Cinnamon Bay
Excerpted from St. John Beach Guide © 2006 Gerald Singer

Select a Beach: Snorkeling ------ North Shore Beaches ------ Salomon Bay Honeymoon Bay Caneel Bay Scott Bay Turtle Bay Caneel Hawksnest Hawksnest Bay Little Hawksnest Bay Gibney Beach Very Little Hawksnest Denis Bay Jumbie Beach Trunk Bay Cinnamon Bay Little Cinnamon Bay Maho Bay Little Maho Bay Francis Bay Leinster Bay / Waterlemon ------ East End Beaches ------ Brown Bay Haulover (North) Hansen Bay/Vie's Haulover (South) ------ South Shore Beaches ------ Salt Pond Kiddel Bay Grootpan Great Lameshur Bay Lameshur Bay Europa Bay Reef Bay Genti Bay Little Reef Bay Parrot Bay ------ Cruz Bay Area Beaches ------ Ditleff Point Klein Bay Monte Bay Hart Bay Chocolate Hole Great Cruz Bay Frank Bay Cruz Bay

Cinnamon Bay Skimboarder

Why Cinnamon?
Cinnamon is the place to go on St. John for beach activities and water sports. Besides the regular swimming, sunning, snorkeling and picnicking, Cinnamon offers windsurfing, kayaking, volleyball, and camping.

Getting There
Cinnamon Bay is 3.9 miles east of Mongoose Junction on Route 20. Park in the parking lot and walk to the beach, which is about a quarter mile away over a flat and shady paved track.
There is a regular taxi bus service to Cruz Bay for those without vehicles.

History of Cinnamon Bay

Cinnamon Bay Shoreline

Facilities
Cinnamon Bay is operated as a campground and offers facilities designed to support the campers staying there. These facilities are also available to the public. They include a small general store carrying basic provisions, the T'ree Lizards restaurant, a snack bar, lockers, restrooms, changing rooms, showers, telephones, picnic tables and barbeque grills. An activities desk offers snorkel trips, SCUBA, snorkel and windsurfing lessons, day sails, cocktail cruises and National Park activities such as the Reef Bay Hike and the Water's Edge Walk.

Entrances to the Cinnamon Bay Loop Trail and the Cinnamon Bay Trail are located across the road from the main parking lot.

Cinnamon Bay

At the end of the road to the beach on your left (west), you will find Cinnamon Bay Watersports where you can rent sea and surfing kayaks, beach floats, windsurfers and sailboats. Cinnamon Bay Watersports also offers windsurfing and sailing lessons.

Cinnamon Bay Campground Tent

On the east side of the track is an old historic Danish building, which houses the temporary archeological museum in the western part of the building and the Beach Shop on the eastern side, which offers swimsuits, toys, souvenirs, snacks and drinks as well as snorkeling equipment and beach chair rentals.

The temporary museum features Taino and plantation day artifacts found at the Cinnamon Bay Archeological Dig. The excavation site is just east of the museum on the inland side of the dirt track.

Cinnamon Bay view from Peter Bay

Snorkeling Cinnamon Bay
Beginning snorkelers can explore the area around the rocks at the eastern end of the beach or between Cinnamon and Little Cinnamon Bay. The entrance into the water is easy and there are a fair amount of fish and sea creatures to be observed.

Going a little further out, there is very good snorkeling around Cinnamon Cay, the little island just offshore from the beach.

Windsurfing
Cinnamon Bay offers the best windsurfing on St. John. The winds are relatively calm near shore, which is good for beginners. As you go offshore, however, more advanced windsurfers will find strong, steady winds, but without the waves that are usually associated with forceful wind conditions.

Surfing
Cinnamon is the only beach on St. John where surfers and experienced boogie boarders can take advantage of the north swell that comes in the winter.

Volleyball
On Sundays, locals organize pick-up volleyball games beginning at about 11:00 A.M.

Little Cinnamon Bay

St. John Beaches: Little Cinnamon

Little Cinnamon
Want some seclusion? Try Little Cinnamon Bay.

Trail from Little Cinnamon to Cinnamon Bay

Ruin Behind Beach

Getting There
When you get to the beach at Cinnamon Bay go left (west) and walk to the end of the sand where you will meet an iron gate set up to control entry by animals. Pass through the gate and pick up a narrow trail that leads through the bush along the shoreline and over a section of rocks, before emerging at the beach at Little Cinnamon.

The trail at the center of the beach leads to a National Park Service controlled house and is off limits to the public.

Snorkeling Little Cinnamon
At Little Cinnamon, snorkelers may find the remains of an old light aircraft that crashed and sank years ago. The propeller, the engine and one of the wings are visible most of the year. The wreck is in shallow water and can be found by snorkeling out from the eastern portion of the beach between the old stone wall and the first set of coconut palms.

See video of wrecked aircraft

Wrecked Aircraft

Prop

Engine and Prop

Wing