Charlotte Amalie is one of those rare colonial capitals that has kept its historic fabric more or less intact. The old town climbs the hillside above the harbour in a grid of narrow streets whose Danish names — Dronningens Gade (Queen's Street), Kongens Gade (King's Street), Norre Gade — survived the American takeover unchanged. The red-roofed warehouses along the waterfront, built to hold sugar and rum in the 18th century, are now full of duty-free jewellers, liquor stores, and boutiques; the back alleys behind them are quieter and more interesting, with shaded arcades, old courtyards, and the occasional ruin.
Fort Christian anchors the waterfront at the east end of town. Built by the Danes in the 1670s, it is the oldest standing structure in the US Virgin Islands and has served at various points as a fortress, a jail, and a government building. The Danish-era Government House up on Government Hill has fine views over the harbour and the characteristic red-and-white facade that appears on half the postcards of the island. The Synagogue of Beracha Veshalom Vegmiluth Hasidim, built in 1833 and one of the oldest in the western hemisphere, has a sand floor — the original congregants, Sephardic Jews who had fled the Inquisition via the Netherlands and Brazil, used sand to muffle footsteps during services when religious worship was still not universally safe.
When the cruise ships are in, the main shopping streets can feel like a theme park. Come before 9am or after 4pm and the place regains its character.