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With its sea-swept landscapes, historic
towns, duty-free shopping and luxurious resorts, the
UNITED STATES VIRGIN ISLANDS bask in the combination of
familiar yet exotic that makes them one of the most popular
cruise-ship destinations in the Caribbean. America aside,
it's the Danes who have had the most influence on the
islands. Successful sugarcane exporters and slave dealers,
they built most of the major towns, and there are plentiful
reminders of their presence in the colonial architecture
of the historic cities of Charlotte Amalie and Christiansted
and in the ruins of sugar plantations scattered across the
green mountainous slopes.
Of the sixty islands, islets and cays (most
of which are uninhabited) that make up the USVI, the biggest
and busiest are St Thomas, St Croix and St John. Each has a
distinctive mood and culture, and you haven't really seen
the USVI until you've checked out all three.
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St Thomas,
with its picturesque capital, Charlotte Amalie, is the most
American of the islands - hip and stylish (at least compared
to the rest of the Caribbean) with up market shops and
restaurants and a history born of trade rather than sugar.
St Croix , the
largest of the islands, is the most distant so sees little
of the hordes that flock to St Thomas and St John, though
the cruise-ship ports of Christiansted and Frederiksted
still attract visitors with their mix of historic sights and
good shopping and restaurants. St John, the smallest
of the islands is virtually all wilderness, its National
Park, part on land, part underwater, the major attraction
for its miles of hiking trails and quiet beaches.
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U.S. Virgin Islands
guide
Caribbean guide
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