We visited in March, 2011.
It was me, my husband and my 11 year old son.

What we Loved:

The beach is astounding. There were Crabs, Fish, Turtles, Deer, Birds - all sorts of wildlife. The Cottage was clean, the community bathrooms were very clean - nice to have real plumbing when camping! Neighbors and other campers were awesome, leaving items they no longer needed - such as soap, shampoo, and other things for anyone else to use. There is no hot water, but we remedied that by boiling up some on our fire to wash dishes with. I really enjoyed a cool shower under the palm trees (It's outside) the GIANT hermit crabs we found out behind our Cottage, the birds that were brave enough to enter through an open door and steal food, and the several hikes that are within close proximity. They had a music night with several local musicians and had "bongo" Lessons. it was a TON of fun and my son LOVED it. Also one of the local women made a Mango? (Or paypaya? I can't recall) Pie that was AMAZING. omg. lol. There were even Phosphorescent Algae and a million stars on the Beach at night! The beach was clean, and the water warm! There was Snorkel rentals, and kayak rentals, and a museum of sorts......We will definitely be back. In a heartbeat.

Things we learned, or will do differently next time.

We will NOT buy anything at the little store that is there. It is SO very expensive - we probably spent as much on food as we did on the accommodations for three days - and we caught our first dinner/breakfast. (and didn't eat all that well otherwise) Do yourself a favor and shop on St. Thomas at Kmart or other larger Grocery store and bring it all with you. Plan ALL of your meals and don't forget things like Sunscreen, ALOE GEL, Ibuprofen, Bug Spray, DRINKING WATER, and SOAP to clean your dishes! Ice you are forced to buy from the store if you want to store more then what the little fridge stores in the Bungalow - and if you're camping in a tent...........well.....

We never ended up eating in the restaurant, so I can't say anything about it. The staff was....pretty good. Pretty much everyone we encountered seemed to treat us like we're all invaders, a pain in the *** and wished we'd all just go the hell home. (Except the bongo players - those guys were GREAT) I've been on two cruises and found this is a pretty typical attitude throughout the region and I sort of expected it, and even warned my Hubby and Son against it before we went. Kinda sad, really - they live in such a beautiful place.

The bugs weren't bad. Not any worse then I've ever dealt with. The sand fleas were to be expected and we just kept bug spray on if we weren't swimming.

Things we could have done without:

Note that if your cabins or tents are on the far end of the beach, you get a rickshaw to take your stuff down to the tent/cabin. They might have a golf cart for someone who couldn't make that trek but I didn't see one. We had a lot of stuff for our 10 day trip - and it would have been nice to see the use of a golf cart. We didn't need it, but I worried about others who maybe aren't that strong trying to navigate those things around.

Do not...I repeat do NOT pickup, step on or squish the Noni Fruit. They look like, big, white sick pine cones and smell like....puke. I made the mistake of slipping on one, and getting it all over myself.

The Reef is pretty much very sickly. As one reviewer said - it's almost totally bleached and is not the beautiful life I remember from back in the early 90's It's VERY VERY sad (Visited back in 94 to Trunk bay) We came across a good number of simple jellyfish (and have a neat little pattern across my chest from them) They only sting for a few minutes but there was a boatload of them. Kinda freaky but really harmless. (unless you have allergies I'm guessing) I actually started to feel bad for squishing them as I swam by after a while.

Bring earplugs if you are a sensitive sleeper. The first night we didn't sleep much because the forest bugs were SO incredibly loud. lol.

Trash, there was a HUGE amount of trash behind our bungalow in the forest and it was really disheartening to see a National Park so badly unkempt. They really, really need to address it.

Overall though - it was a VERY positive experience and We'll go back for sure.

Our stay at Cinammon Bay Campgrounds was wonderful! The staff was very helpful and corteous!! Always ready to make sure we were okey. We rented the tent and ut was a great deal!!! the linen towel and utensils were clean. and the rest of the instalations were very well kept. The restaurant Tree's Lizard was good. We ate only one time, since the idea was to do our own thing as much as posible.. The beach was fantastic! We rented a Vehicle at C&C car rental which also was very attentive and great price!!! The other people we found at the campgrounds were also very friendly!!! This is a must do.. We drove aroun Saint John and found the Island to be truly paradise!! We will definetely be back!

I took my tween daughter for a week over Christmas. We stayed in a cottage, which was not musty or particularly dirty. The service is slow and clearly unmotivated, sad to see so many people so unhappy and resentful at work. This was my third trip to Cinnamon Bay, though the most recent trip was more than 20 years ago. The campground has not changed one bit during that time. Sadly there is (still) no effort to recycle or provide any type of fresh or nutritious food in the store. The beach is lovely, not too crowded. The sand is nice, the water warm and clear. Minimal bugs. It seemed at least half the people there were only working on their tans (again, no change since the 80's and 90's!), and in fact spent the entire day facing the bushes rather then the ocean (north facing beach) in order to get maximum sun exposure! A lot of beer and music. However, if you walk to the end of the beach you can have more privacy.

The biggest disappointment was the snorkeling: coral bleaching has destroyed the beautiful reef. There are still fish around, but the ecosystem has suffered greatly, and it was very sad to see. We snorkeled in the Red Sea last year, and it was far better. They advertised ranger programs, but when we went for the 9:30 am walk, no one showed up to give it.

If you ONLY want a beautiful beach and warm water, and can put up with bad food (or bring your own and wash dishes in the laundry sink off the bathrooms every day), terrible service, and rustic accommodations, go for it. There were several large family groups, and it would be a lovely place to spend time catching up with relatives. We went to snorkel and were sorely disappointed.

Cinnamon Bay campground is a good, possibly great place to camp.

It is a unique camping experience, with a '60s feel, ex-hippie but unassuming.

We did not find the staff to be rude or disinterested just overworked. When we approached them and were friendly, they were friendly back.

We stayed for 8 nights in a canvas tent, serviceable, but not the Hilton. Hey, its camping Island-style! Many tents are under the natural canopy which makes them surprisingly dark inside, even at mid-day. Invest in a headlamp before coming to the Island, and bring as much dry food as you can pack if you plan on eating at the campsite (food at the site is very limited and very expensive). Linens and mattresses were clean, but a little scratchy, no problems there.

Mosquitoes (January) were almost nonexistent, sand fleas were brutal particularly on the grass at night. The propane stove and lantern worked great, and when we ran out of fuel they brought us a new canister in a very short amount of time. The lanterns attract roaches (yipes!), so if you want them to stay away, clean up after every meal and avoid making meals after dark. Showers were cool, not freezing, and the bathrooms were reasonably clean, about as good as National Parks in the US. The other travelers were talkative and friendly.

Teenaged son loved the place, snorkeling was fabulous, not as good as Belize, but as good or better than most, good hikes on the Island as well, though trails were steep. We spent half a day volunteering to do trail maintenance, which was hot and sweaty, but we also got a guided tour (thanks Jeff !) of some pretty nice sites, making it well worth the sweat-equity.

Taxis are also a bit pricey but a number of beaches and snorkeling spots can be walked to if you are up to it. Our favorite mode of transport was to taxi out in the morning and beach hop back (walking) during the rest of the day.

All in all, a good place to visit, liked it a lot, didn't fall in love with the place. We may go back, if only there weren't so many other cool places to go...