfortunately - overcrowded beach; which is often the price of a good marketing campaign. Trunk Bay boasts bone-white sand and azure waters. Due to the protection of nearby offshore islands, the water here is calm, shallow and tranquil. Suitable for young children. ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: As befits a national park there are picnic tables, BBQ's, lifeguards, toilets, changing rooms, locker rentals and snorkeling gear rentals. The 3,000 permanent residents of St. John are annually augmented by hundreds of thousands of visitors.These are mostly day-trippers from the nearby island of St. Thomas. There is an hourly ferry connecting Red Hook on St. Thomas (20 min.) to Cruz Bay. Virgin Island Seaplanes Shuttle flies directly to St. John from San Juan, Puerto Rico and St. Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands. (809) 773-1776.