Phantasea Tropical Botanical Garden

Phantasea occupies a few acres on the ridge above Charlotte Amalie, a garden built up privately over years and planted with orchids, bromeliads, heliconias, gingers and palms along paths that wind down the slope, with a stream and pools worked into the layout. It sits high enough to catch the trade wind. Hummingbirds and iguanas are constant and the planting is dense rather than formal. It is the only botanical garden on St Thomas, the larger collections on the territory being over on St Croix.

What you actually see

• The orchid collection - the part of the planting the garden is built around.
• The heliconias and gingers - the tropical flowering stands along the paths.
• The water features - the stream and pools worked into the slope.
• The ridge position - high enough to catch the trade wind.

When to go

December to April is the dry season. Flowering is heaviest after the summer rains. Opening hours are limited and worth checking.

Honest expectations

Opening days and hours are restricted and it closes for parts of the year. It is small and two hours covers it. The access road is steep and narrow.

Nearby

Charlotte Amalie is below, and Mountain Top is northwest.