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Visited St. Thomas last week on a cruise and fell in love with it. Planning a December vacation and don't know where to start. (2 adults / 2 teen agers). We want to relax on the beach, scuba dive, para-sail., etc.
Please recommend a few AFFORDABLE suite type accomodations. We could use a one bedroom if there were 2 fold outs in the living room.
Also, I few places I looked at dont mention that they have air conditioning. Don't all resorts have air conditioning??? I'll eventually go to a travel agent, but would like to familiarize myself first.
By affordable, I mean in the $250 - $350 / night range. Is this do-able without staying in a crummy place???
Hello Kathy,
Yes for $250-$350 a night you can get somwhere nice. You can try Secret Harbor Resort, Bolongo Bay, Frenchmans Reef, Wyndham Sugar Bay... lots of choices in St. Thomas. Have you looked into any so we can give you an opinion of the ones you have looked at.
Also you might want to get vacation planning matierial you can get this from http://www.vitraders.com on that site look in the top navigation for Vacation Planning. The kit includes booklets, magazine type guides, maps, what to do brochures and more. Great help for plannng a trip.
--Islander
Also, for that price you can rent a 2 bedroom villa, either on St. Thomas or St. John. This might be nicer with kids. There are many to choose from on both islands.
December is a crowded time, just so you know.
Busiest and most expensive time of the year here and most warm places I would guess. Book well in advance!!!!!!
Chris is right, December is often busy... so particularly on St. John if you want to stay there book well in advance... St. Thomas as well but you have more options in case one if booked up.
--Islander
A person we met on our cruise mentioned Colony Cove and Club St. Croix on St. Croix. Also Crystal Cove and Saphire Village on St. Thomas. Remember, we have teen agers, so we need things to keep them occupied and out of trouble.
I'm shell shocked at the air fare from Chicago to St. Thomas in December. $900 +. There is a $700 fare, but it takes 24 hours to return.
Thanks for your help.
As you have been told, there are many options in the 250/350 price range. If you decided on St Croix (my favorite) I would not put Colony Cove or Club St Croix near the top of my list of choices. I would look at the Buccaneer or Villa Madalaine. Air fare varies and December is high season so fare prices will be more expensive. Keep shopping and asking questions.
For St. Croix planners - there is a post on this board - recent one... with links to pictures from a St. Croix vacation that you might enjoying seeing as an example.
Buccaneer Resort is lovely - the beach has lots and lots of plam trees - really nice. 🙂
--Islander
This is a copy of an e-mail I sent directly in response to this posting but the info might be useful to others as I know that having teenagers with you requires special consideration.
It all depends on the interests of the teenager. My kids love the beach and swimming in the pool so that takes up a good deal of free time. We always rent a vehicle and travel from place to place exploring all the local spots, beaches and eateries as well as a day or two on St. John doing the same thing. There is good news and bad news about staying at the Beach Club. As with any time share place they want to sell you something. The good news is that you don't have to buy anything to get the gifts. The one we always use is the day sail aboard New Horizons II which is a sailboat out of Sapphire Marina that takes you on a very enjoyable sail/snorkel trip to St. John. My kids always think this is one of the high points of the trip. The last time we brought the kids there was a para-sail boat at the Beach Club for one day and my son did that also. They have tennis courts but I've never seen anyone playing. Other than that there is little to do there. Most people go for the quiet and beaches. It isn't a party island like many of the other resort islands. We have always found that it was mandatory to have a rental car. We like to control our own destiny and not rely on taxi cabs. We rent from Dependable Car Rental. It is a small family operation rather than a huge corporation. They have always gone out of their way to help me out even the year I messed up the reservations and they didn't have a car for me (they got one on only a 3 day notice). They pick you up at the airport (call them before you get your bags) and will bring you back on that horrid day when you leave to go home. http://www.dependablecar.com Tell them we said hello if you call them.
Rick & Deb Manseau
