Christiansted National Historic Site

Ended up being here during government shutdown Nov 2025 (thank you Dems in the Senate!). Couldn't go inside as you can see from the locked gate pic (also in the pics you will notice how long grass is after not being mowed for 6 weeks). Nice grounds outside, and we found a ranger quitting for the day that graciously agreed to get JRs and brochures for us. Didn't get his name stupidly, but really made our day. Would love to come again and go inside someday.

Beautiful place. We loved the shops, restaurants and beautiful views of the marina. The boardwalk is a vibe all on its own. We plan to come back to spend more time, since we only had a few hrs and had to return to the boat.

We got in for free, I was expecting to pay $10 but they weren’t charging. Good place to check out if you have time go early in the morning and also there’s a lot of good history. Take time to read about what happened here.

We have enjoyed the tour, and it is more focused on the National Park history, which hubby and I enjoyed. Walked around the ground and the quint little town. I miss a whole lot around the water area because hubby and I decided to go back to see the glass shop. I didn't get to walk around the boardwalk area. But satisfied with our 3 hours walking tour with guide. Tour guide let us go on our last hour before heading back to our transportation back to the ship.

This is a nice little park and the fort is interesting, but nothing special. It takes about 15 minutes to do the whole fort, though there is some interesting history. If you are like me, you do all the reading before getting there, so walking around is quite quick as it’s a small fort. There is a park around it and other buildings that make up the historical site itself. However when I went all of these were closed. It was also really hard to actually find the staff and get my brochure and stamp. I think in the summer, its probably more interesting, when everything is open.

So breezy, peaceful, and very chill, positive vibes. Nice ocean view as well. Great place to stretch your legs and plan your next move, or just sit and enjoy the roosters that pass by every so often.

Refurbishment seems to be on going with this historic fort. Near the vibrant downtown boardwalk area.

The fort is so fascinating, and provides a deep look into the islands history over the past couple centuries. Being in the presence of its walls and history, especially the dungeons, takes my breath away. Worth visiting.

This is a tourist attraction located in the heart of Christiansted. It is very well maintained and has its own private parking lot, which closes at 4:30. The outdoor attractions however, are accessible 24/7. The site, known as the Gem of the Caribbean, was established in 1952 as the Virgin Islands National Historic site. It was intended to preserve the site history and associated buildings. The site got its new name in 1961. It was the first National Parks Service's properties in the Virgin Islands. The park spans 7 acres and has benches and picnic tables placed along its grounds. You will also find a gazebo and a statue of David Hamilton Jackson, known as Black Moses. The center piece of the site is Fort Christiansted, a bright yellow fort built in 1749 by the Danish. In all there are 5 historical buildings on the site that were constructed between 1740 and 1856 and made of yellow bricks made in Denmark and brought over as the ships' ballast. The buildings are as follows: the Scale House (1856), the Customs House (1841), the Danish West India and Guinea Company Warehouse (1749), the Government House (1747) and the Church of Our Lord Sabbath Steeple Building (1753). The site grounds has tons of informational placards placed around that explains the significance and location of each key building. I believe the only one that you can currently go into is the Fort (You can walk through the Pump House though). Some say you have to pay a fee to visit here. However, I didn't. I just walked right in. It was no staff there and I had to do a self guided tour. But that was cool since they had informational placards all over the place to help guide me. The site has a lot of green space to run around on too. The site is divided into two are that are separated by Hospital Street. There is the large section with a lot of the green space, a gazebo, the Customs House, the Fort, benches and picnic tables. On the other side of the street is a much smaller area with informational signage, a little green space with some benches, the Danish West India and Guinea Company Warehouse, and the Steeple Building. The Scale House is between the 2 sections at the Hospital Street's bend. This is a nice place to visit, especially for the history buffs. It highlights the Danish influence and eco mic structure on the island. It is located in the heart of St Croixs' tourist area. I would probably plan on spending 2 to 3 hours here if you are going to hit all the sites. The buildings and grounds and well preserved and maintained and are definitely worth a visit while on the island. Fun Fact: Alexander Hamilton's mother was imprisoned in the Fort for a few month's Tip: Do not park in the lot after hours. You will more than likely get ticketed, booted and/or towed.

We visited Christiansted National Historic Site, expecting to tour most of the buildings included at the park site, located at the end of King Street in Christiansted. What we found is that you really can only tour the fort and see the old scale in the scale house. That said, it was a really nice site, well maintained and informative. What I keep finding out on these St. Croix parks is that the info on the website is not correct for the most part. IN the case of this one, they changed the operating horus from 8am to 8:30 am. A little frustrating given the parking hell that is Christiansted. Even though the gate to the parking lot was opened at 8am for an employee, they would not let us in so we had to drive down the road and sit for 30 minutes, then make our way back to the parking lot at 8:30. We still had to wait until someone in our party reminded them to come down and unlock the gate. A little frustrating. Luckily, it was okay as there was a lot less to see at the site than I had expected. The fort is very nicely designed for visitors and information. You can wander all over with a self guided map that goes over the different areas of the fort and what happened in the different locations. There is also some history and interesting info on Alexander Hamilton and his family. Note there are a lot of stairs and uneven walking areas at the fort. It may be challenging for people who have difficulty walking, whether wheelchair bound, on crutches, etc. Overall, it's a really nice site and the staff seemed friendly. I definitely recommend folks visit if they are interested in National Parks, like I am. Also, info for the National Parks Passport Stamp Program: There are three cancellations stamps available: Christiansted National Historic Site, Buck Island, and Salt River Bay National Historic Park and Ecological Preserve. Enjoy!

This is a must see if you are staying in the area! It's only $3 for a self guided tour, and there are beautiful views from high above (a great place to take pictures!). My husband and I spent a few hours here, and walked along the boardwalk afterwards on a beautiful day. This is a memory I will never forget!

This fort has amazing history and spectacular views. There is a small entrance fee, but totally worth it. We did a self guided tour of the dungeon, holding cells, officers barracks, and tiny little rooms packed with information. If you read everything you could spend two hours here easily. I recommend eating lunch at the picnic tables outside the fort.

The fort is absolutely beautiful. I could have spent hours just taking pictures. Definitely worth the couple bucks admission.

Boo to the park service. They put a BOOT on my rental car! Right next to the fort is a nice big free parking lot. It's also indicated on the tourist maps. We used it to see the historical sites and walk the pier. Beautiful. Turns out the lot closes at 3:30 and as we returned to the car at 3:45 there was a boot and a park service giving out tickets. He did remove the thing but not without a lot of officious attitude and a hundred dollar ticket. Come on 3:30? The fort was still open! Okay I understand that I missed the signage and but this fellas attitude made me feel criminal! Is this how the island of St. Croix treats tourists? Do they only want roving gangs mindless cruise ship cattle? I for one am not going to spend any more money in Christianstaad. Boo park service. Shame on you.