One Day Car Rental at Pier?

I think a lot has to do with the countries affiliation. Those in the British Commonwealth have the steering wheel on the right? All others on the left?

 

An oddity is Canada, in the British Commonwealth, but drive on the right with the wheel on the left.

I don't think Canada has been affiliated with Britain for a LONG time - but agree with you that a country's affiliation has a lot to do with what country rules them, or used to rule them. Perhaps Canada just gets a lot of their cars from the U.S. (Detroit?) and that explains the steering wheel position.

In any case, at least when you're sitting on the left, you have a better sense of where the curb is, which is some Caribbean countries, can be a big plus as the roads are small - and car insurance doesn't cover damage to the tires!

I don't think Canada has been affiliated with Britain for a LONG time - but agree with you that a country's affiliation has a lot to do with what country rules them, or used to rule them. Perhaps Canada just gets a lot of their cars from the U.S. (Detroit?) and that explains the steering wheel position.

 

In any case, at least when you're sitting on the left, you have a better sense of where the curb is, which is some Caribbean countries, can be a big plus as the roads are small - and car insurance doesn't cover damage to the tires!

I do think that Canada's geography and its proximity to the US and supply of US built automobiles does explain why they drive on the right with left wheel cars.

Canada is indeed a member of the British Commonwealth and in fact is a Realm, meaning that the head of the British Monarchy is considered the head of state in Canada. The Queen is on all Canadian currency.

I do think that Canada's geography and its proximity to the US and supply of US built automobiles does explain why they drive on the right with left wheel cars.

 

Canada is indeed a member of the British Commonwealth and in fact is a Realm, meaning that the head of the British Monarchy is considered the head of state in Canada. The Queen is on all Canadian currency.

Thanks for the lesson in politics. All these years I thought it was totally independent. Guess I'm (almost) as clueless as the tech support person asking what state Washington, DC was in!

Hey there,

We rented a jeep for our stop in St. Croix on our Nov 22nd cruise. Just wondering about the safety of driving around the island? It seems like a lot of you have done it and had no issues but I guess I was just looking for some re-assurance that it is safe to drive around. I am usually not someone that is paranoid about that type of thing but I recently read an article that talked about how St. Croix had been a port that most cruises stopped going to, due to safety issues.

Any experience or advice would be much appreciated!

I really don't know for sure, but we did not feel the least bit unsafe at any point, except possibly when we ended up driving up a dirt road near the port, since there were few people on it and few signs of civilization. For the rest of the time, however, we traveled roads that had more people and I didn't even think about safety, running out of gas, or getting hopelessly lost. I suppose that, like many places in the Caribbean (or the world, for that matter) there are occasional problems, but they are just that - occasional. Therefore, I suppose it depends upon the amount of risk you're willing to take. We've rented cars/motorcycles in many places, including various Caribbean ports, and never had a problem (except for a flat tire once), so we tend to be OK with it.

Thanks roothy123. That's kind of what I figured. Like I said I am not typically worried about that kind of thing, just that one article I read kind of freaked me out. I appreciate your take on it.

Well, I vaguely remember reading something similar after coming back from the Caribbean, but I don't remember what happened and where. I think there was a weird attack on some tourists while driving a white car (all I remember) and there was also a woman who was beaten up or maybe even killed during a robbery in one of the Caribbean port towns, but now I can't remember where those things were. (Of course the woman was wearing expensive jewelry and carrying a purse - not something I do when out and about in port cities.) We once rented a motorcycle on on an island (name escapes me now- not one of the more common ones) and I read of problems after I got back. Apparently the cruise lines were getting a little nervous about that port, too.

You should have no trouble feeling safe as you drive around St. Croix. The places you would want to visit (Domino Club/rainforest, Point Udall and the East End, Christiansted, Cane Bay, Sandy Point) are all safe as long as you don't go looking for trouble. Do not lock anything in the car or the trunk. Take valuable things (camera, wallet, etc.) with you. Car break ins do happen but won't if your windows are down and car is unlocked.

The stories about the cruise ships not going to St. Croix for a while due to crime are unfounded. The reason they stopped going for several years had to do with politics--the St. Thomanians did not want to lose out on any cruise ship traffic. They were in power (Governor) for a while and he made sure that the ships did not dock in St. Croix.