St. Croix experience as two females (NS)

My friend and I (both 20-year-old girls) traveled to St. Croix Virgin islands and booked an Airbnb in Christiansted. We chose to go there because we had read that it was safe and a great place to visit. Our flight was delayed, so we arrived around 5pm and checked in around 6pm. We hadn’t eaten all day and decided to walk to a restaurant just a few minutes away.

Exactly one hour after arriving on the island — and not even 10 steps outside our Airbnb — a group of three homeless men approached us. One of the homeless man’s friends, who had no shoes or shirt, Came out of a bush charging and running at us with a large stick. I ran for my life, but my friend froze and he hit her in the head. He then tried to look for me.

I ran to a nearby couple for help, crying and asking them to help us, but they initially told me to go away. One of the homeless man’s friends was laughing and trying to follow me. Eventually, the couple told me to go into a restaurant they had just left. I ran inside panicking and begging for help. The restaurant owner was kind and helped call emergency services and made sure my friend got help.

After my friend was hit, another one of the homeless man’s friends tried to fight with the women who owned a nearby shop and were attempting to help her. When the ambulance arrived, a third one of the homeless man’s friends tried to open the ambulance doors and was pressing his face against the window while they were putting my friend on the stretcher. It was chaotic and terrifying.

My friend had to take an ambulance to the hospital because of the head injury. At the hospital, we gave a description to police, but we didn’t feel like it was taken seriously. The police refused to escort us back to our Airbnb to get our luggage, so we had to rely on a taxi driver to wait outside while we grabbed our things because we were too scared to go alone. On the way back, we saw the same man still roaming the streets. Shortly after, another person came into the ER who had also been hit by the same man.

Some locals told us we were probably targeted because we were white, which was upsetting to hear since we were just minding our own business and had only been there for an hour.

We were so shaken that we booked the first flight home the next morning. We didn’t even stay one night on the island and were there less than 24 hours total. We ended up spending an extra $1,700 to leave early and couldn’t get refunds, but we just wanted to feel safe. I know many people have positive experiences in St. Croix, but personally we did not feel safe at all. It was traumatic, and it completely changed how I feel about traveling.