Caneel Hill Trail

Hiking trails St. John Cruz BayLast verified October 31, 2026

Around Cruz Bay

Boats anchored off a palm-lined beach in Cruz Bay, St. John, beneath tall white clouds — Cruz Bay, St. John

A VITRAN passenger ferry docked beside the orange-roofed ferry terminal and beach in Cruz Bay, with a rainbow over the green hillside — Cruz Bay, St. John

Sailboats moored in Cruz Bay below red-roofed buildings on the hillside of St. John — Cruz Bay, St. John

The Caneel Hill Trail is a steep 1-mile climb in Virgin Islands National Park from just above Cruz Bay to an observation deck on Caneel Hill, with views over the bays of St. John's north shore. The trailhead is at the top of the hill up from Cruz Bay, where the park says parking is available. Hikers can also leave a car near the visitor center with an NPS parking permit from inside, or join from the Upper Lind Point Trail by the Caneel Spur. The path is rocky and uneven and turns slippery in rain, so wear shoes with good tread, carry plenty of water and watch the weather. The park estimates 30 to 60 minutes. From the deck, return to town or continue to Margaret Hill. There is no fee. Dogs must be leashed, and owners must pick up after them.

Services

Observation deck on Caneel Hill
Connects with the Upper Lind Point Trail and the Margaret Hill Trail
No fee
Leashed dogs allowed

How we checked

Last verified on October 31, 2026. We checked it against the sources below.

Source: National Park Service pages https://www.nps.gov/thingstodo/caneel-hill-trail.htm (updated March 30, 2021; 1-mile uphill hike, observation deck, option to continue to Margaret Hill, steep, rocky and slippery when wet, trailhead at the top of the hill up from Cruz Bay with parking, Caneel Spur connector from Upper Lind Point, 30 to 60 minutes, leash and pet-waste rules), https://www.nps.gov/viis/planyourvisit/gettingaround.htm (updated December 10, 2024; parking near the visitor center for Lind Point and Caneel Hill hikers with an NPS parking permit), https://www.nps.gov/viis/learn/management/compendium.htm (updated October 6, 2026; visitor center lot for trail users with a temporary permit), https://www.nps.gov/viis/planyourvisit/hiking-in-viis.htm (limited or no cell service, water), https://www.nps.gov/viis/planyourvisit/fees.htm (no entrance fee) and the park alerts feed https://www.nps.gov/viis/park-alerts-viis.json (no trail closure posted); Friends of Virgin Islands National Park FY26 Terrestrial Programs Report, https://friendsvinp.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/FY_26-Trails-Terrestrial-Report.pdf (Caneel Hill Trail and Margaret Hill Trail maintained); all accessed 2026-10-31. Map point: NPS Public POIs dataset, trailhead 'Caneel Hill Trail' (OBJECTID 30075), https://mapservices.nps.gov/arcgis/rest/services/NationalDatasets/NPS_Public_POIs_Geographic/FeatureServer/0, accessed 2026-10-31.

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