Escape to the tropical beaches of U.S. Virgin Islands

Don't just sit there. Pick a destination and plan a vacation, maybe to someplace a little exotic, where national parks come with tropical beaches, and boats rather than big RVs are a common mode of transportation.

You'll find that in the in the U.S. Virgin Islands — and you don't need to have a passport to escape to those Caribbean islands.

Check the National Park Service site www.nps.gov/state/vi/ — to see what you can do at Virgin Islands National Park, including snorkeling and sailing.

Click down through "Plan Your Visit" into "Places to Go" to check out Trunk Bay with its outstanding beach and underwater snorkeling trail.

And while accommodations can be expensive in the U.S. Virgin Islands, you can camp at some places.

Snorkelers especially like the Park Service's Buck Island Reef National Monument, Virgin Islands Coral Reef National Monument and the Salt River National Historical Park and Ecological Preserve.

St. Croix is the biggest of the U.S. Virgin Islands. Get information at Go To St. Croix — www.gotostcroix.com — where clicking on "What To Do" takes you to information on beaches, sports, scuba diving, local culture, spas to revive you, and eco-tourism. "Family Friendly" has tips on things the kids will like, including snorkeling, crab races, horseback riding and more. You have to click on "Where to Go" to find guides to shopping and restaurants; that's also where they put information on fishing, boat charters and island tours. Need helping making up your mind? Look under "Planning Tools" for photo albums, visitors polls of favorite things to see and do, and a couple of live Web cams.

If you have a few minutes for sights and sounds, check in at St. Croix USVI — www.visitstcroix.com/ — and try out the gallery of eight short videos, a collection of Web cams, and a link to sites where you can listen to island radio stations. You can also get ideas for planning your sun worshipping here by clicking on the "Beach Guide" link and then exploring the interactive map.

St. Thomas — www.vinow.com/stthomas/ — has everything from fancy villas and resorts to bed & breakfast inns and family-oriented hotels. Learn kiteboarding (you control a big kite, which tows you across the water), polish your windsurfing, go scuba diving, go sailing or just chill on a beach with crystal clear water.

The smallest of the three major islands is St. John — www.seestjohn.com/ _ — where the snorkeling guide takes you to spots such as Hawksnest Bay, a convenient and popular beach where a reef waits for you just a few yards off the shore, or Cinnamon Bay, a popular windsurfing beach where snorkelers can explore an old airplane wreck. Some of the same spots are covered in their beach guide. And don't miss their photo and video galleries.

Another resource for the island is Go To St. John — www.gotostjohn.com/ _ which gives you links to everything from campgrounds to wildlife, resorts to nightlife, and even wedding planning if that fits into your travel plans. And when you want a change of scene, look for the links to island hopping and ferry schedules.

And don't forget to check the official U.S. Virgin Islands — www.usvitourism.vi/ — for their overall guides to places to stay and things to see and do.