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.
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.
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
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.
