If you haven’t been, St. John down in the US Virgin Islands is a must-go! Life-list stuff from one end of the island to the other. Best of all, roughly two-thirds of the isle is national park, which has kept it blissfully undeveloped and wonderfully authentic, including wild jungle, resident critters, and those drop-dead gorgeous views from up high or beachside.

We circled the entire island and snorkeled, hiked, or a combination. Island Style at its finest! Here’s a sampler:

Trunk Bay

A wildly popular and ridiculously scenic beach, Trunk is known for its underwater snorkeling trail, a 650-foot self-guided adventure with info plaques loaded with scoop on corals and active sea life. The trail is on the west (left) side of the rocky cay just off shore. The trail is plenty intriguing and don’t miss the deep, craggy reef at the far northwest shore of the cay. Lots of activity here, like barracuda, needlefish, angel fish, and lots more.

Get there early to avoid bonking heads with fellow snorkelers.

Maho Bay

Another uber-popular beach, Maho is stunning and the snorkeling is fine but wasn’t great when we were there. Try to shoot for the middle of the bay where grasses attract sea turtles. Shallow reefs at both sides of the bay are great too. Early arrival gets you a parking spot and choice beach digs.

Francis Bay

We loved this bay on the mid-north of the island. Hot tip: A fun boardwalk trail leads into dense backwater foliage occupied by lizards and deer and assorted bird species. You’re almost guaranteed to have this path to yourself and it deposits you onto a virtually deserted, rocky beach away from the usual crowds near the “main” beach. Target the north end in the shallows for the most underwater activity. Saw a huge turtle here, accompanied by a trio of remoras.

Water Lemon Cay

Stow your snorkel gear in a pack and enjoy an exhilarating shoreside hike (about 1 mile) bordering Leinster Bay to Water Lemon Cay. Rugged and rocky, the beach allows close access to the cay, a hunk of rock about 100 meters out. Very sparse crowds and pretty great snorkeling, although it can get windy. Stick to the typically calmer west side of the cay. Hot tip: Sea turtles galore right off shore along the Leinster trail.

Haulover Bay

One of our top favorites! Haulover has a north and south bay. North is claimed to have some of the best snorkeling on the island and it’s a blast getting there. A skinny footpath leads through low forest filled with resident goats wandering about, and hermit crabs of various size shuffling around. Watch your step! Alas, the north bay is susceptible to wind and it was howling every time we tried it.

The south bay is nothing short of spectacular, and often void of other humans (the best part). We had the place to ourselves multiple days! Hit the left side of the bay for craggy reef formation and tons of fishes. Lots of activity happening right along the beach shore, too, in the shallows. The bay’s right side is similarly enticing. Love this place!

Great Lameshur Bay from high up on the trail.

Honeymoon Beach

A world-renowned jewel, Honeymoon has it all. Like all the beaches on St. John, it feels like some kind of fairly tale place, so blindingly beautiful what with all the sugar white sand and turquoise waters. Target the far west end of the beach and snorkel around the point. Lots of shallow reef activity and it’s an easy glide over to ultra-secluded Solomon Bay.

Salt Pond Bay

Put this one on your don’t-miss list too. Gorgeous!! Radiant clear to 40 feet and more, brilliant white sand beach, and loads of sea turtles. Popular and busy so arrive early. Huge bonus: Hike the 2.3-mile Ram Head Trail to its namesake hulk of rock to the south. Absolutely stunning views and robust hiking that includes woods, a beach walk, and switchback-y climbs. Beach access requires a short hike in as well.

Lameshur Bays

Sure, you can drive to these remote bays but why not make an adventure out of it? Great Lameshur and Little Lameshur are just to the west of Salt Pond, adjacent to one of the sugar mill ruins. You can also get there on foot via the 1-mile Bordeaux Mountain Trail. Find the trailhead (1237 feet) along the lowest-hanging curve of a squiggly mountain road (108) climbing up from Coral Harbor. The path descends a full mile, determinedly, all the way to Little Lameshur, with a few killer views along the way. The beach is almost always quiet and snorkeling was sublime. The hike back out, of course, is a mile back up and it’s a brute—over 1000 feet of elevation gain on steady, really steep grades. And midday temps will bake you so do this one early.