traveldk.com

Hervé conjures up fine French food with a Caribbean flair at this hillside restaurant in downtown Charlotte Amalie. There’s veal roulade and spinach-stuffed lamb chops, but try red snapper with Creole sauce or the Caribbean lobster flamed with Armagnac for a bit of local flavor (seeHervé Restaurant).

The workhorse of Caribbean gardens and roadsides, this shrub bears flowers in myriad hues. Red is the most common, but there are literally thousands of varieties with single, double, and even triple blooms. Picked blooms stay open all day.

The hotel’s 37 rooms snuggle up to a white sandy beach on the island’s north shore at La Grande Princesse. Rooms are modern with patios or balconies, floral accents, and great sea views. Christiansted’s dining and shopping sit just a 10-minute drive away.

This easy half-mile (1-km) loop trail across from Cinnamon Bay Campground on the North Shore Road takes you through sugar factory ruins and past an old cemetery that dates to Danish times. Make stops at the numerous labeled examples of the island’s vegetation to add to your child’s botanical knowledge (seeCinnamon Bay Ruins Trail).

WWhile you can strike out on your own, Ay-Ayeco Hike and Tours organizes guided eco-tours through plantation ruins and natural areas.

Sage Mountain National Park (seeSage Mountain National Park, Tortola) is crisscrossed with shady hiking trails, none of them particularly strenuous or busy. Spend hours enjoying the solitude.

For great views from the top of Virgin Gorda’s Gorda Peak, take the 15-minute hike off North Sound Road. Many outer islands have trails leading to their peaks.

There are hiking trails all over the island. Some are easy treks over flat terrain, but others head uphill.

Settled by Denmark in 1666, this town is the island’s historical hub. Streets carry Danish names and many buildings date back several centuries (seeHistoric Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas).

First settled in 1625 by Holland and England, with other European countries following, this former Danish colony reveals its history at every turn of the road. The Danish influence is especially obvious in the island’s two main towns, Christiansted and Frederiksted (seeHistoric St. Croix).