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The Paradise Brief — Virgin Islands · Daily USVI/BVI ConditionsGet the daily brief →
🚢 2 cruise ships in port — STT Heavy. Norwegian Escape (WICO, 08:00–16:00) · Carnival Conquest (WICO, 08:00–17:00). Combined: ~7,240 pax. Magens, Sapphire, and Coki: busy 10:00 AM–3:30 PM. Road Town BVI has no cruise calls today — BVI beaches clear.
⛵ No Small Craft Advisory in effect. AMZ711 — E winds 10–15 kt, gusts to 25 kt, seas 3–4 ft, occasionally 5 ft. Normal crossing conditions. Winds and seas build midweek — NWS flags small craft caution from Tuesday onward.
⛴️ Red Hook ↔ Cruz Bay is on the off-season schedule (Jul 26–Oct 31). Hourly on the hour, no half-hour sailings. Late-evening times differ by direction — no 9:00 PM from Red Hook, no 10:00 PM from Cruz Bay. Charlotte Amalie ↔ Cruz Bay is down to two morning round trips with no afternoon return.
🌦 Scattered showers before noon, then mostly sunny. 40% chance of precipitation. East wind around 17 mph, gusts to 22 mph. High 91°F, low 81°F.
The
Paradise Brief
VIRGIN ISLANDS · MONDAY, AUGUST 24, 2026 · Updated 6:00 AM AST
6.9/ 10
Heavy cruise day / no advisories
Top pick: Brewers Bay STT or Salt Pond STJ
Beach & island
On the water
Captain's briefing
✈️ Travel out
⛴️ Ferries
Weather overview
91 / 81°F
Hi/Lo forecast
E 17 mph
Wind — gusts 22
3–4 ft
Open seas (AMZ711)
6:02 AM
Sunrise
6:41 PM
Sunset
🌦 Scattered showers
40% rain chance — scattered showers before noon, then mostly sunny with a high near 91°F. East wind around 17 mph, gusts to 22 mph. Low around 81°F. Tonight: scattered showers mainly after 9 PM, partly cloudy, E 16–18 mph gusting 23 — 40% precipitation chance. Tuesday outlook: scattered showers, partly sunny, 91°F, heat index to 102°F as a second tropical wave reaches the eastern Caribbean; showers likely with a possible thunderstorm Tuesday night.
Total today: ~7,240 passengers across 2 ships — both ships are alongside at WICO from 08:00, so the wave builds as one block rather than in staggered stages. Norwegian Escape (4,266 pax, dep 16:00) · Carnival Conquest (2,974 pax, dep 17:00). First passengers reach the beaches around 9:30–10:00; peak 10:00 AM–3:30 PM; thinning from 2:30 PM as Escape's excursions return, and the beaches clear quickly after 4 PM. Peak window derived from actual arrival and departure times. Ships: WICO/Crown Bay August 2026 schedule artifact. Pax: PAX lookup table.
Beaches — St. Thomas
Magens Bay Avoid 10–3:30
Water: Sheltered all day
Crowds: Busy — peak 10:00 AM–3:30 PM 🔴
Surf: 1 ft
Sargassum: North-facing — lower risk
7,000+ pax day — the #1 excursion beach. Before 9:30 AM or after 4 PM.
Sapphire Beach Avoid 10–3:30
Water: Choppy — exposed to east swell
Crowds: Busy — peak 10:00 AM–3:30 PM 🔴
Surf: 2 ft
Sargassum: East-facing — elevated risk
Crowds + chop + sargassum — skip today
Coki Point Avoid 10–3:30
Water: Choppy — exposed to east swell
Crowds: Busy — peak 10:00 AM–3:30 PM 🔴
Surf: 1–2 ft — cove partially protected
Sargassum: East-facing — elevated risk
Snorkel boats plus two ships — not today
Lindquist Beach Caution
Water: Choppy — exposed to east swell
Crowds: Moderate 🟡
Surf: 2 ft
Sargassum: East-facing — elevated risk
Early AM only — verify sargassum on arrival
Brewers Bay STT Best pick
Water: Sheltered all day
Crowds: Light 🟢
Surf: 1 ft
Sargassum: West-facing — lower risk
Top STT pick today — flat, clear, no cruise exposure
Secret Harbour Good
Water: Sheltered all day
Crowds: Light 🟢
Surf: 1 ft
Sargassum: South-facing — lower risk
Calm snorkel — good all day
Honeymoon Beach Good
Water: Sheltered all day
Crowds: Light 🟢
Surf: 1 ft
Rip current: Low
Water Island ferry — good escape from the cruise day
Hull Bay Caution
Water: Choppy — exposed to northeast swell
Crowds: Light 🟢
Surf: 2–3 ft — NE 4 ft at 7 sec offshore, break active
Sargassum: North-facing — lower risk
Surfers fine — swimmers and small children use caution
Beaches — St. John
Trunk Bay Good
Water: Sheltered all day
Crowds: Light 🟢
Surf: 1–2 ft — slight NE wrap
Sargassum: North-facing — lower risk
Ferry friction keeps STJ a tier quieter than STT today
Cinnamon Bay Good
Water: Sheltered all day
Crowds: Light 🟢
Surf: 1 ft
Rip current: Low
Long beach, easy parking, room to spread out
Hawksnest Good
Water: Sheltered all day
Crowds: None 🟢
Surf: 1 ft
Sargassum: North-facing — lower risk
Closest good snorkel to Cruz Bay
Maho Bay Good
Water: Sheltered all day
Crowds: None 🟢
Surf: 1 ft
Rip current: Low
Turtles often feeding in the grass beds — go slow
Salt Pond Best pick
Water: Sheltered all day
Crowds: None 🟢
Surf: 1 ft
Sargassum: South-facing — lower risk
Best escape from the STT cruise day — worth the drive
Lameshur Bay Good
Water: Sheltered all day
Crowds: None 🟢
Surf: 1 ft
Rip current: Low
Remote and calm — high-clearance road
Beaches — BVI
The Baths Yellow flag
Flag: Yellow — default (BVI DDM not confirmed today)
Crowds: None — no cruise calls in BVI today 🟢
Water: Sheltered all day
Surf: 1–2 ft on south approach
Quietest Baths day of the week — verify physical flag at Spring Bay on arrival
Cane Garden Bay Good
Water: Sheltered all day
Crowds: None 🟢
Surf: 1 ft
Sargassum: North-facing — lower risk
No ships in Road Town — bars and beach quiet
White Bay, JVD Good
Water: Sheltered all day
Crowds: None 🟢
Surf: 1–2 ft at the cut
Sargassum: South-facing — lower risk
Soggy Dollar approach straightforward today
Brewers Bay BVI Caution
Water: Choppy — exposed to northeast swell
Crowds: None 🟢
Surf: 2 ft — NE swell reaching the bay
Sargassum: North-facing — lower risk
Snorkel the west end where the reef blocks the swell
Leverick Bay Good
Water: Sheltered all day
Crowds: None 🟢
Surf: Flat — inside Gorda Sound
Sargassum: Lower risk
Flat water and full facilities
Savannah Bay Good
Water: Sheltered all day
Crowds: None 🟢
Surf: 1 ft
Sargassum: NW-facing — lower risk
Long empty sand — no facilities, bring water
Beaches — Anegada
Anegada, BVI — zero cruise ships (permanent baseline)
Loblolly Bay Good
Orientation: North-facing
Water: Sheltered all day
Sargassum: Lower risk (N-facing)
Crowds: None — no ships
Primary snorkel destination — reef just offshore
Flash of Beauty Good
Orientation: North-facing
Water: Sheltered all day
Sargassum: Lower risk
Crowds: None
Calm in today's ESE trades — remote, no facilities
Anegada is a full-day commitment from St. Thomas — the ferry connection runs via Road Town or Virgin Gorda and there is no same-day round trip from Charlotte Amalie. Plan an overnight. Zero cruise ships is the permanent baseline here, so the island is quiet regardless of what St. Thomas is doing.
Sargassum status Standing seasonal advisory · permanent source
2026 record sargassum season — advisory active. East-facing shores across USVI, BVI, and Anegada at elevated risk. Water entry through sargassum mats is not harmful, but jellyfish live in mats — watch for stings. No ground-truth report from local mariners today, so treat this as a general seasonal risk rather than a confirmed sighting. Verify on arrival at any east-facing beach.
Elevated risk E-facing: Sapphire, Coki, Lindquist, Vessup (STT) Friis Bay, Haulover, Drunk Bay, Coral Bay (STJ) Keel Point, East End (Anegada)
Lower risk N/S/W: Magens, Hull, Brewers, Secret Harbour (STT) Trunk, Cinnamon, Maho, Salt Pond, Lameshur (STJ) Loblolly, Flash of Beauty, Cow Wreck, Setting Point (Anegada)
Today's picks & avoid
Brewers Bay STT — best cruise-day refuge
West-facing, fully sheltered from the east trade, and no excursion buses run here. Flat water while the east-side beaches are choppy and busy. Go here today.
Salt Pond & Lameshur STJ — south shore escape
South-facing and fully sheltered. Ferry friction keeps St. John a tier quieter than St. Thomas on any ship day. Clear water, empty sand.
Magens, Sapphire, Coki — busy 10:00 AM–3:30 PM
Two ships totaling 7,240 pax, both alongside from 08:00. These three take the excursion traffic. Go before 9:30 AM or after 4 PM.
Beaches clear fast after 4 PM
Both ships are gone by 17:00 — earlier than a typical big cruise day. Late afternoon at Magens is genuinely pleasant today. Sunset 6:41 PM.
Capt's Read — Monday, August 24
Two ships, 7,240 pax, both tied up at WICO from 8 AM — a solid Heavy day but a manageable one, and the shape of it matters more than the number. Because both arrived together and both leave by 5, the crowd wave is a single tight block: nothing much before 9:30, real pressure from 10 to about 3:30, then it drains quickly. That is a very different day from a four-ship stagger. If guests want Magens, send them at 7:30 in the morning or at 4:30 in the afternoon and they will barely notice the ships were here. Sapphire and Coki are the ones to steer away from entirely today — they take the excursion traffic, they are east-facing into a 17 mph trade, and they carry the elevated sargassum risk. Brewers Bay is the clean answer on St. Thomas: west-facing, flat, no cruise exposure. South St. John is the better answer if anyone has the day to make the drive. BVI is wide open — Road Town has no cruise calls at all today, so the Baths and Cane Garden are as quiet as they get midweek. Baths flag stays Yellow by default, so tell anyone heading over to look at the physical flag at Spring Bay before they commit. Showers before noon, 40%, then it clears — not a rainout, but carry a plan B for the morning. One thing worth passing on to anybody crossing to St. John: the ferry is on the off-season schedule now, hourly only, and the last boats do not match up in the two directions. There is no 9 PM out of Red Hook and no 10 PM out of Cruz Bay. Every year somebody has dinner in Cruz Bay and then finds out the hard way. Tell them to pick their return boat before they order.
Marine conditions — No advisory in effectNDBC FZCA52 · issued 4:07 PM AST Sun Aug 23
Wind
SpeedE 10–15 kt (AMZ711)
Guststo 25 kt
METAR obsTIST: E 8 kt @ 2353Z Aug 23 (est — 10 hr old)
TAF this morningE 10 kt to 09:00 → ESE 13 kt midday
NWS forecastE 17 mph, gusts 22 mph Monday
Swell & sea state
Open seas3–4 ft, occ. 5 ft (AMZ711)
Wave detailNE 4 ft at 7 sec (AMZ711)
Sheltered waters1–2 ft (est)
AdvisoryNone active — SCA flag false
Inside-bank zoneAMZ716 not in today's pull
Navigation
Visibility6+ sm (TAF confirmed)
Under showersReduced — scattered before noon
Surface current~0.3 kt W (est)
Magnetic var.13°W
Sunrise / set0602 / 1841
Tides & current — Charlotte Amalie
LW morning9:23 AM · 0.03 ft
HW evening6:38 PM · 0.92 ft
Range0.89 ft — single cycle today
DatumMLLW · NOAA 9751639
Tide curve — Charlotte Amalie NOAA 9751639 via fishingreminder · confirmed live
LW 9:23 AM (0.03 ft) — a very low morning tide. Current Cut ebb peak ~7:30–9:30 AM. E-bound transits: before 7:30 AM or hold until the flood establishes around 11:30 AM. Single long flood through the afternoon to HW 6:38 PM (0.92 ft).
Source: NOAA 9751639 via fishingreminder.com — two sourced points today (LW and HW); the curve between them is interpolated. Setting Point (Anegada) harmonic +50 min: LW ~10:13 AM · HW ~7:28 PM (harmonic calc — NOAA 9751381 unavailable).
Waypoint conditions NWS FZCA52 · issued 4:07 PM AST Sun Aug 23 · confirmed current
Drake Channel Good
WindE 10–15 kt (AMZ711)
Seas2–3 ft inside channel (est)
Wave periodNE 4 ft at 7 sec (AMZ711)
Roll factorLow to moderate
Pillsbury Sound Good
WindE 10–13 kt (TAF, sheltered)
Seas1–2 ft (sheltered est)
Roll factorLow
Current CutLW 9:23 AM — avoid E-bound 7:30–11:30
JVD approach Good
WindE 10–15 kt (AMZ711)
Seas3–4 ft crossing (AMZ711)
White Bay entryManageable — 1–2 ft at the cut
AnchorageSheltered once inside
The Baths Yellow
FlagYellow — default (verify on arrival)
Swell1–2 ft south approach
Dinghy landingUse caution — check flag at Spring Bay
Mooring ballsAvailable — quiet day
The Indians Good
Seas3–4 ft (AMZ711)
Visibility50–60 ft typical
Mooring ballsAvailable
Dive conditionsLight surge — verify on site
Virgin Gorda → Anegada Not recommended
Distance~13 nm N from Gorda Sound
WindE 10–15 kt (AMZ711 proxy — est)
Seas3–4 ft, occ. 5 ft (AMZ711 proxy — est)
Reef approachNot recommended today → See Captain's Briefing for Horseshoe Reef detail
AMZ716 (Anegada–Virgin Gorda inside-bank waters) was not present in today's FZCA52 pull — the bulletin truncated after AMZ700 and AMZ711. AMZ711 covers open Atlantic water outside the Virgin Bank and typically runs higher than the inside-bank run, so every figure on the Virgin Gorda → Anegada card is labelled as a proxy estimate and the reef call is made conservatively. See Watch Item 2.
ApproachSouth via marked channel only — not from east or north
Tides (harmonic)LW ~10:13 AM · HW ~7:28 PM
VHFAnegada Reef Hotel Ch 16
BVI entry requirements weekly confirmed · August 24, 2026
Current
No requirement changes
8am–4pm
JVD customs hours
8am–4pm
Spanish Town / Road Town
Valid passport + HIKCR form + cruising permit required. Complete BVI passages before 1600 to clear customs with margin. Road Town has no cruise calls today, so the dock and customs hall should be uncongested — good day to clear there rather than West End if that suits your routing.
Passage routing
STT → STJ (Pillsbury Sound)
Sheltered from E — 1–2 ft seas. LW 9:23 AM at Current Cut drives a strong ebb 7:30–9:30. E-bound: before 7:30 AM or hold until 11:30 as the flood builds. W-bound favorable all morning.
STJ → BVI (Drake)
No advisory. E 10–15 kt, 3–4 ft occ. 5 in open water, 2–3 ft inside the channel. Comfortable passage for a well-found vessel. Depart early, clear customs before 1600. Road Town uncongested today.
Tuesday outlook
Second tropical wave reaches the eastern Caribbean. Scattered showers, heat index to 102°F, E 18 mph gusting 23. Showers likely with a possible thunderstorm Tuesday night. Seas build to 3–5 ft occ. 6 midweek — NWS flags small craft caution from Tuesday.
Today's picks & avoid — on the water
Drake Channel & the BVI day-sail circuit
No advisory, 10–15 kt, 2–3 ft inside the channel. The best BVI cruising day of the week — Tuesday onward gets windier and lumpier.
Current Cut — avoid E-bound 7:30–11:30 AM
LW 9:23 AM at 0.03 ft drives an aggressive ebb. E-bound: before 7:30 AM or after 11:30. W-bound favorable all morning.
Virgin Gorda → Anegada — not today
Horseshoe Reef approach not recommended. Only sourced sea state is an outside-bank proxy at 3–4 ft occ. 5 with a NE 4 ft swell at 7 sec. Hold at Gorda Sound and reassess with a fresh bulletin.
Get the BVI passage in before Tuesday
Winds and seas build midweek as a second tropical wave arrives — seas to 3–5 ft occ. 6 with small craft caution flagged. Today is the settled window.
On the Water — Monday, August 24
Nothing running today — no advisory, SCA flag false, and FZCA52 puts AMZ711 at 10–15 knots with seas 3–4 feet, occasionally 5. The wave detail is northeast 4 feet at 7 seconds, which is a short enough period to feel choppy on the beam but nothing that should trouble a well-found boat. TAF has it lighter at the airport — east 10 knots until 9, backing southeast around 13 through the middle of the day with showers in the vicinity, then east 11 into the evening. This is the settled window of the week, and I would use it. A second tropical wave reaches the eastern Caribbean Tuesday and the synopsis has winds freshening and seas building to 3–5 occasionally 6 by midweek with small craft caution flagged. If you have a BVI passage in mind, today is the day. Current Cut is the one timing constraint: low water 9:23 at three hundredths of a foot, so the ebb is aggressive through mid-morning. Eastbound needs to be done before 7:30 or held until about 11:30 when the flood establishes, and from there it floods all afternoon to a 0.92 high at 6:38. The one hard no today is the run north to Anegada. AMZ716 did not come through in the bulletin, so the only sourced number is AMZ711 from outside the bank, and that reads 4 feet on the dominant swell. The reef gives no margin, so the call is conservative and it is a hold. Stay at Gorda Sound and pull a fresh bulletin before committing.
Marine conditions — ✅ No advisoryNDBC FZCA52 · 4:07 PM AST Sun Aug 23
10–15 kt
Wind (AMZ711)
25 kt
Gust
E
Wind direction
3–4 ft
Sig wave ht
NE 7 sec
Wave period
occ. 5 ft
Max wave (AMZ711)
1015.9 mb
SLP (METAR, est)
85°F
Water temp (est)
TIST METAR @ 2353Z Aug 23: 09008KT, 10SM, FEW025, 28/07, A3000, SLP 1015.9 mb, 3-hr tendency +1.2 mb rising. Observation is 10 hours old at publication — wind and pressure labelled (est) per freshness rule. Dewpoint field is not usable: both of last night's obs report 28/07 (about 26% RH), which is not physically plausible here in August and contradicts the NWS heat-index forecast of 102°F for Tuesday. Both obs carry the ASOS maintenance indicator. Humidity and dewpoint suppressed from this brief; temperature, wind, pressure and visibility retained and consistent with NWS. AMZ716 absent from today's pull — see Watch Item 2.
NWS forecast — Monday + outlook
Wind forecast
AM (TAF)E 10 kt to 09:00 → ESE 13 kt
PM (NWS)E 17 mph, gusts 22 mph
Monday nightE 16–18 mph, gusts 23
TuesdayE 18 mph, gusts 23 — building
Sea state forecast
Open seas3–4 ft, occ. 5 ft (AMZ711)
Wave detailNE 4 ft at 7 sec
Advisory✅ None in effect
TrendBuilding to 3–5 ft occ. 6 midweek
Navigation
Visibility6+ sm (TAF confirmed)
Under showersScattered — before noon
Surface current~0.3 kt W (est)
Magnetic var.13°W
Sunrise / set0602 / 1841
Tides — Charlotte Amalie (NOAA 9751639)
LW morning9:23 AM · 0.03 ft
HW evening6:38 PM · 0.92 ft
CycleSingle diurnal cycle today
Setting Point +50 minLW ~10:13 AM · HW ~7:28 PM (harmonic)
NWS AFD synopsis FZCA52 · issued 4:07 PM AST Sun Aug 23 · confirmed current at build time
✅ No advisory in effect for local waters. A weak tropical wave approaching the Caribbean basin increased shower frequency across the local waters and passages last evening. A second tropical wave is forecast to reach the eastern Caribbean around Tuesday, bringing enhanced shower and thunderstorm activity again. Winds gradually increase by midweek and become moderate to locally fresh, with seas building to 3–5 feet, occasionally 6 feet, across offshore waters and passages — NWS advises small craft to exercise caution in that midweek period. No tropical cyclone advisory affects USVI or BVI waters at build time. Verify on VHF WX-1 (0500/1100/1700/2300 broadcasts) before passage decisions.
TIST SLP 1015.9 mb at 2353Z Aug 23, up from 1015.5 mb an hour earlier, with a coded 3-hour tendency of +1.2 mb rising. That rise is the normal evening leg of the tropical semidiurnal pressure wave, not a synoptic signal — expect the usual maxima near 10 AM and 10 PM and minima near 4 AM and 4 PM. No pressure fall associated with the passing wave. Obs are 10 hours old at publication, so today's curve after the confirmed point is modelled diurnal, not observed.
Source: TIST METAR via aviationweather.gov (2253Z and 2353Z Aug 23) + NWS AFD trend (FZCA52 TJSJ). Only the two evening points are observed; the rest of the curve is the standard tropical diurnal wave. AFD shows no synoptic pressure fall over local waters today.
Watch items today
1❌ Horseshoe Reef, Anegada — approach not recommended today. Marked Setting Point channel is difficult to read at 4 ft on the dominant swell. Approach from south via the marked Setting Point channel only — never from east or north. Hold at Virgin Gorda or postpone. Sea state figure is an AMZ711 proxy (est) — see Watch Item 2. USCG notices: none found at build time. Contact: Anegada Reef Hotel VHF 16.
2⚠️ Zone gap — AMZ716 absent from today's FZCA52 pull. The bulletin truncated after the AMZ700 synopsis and AMZ711. The reef rule keys to AMZ716 (Anegada–Virgin Gorda, inside the Virgin Bank); AMZ711 is being used as a labelled proxy because it is the only sourced sea state available. AMZ711 covers open Atlantic water outside the bank and generally runs higher than the inside-bank run, so the proxy biases the call conservative — which is the acceptable direction of error for a reef approach. Every affected figure on the Virgin Gorda → Anegada card carries "(AMZ711 proxy — est)". Do not treat these as inside-bank numbers.
3⚠️ TIST observation gap and sensor fault. Latest METAR is 2353Z Aug 23 — 10 hours old at publication, so wind and pressure are labelled (est). Separately, the dewpoint field is reporting 28/07 (≈26% RH) on both of last night's obs with the ASOS maintenance indicator set; that is not plausible and contradicts the NWS heat-index forecast. Humidity and dewpoint are suppressed from this brief. Do not use TIST humidity for fog, squall or comfort assessment until the sensor is confirmed repaired. Temperature, wind, pressure and visibility remain consistent with NWS and are retained.
4Current Cut ebb — LW 9:23 AM Charlotte Amalie at 0.03 ft. One of the lowest tides of the month and a single diurnal cycle today. Strong ebb peak roughly 7:30–9:30 AM. E-bound: complete before 7:30 or hold until about 11:30 as the flood establishes; it then floods all afternoon to HW 0.92 ft at 6:38 PM. Setting Point (Anegada) harmonic LW ~10:13 AM, HW ~7:28 PM.
5Passage weather — second tropical wave Tuesday. Today is the settled window. A tropical wave reaches the eastern Caribbean around Tuesday with enhanced showers and thunderstorm activity; winds freshen and seas build to 3–5 ft occasionally 6 ft by midweek, with NWS advising small craft to exercise caution. No tropical cyclone advisory affects USVI/BVI waters at build time. Get committed passages done today and pull a fresh bulletin Tuesday morning.
6Sargassum fouling risk elevated — 2026 record season. East-facing anchorages: set scope deep and use mooring balls where available. Check prop wash before engaging in shallow east-facing approaches. Mats foul raw-water intakes as readily as props — verify strainer flow after any transit through weed.
7Setting Point tide times are a harmonic estimate. NOAA 9751381 returned no data tonight; times are Charlotte Amalie plus a 50-minute offset. Treat as approximate for channel-depth planning at Anegada and add margin — do not plan a marginal-draft transit on these numbers alone.
VHF & communications
Ch 16
Hailing / distress
WX-1
NOAA wx · 0500/1100/1700/2300
Ch 68
BVI marina working
USCG District 7 — Safety & Navigation
No active USCG notices affecting USVI/BVI waters confirmed at build time
Clear
Sea turtle boater protocol NOAA STAR / DPNR
🐢 Nesting season active (May–October) — late August is peak hatchling season. Slow to idle in shallows. Do not anchor on sea grass. If you strike or entangle a turtle: stop engines immediately, do not remove gear, call the STAR hotline: 1-888-774-STAR (7827). Night: no white lights on beach — red lights only if necessary.
Captain's Briefing — Monday, August 24
Pressure at 1015.9 with a coded three-hour tendency of plus 1.2 rising, which sounds like something until you remember that is exactly what the tropical diurnal wave does between six and eight in the evening. There is no synoptic fall here and the AFD backs that up — no advisory, no cyclone, just a weak wave that came through last night and a second one due Tuesday. Two cautions on the data before anything else. The TIST observation is ten hours old at publication, so wind and pressure are estimates rather than current readings. And the dewpoint on that station is broken — 28 over 07 gives about 26 percent humidity, which does not happen here in August, and the maintenance flag is set on both obs. The forecast heat index of 102 for tomorrow needs roughly 60 percent, so the two cannot both be right and it is not the forecast that is wrong. I have pulled humidity out of the brief entirely. Temperature, wind and pressure all track the NWS numbers, so those stay. The second gap is AMZ716. It did not come through in the bulletin again, which means the reef rule has no keyed zone and I am running AMZ711 as a labelled proxy. That zone is outside the bank and reads higher than the inside run, and normally I would say so and shade the call — but not on this one. Four feet on the dominant swell against a channel you have to read by eye is a hold, and the fact that the proxy probably overstates it is not a reason to talk it down. Virgin Gorda to Anegada is off today. Everything else is genuinely good. No advisory, 10 to 15 knots, three to four feet outside and two to three in the Drake. Current Cut is the only timing constraint — low water 9:23 at three hundredths, so be eastbound before 7:30 or wait until 11:30. Use today. Tuesday brings the second wave, seas build to five occasionally six by midweek, and the small craft caution language starts showing up in the synopsis.
STT Cyril E. King — Check-In & Customs Delay · Monday, August 24
Today's Customs Load
🟡 Moderate
Est. 25–40 min peak wait
Derived from live schedule data: 7 mainline departures, ~1,068 scheduled seats — a moderate single-day load. Monday is the end-of-weekend mix. CBP live wait data unavailable for STT; the day-of-week matrix independently agrees at Moderate.
Arrive at Airport
Plan 2 hours before departure today.
Two ships at WICO until 16:00 and 17:00 — Charlotte Amalie waterfront busy through the afternoon. Allow extra time if routing past the harbor, especially for the 2–4 PM departure bank. No confirmed road closures.
Weekly customs load — STT
Su
Heavy
Mo
Mod
Tu
Light
We
Light
Th
Mod
Fr
Mod-Hvy
Sa
Heavy
Monday highlighted · End-of-weekend mix · Su/Sa/Fr are peak departure days · Tu/We lightest
Today's scheduled departures — STT mainland
TimeDestinationFlightSeats
11:49aNew York (JFK)American AA 1943~128
1:49pMiami (MIA)American AA 943~162
2:10pChicago (ORD)United UA 2365~162
2:35pOrlando (MCO)Southwest WN 3902~150
2:49pAtlanta (ATL)Delta DL 1823~176
3:43pCharlotte (CLT)American AA 2869~128
4:42pMiami (MIA)American AA 1391~162
7 scheduled departures / ~1,068 estimated seats. AeroDataBox live data — confirm with airline. Mainline carriers only; island-hopper and commuter services are not shown. Departure bank is concentrated between 1:45 and 4:45 PM — if you are on an afternoon flight, the check-in and security queues all arrive at once. FAA status feed did not return a readable response this morning; no ground stops or ground delay programs are in effect for STT on any confirmed source. MPC app available at STT — download and set it up before leaving for the airport, not in the parking lot.
EIS — Beef Island, BVI
StatusNormal operations (est)
Customs wait~30 min typical
NoteConfirm schedule with airline directly
Infrastructure — daily confirmed
Power (WAPA) No confirmed district-wide outage today. Routine monitoring ongoing.
No advisory
Ferry — Red Hook ↔ Cruz Bay Off-season schedule in effect Jul 26–Oct 31. Hourly on the hour, no half-hour sailings. Late-evening times differ by direction — see Ferries tab.
Reduced schedule
USVI ↔ BVI ferries No advisory in effect — normal crossing conditions
Normal
Tropical activity No tropical cyclone advisory affecting USVI/BVI. Two tropical waves in the forecast period — showers only. Peak of hurricane season — standard monitoring.
Clear
Events today
No major events or closures reported today. Standard Monday.
Today's picks & avoid — travel
Monday customs — moderate, 25–40 min
Seven mainline departures and about 1,068 seats. Standard 2-hour pre-departure works. Tuesday and Wednesday are the lighter days if your dates are flexible.
Afternoon departure bank — 1:45 to 4:45 PM
Six of today's seven flights leave inside a three-hour window. Everyone hits check-in and security at the same time. Arrive on the early side of the 2-hour rule.
Charlotte Amalie waterfront — 2 ships until 4–5 PM
Norwegian Escape and Carnival Conquest at WICO. Harbor roads busy through the afternoon. Allow extra time if routing through town to the airport.
BVI ferries running normally
No advisory in effect. Crossings should be comfortable today — the settled window before midweek winds build. Still confirm departure times with your operator.
St. John ferry — off-season schedule
Hourly only through Oct 31, and the last sailings differ by direction. If you're day-tripping to St. John before a flight, build in a boat's worth of margin.
Ferry conditions — Monday, August 24
📣 Off-season schedule in effect — Red Hook ↔ Cruz Bay
St. John Ferry Companies have temporarily modified the schedule for the off-season, Sunday July 26 through Saturday October 31, 2026. Today falls inside that window. Service is hourly on the hour — there are no half-hour sailings — and the late-evening pattern has changed. Check the times below rather than working from the high-season schedule.
⚠️ The two directions do not mirror each other after 8 PM. Red Hook runs 8:00, then 10:00 and 11:30 PM — there is no 9:00 PM boat back to St. John. Cruz Bay runs 8:00, 9:00, then 11:00 PM — there is no 10:00 PM boat back to St. Thomas. If you are having dinner on the other island, pick your return boat before you sit down.
Crossings smooth today — Pillsbury Sound protected from the E trade, 1–2 ft.
🔵 Charlotte Amalie ↔ Cruz Bay — $13/pp · 45 min
Departing Cruz Bay
8:45 AM 11:15 AM
Departing Charlotte Amalie
10:00 AM 12:30 PM (confirm — see note)
Two round trips a day, mornings only — there is no afternoon or evening return on this route. If you go to St. John via Charlotte Amalie, plan to come back through Red Hook. The operator notice prints the second Charlotte Amalie departure as "12:30 AM"; paired with an 11:15 AM sailing from Cruz Bay that is almost certainly 12:30 PM, but confirm at the terminal before relying on it.
🔵 BVI Crossings — No advisory in effect
Charlotte Amalie ↔ Road Town (~45 min · $60/pp): Road Town Fast Ferry · Native Son · Smith's Ferry. Seas 3–4 ft — a normal crossing. Road Town has no cruise calls today, so the dock should be quiet.
Red Hook ↔ West End (~30 min · $65/pp): Road Town Fast Ferry · Aquatic Rentals.
Red Hook ↔ Jost Van Dyke (~35 min · $100/pp): Inter Island Boat Services.
Red Hook ↔ Virgin Gorda (~90 min · $130/pp): Inter Island Boat Services.
Anegada (via Road Town or Virgin Gorda): Speedy's operates the Anegada connection — limited sailing days. Confirm the schedule directly at bviferries.com before planning. There is no same-day round trip from Charlotte Amalie.
Normal crossing conditions today. Winds and seas build from Tuesday — if your BVI trip is flexible, today is the comfortable day.
Know before you board
🎒 Luggage: Most ferries allow bags — large bags go on deck or bow.
💳 Payment: Cash preferred. Bring $20 bills — some docks don't take cards.
🌊 Today's conditions: E 10–15 kt, seas 3–4 ft open water, no advisory. BVI crossings comfortable. STJ ferries flat in sheltered water.
📅 Off-season schedule: Red Hook ↔ Cruz Bay is reduced through Oct 31 — hourly only, and the last boats differ by direction. Confirm your return sailing before you cross.
⏰ Road Town today: No cruise calls — dock and customs hall uncongested. Next Road Town call is Tuesday morning.
🚢 Charlotte Amalie today: Two ships at WICO until 16:00 and 17:00 — waterfront and ferry terminal area busy through the afternoon. Red Hook is the calmer departure point.
🛂 BVI customs hours: West End, Road Town, Spanish Town open 8am–4pm. Do not arrive after 4pm. Passport required.
⚠️ All schedules are typical patterns — always confirm at the dock. Paradise Brief is not responsible for missed ferries.
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The Paradise Brief is for informational purposes only. Conditions data sourced from NOAA, NWS, USCG Navigation Center, and other public sources — not guaranteed accurate or complete. Always exercise your own judgment and verify conditions before making decisions about water activities or travel.