The Kaiso is a 100-ton ferry with triple-deck seating to accommodate 209 passengers.

The Kaiso

The ferry service fills a void in inter-island travel between the largest US Virgin Island - St Croix - and the islands' capital, St Thomas, which is 40 miles away. The two other US Virgin Islands, St John and Water Island, lay less than five and less than one mile away from St Thomas respectively.

Previous ferry service was provided on a seasonal basis - May through November - by Virgin Islands Fast Ferry, a Boston based ferry service. The Fast Ferry continues to service the USVI on an intermittent basis. The islands are also connected by seaplane and other air carriers.

Round trip fares for the Island Lynx are $78 for adults, $73 for senior citizens, $68 for children aged 3 to 11 and students with an ID, and $28 for children less than 3 years. Groups of ten or more traveling together receive a 15 percent discount. The Kaiso runs at a speed of 30 knots.

Lynx Ferry managing partners Robert Siebengartner and Kevin Rames, a St Croix attorney said another vessel, the Eid Travel, a 160-foot vessel designed to carry passengers as well as vehicles will join the Kaiso in servicing the two islands.

This will be the first time a ferry service would transport vehicles between St Croix and St Thomas. Vehicles travel regularly via barge between St Thomas and St John.