There's a whole long thread on ths forum dedicated to this and nothing has changed.

That's too bad. We'll be there in less than a month, and are looking very forward to it.

Poor us, I suppose we'll have to 'suffer' through our vacation by preparing our own drinks and food as we stay on one of the nicest beaches on the island - probably saving a ton of money in the process.

It is too bad that the legal dispute can't be worked out so the owners and guests can have those amenities - and the parties fighting it out can actually earn some money - nobody is benefitting from boarding up the facilities.

This being said, I can think of many other things to fret over than whether a bar or restaurant will be open when we are there. We will still happily stay at Sapphire and enjoy alternatively relaxing and exploring.

Cdamion:

Do what Mrs. F.I. & I do............fill a Coke bottle with Rum & Coke.......buy a Sub at Subway....then go to the beach...Sapphire, Coki, Lindquist, Megans......or St. John......saves a lot of $$$$

Enjoy.

F.I.

that sounds like a good plan for you.....but there are those who want the option as well.....we have stayed on st. john 6 times and water island as well, and this time we have small kids to think about and granpa! So....we decided to have the best of both worlds and do the resort/condo thing. That didn't pan out....not really because of the restaurant bar thing......although that would have been ideal and really one of the main reasons we decided to stay on stt instead of st. john.....but turns out we couldn't stay there, in the unit we rented anyway, as it was recently sold and the new owners are not honoring rental agreements as of now. So.....we thought that was enough "ifs ands and buts" to suit our needs.

We did find our resort and our next best thing.

To each his own.......for your situation, it looks like it would work out great! Talk to me after you have a couple of kids and granpa to contend with! LOL......
enjoy your rum in a coke bottle and subway sandwich!

Katiesam:

My reply was meant for cdamion, not you.

I'm a little confused about your "kids and granpa statement" and the rest of your message doesn't make too much sense.........apparently your plans didn't work out????? Were you posting to something else and mistakenly placed it here?

F.I.

no, your not confused. I was the one who posted a couple of days ago speaking about the restaurant being closed as well as the bar. Then, someone very recently posted an update to confirm "the rumors."

We were booked for sapphire in June.....our family of 4, which includes 2 small kids.....and we are bringing granpa this year.

We were concerned by the recent reviews and repeated opening and closing of the restaurants/etc......but that didn't deter us toooooo much, more like made us nervous about being at a resort that was boarded up, etc....

After contacting our unit owner, we found out that he recently sold the unit and the new owner is not honoring rental agreements after june 1. He was very accommodating and understanding, and he tried to get us a different unit to use. We thought it was best to cut ties....and try something different. So we got our resort after all..just in a different place.

I hope this cleared things up for you. I am sorry my post confused you. If you do a search, you will find my posts in the last 2 weeks.
cheers!

Ok, since there won't likely be a bar on the beach, how much is Cruzan going for over there these days? Anybody have the perfect drink recipe for the beach?

I went to visit Sapphire Beach in August last year and was greatly saddened by the way the place had fallen into decline. There were guests at the pool but the pool grill was shut down and, in fact, there were restaurant chairs thrown all over the beach, even some in the water. It was like a derelict place, really tears came to my eyes. Our family had spent many vacations there when our children were young and it was a beautiful and lively place. My sister and I had burgers made at a little independent stand situated on a walkthru between 2 buildings. They were delicious and fresh but who knows if that is still there. I was heartened to read that the pool grill opened again and thought that finallly this beautiful location would come back to it's former self but now, again, I am reading that it is closed. Thankfully I am not an owner because that must be a nightmare if one was trying to rent out their unit. It is still advertised as a terrific resort but I saw with my own eyes that its glory days are long gone.

My own timeshare at Bluebeard's Castle is a disappointment as well. The place has changed management so many times that it has lost, to many, all credibility as a top resort. The furnishings in the units are very tired out and damaged. The promises made to owners over the years have never been kept. The excellent restaurants keep people coming but on eBay, I see people trying to bail out their units for as low as one dollar! I can't get rid of mine and since I own a condo now, paying the annual maintenance is rough. When you think of a hefty maintenance fee for EACH unit times 52 weeks the result should pay for basic upkeep bt it doesn't seem to on the annual report each year. If STT gets hit by a major hurricane, we are all in the dumpster financially. It is a sad state of affairs indeed.

I went to visit Sapphire Beach in August last year and was greatly saddened by the way the place had fallen into decline. There were guests at the pool but the pool grill was shut down and, in fact, there were restaurant chairs thrown all over the beach, even some in the water. It was like a derelict place, really tears came to my eyes. Our family had spent many vacations there when our children were young and it was a beautiful and lively place. My sister and I had burgers made at a little independent stand situated on a walkthru between 2 buildings. They were delicious and fresh but who knows if that is still there. I was heartened to read that the pool grill opened again and thought that finallly this beautiful location would come back to it's former self but now, again, I am reading that it is closed. Thankfully I am not an owner because that must be a nightmare if one was trying to rent out their unit. It is still advertised as a terrific resort but I saw with my own eyes that its glory days are long gone.

Pooh...we were there in November and the pool grill was running then and I don't know why the chairs were thrown all over the beach and that some were in the water, but that was not the case when I was there. The beach was gorgeous and very well taken care of. Raked every morning, no trash laying around and the chairs will chained up ever evening.

I think it's a little overkill when you say it was like a derelict place.

The snack bar between the buildings is open again. The owner's association runs it for the benefit of owners and guests. Although we have no control over the bars and restaurants, we saw this coming.

SB08 said the snack bar is open again between Buildings B&C. They actually did a very good job a year ago. Drinks and very good sandwiches. A few tables as well. It suited our needs for a quick lunch and then there is always the delivery service from The Grape Vine at the top of the hill. Excellent fast service to the Beach or your room. Prices are fair and good food. Sometimes you just got to adapt. The shear beauty of Sapphire kinds of makes all the little things, that could be a problem, fade away.

Connie, believe me, it was derelict, maybe there had been a brawl or something the night before but it was terrible. Wish now I had taken photos. I took my sister there and it was embarassing to see the decline but as I said, maybe there had been a party or something and people just left their chairs overturned in the water and also all out by the point.

No matter the condition we find the place in when we arrive, we will enjoy ourselves. For goodness sake we will be staying at the beach. I have had some experiences on islands (not VIs) that would make people never return. For example several years ago in Trinidad I stayed in a place that only had running water 3 days per week, and it was only cold water at that. The manager just gave us a big pot to fill up water the days we didn't have it. At night the place was full of starving mosquitos. One afternoon while I was laying in the room, somebody was reaching through the bars in the window right above my face trying to steal whatever they could reach. There was nowhere else to stay because it was carnival time - a year that it rained for carnival the first time that anybody could remember. As a matter of fact, in 3 1/2 weeks spent down in Trinidad, Tobago, and Barbados that year, we only had sun 2 days out of the 25. Rather than passing showers, most days were completely overcast with rain most of the day - very unusual for that time of year. The usually calm Barbados beaches were full of waves and the water was very murky.

Anyways, my point is that trip remains one of the best I ever had. I could have easily been upset, which I was at first (especially with the nasty Trinidad apt). At some point early on I just decided to make the most of the trip and just go with the flow. The fact was, I was still in the Caribbean and wasn't going to let some setbacks ruin it. So, I will take the Sapphire Beach condo as I find it - and make the most of it. These days I do not get to take vacations as much as I used to, so I will make the most of my time and just go with the flow, drink, and relax. Vacation days are too rare to ruin them with frustration and anger.

do you travel with children? My point is that we can do as you have done..easily, and have done so many times before.....BUT, when you have children to put first in your life.....those kinds of "things" won't do. I hope you can understand our frustration as a family.....we actually were going to opt for a different unit, after ours fell through....so it's not like we don't understand that it is on a nice beach.......

but for the reasons I mentioned above.....if I wanted to stay at a resort, with resort amenities for my kids.....then I don't want to see plywood boarding up the restaurants or the beach chairs fenced in with chicken wire, as they were reported to have been.

So, we chose to find the resort feel that we were looking for this trip.

Your depiction of your trip to Trinidad makes us think of camping at Cinammon Bay in December.......LOL......you take the good with the bad and the view was awesome!

enjoy your day

it is a good thing that the snack bar is open. That takes a little of the negative feeling regarding the closed bars away.

Each day I walk around Sapphire Resort and am so sad that a place like this could fall so far. Lets hope that the suits get resolved, someoe with some people skills takes over and Sapphire Resort is returned to a class A place.

One quick story. I when into the bathroom last year I heard the low battery on the smoke detector b eeping. So I went is about a monh later. Same beeping. Low battery. So I told Antillies. About two weeks later I went in again. The smoke detector was disconnected. So I told Antilies, again. Then I called the fire department!!!

I think I'l go in and see if it is fixed!!!
I'll let you you tomorrow.

billd

KATIESAM:

I can't imagine anyone that doesn't "get it" that traveling with small children is a whole different ball of wax. I mean............I loved backpacking through Europe as a student with a EuRail pass.........but attempting it with small children.......................not so much!
If I hadn't been to Sapphire with my family over many years, and my children weren't teenagers now I would definitely have reservations about going into an unknown situation. I mean a vacation is suppose to be as stress free as possible......right? That said, if it's any consolation, think of me sleeping with one eye open wondering if the smoke alarm in my villa works? (just kidding)

Enjoy your trip!

true, true.....Sometimes people without kids or who have never had kids either don't remember or have no clue what a different experience it is to travel with small, needy kids. I long for the days again where it will get easier, but for now.....their needs top the list and for us...this was the best decision. We are used to villas in st. john or water island...but for the ease of the kids (and granpa) we've decided to do the resort-ish type thing.....

I am so looking forward to this trip!

Some chairs in the water and scattered around the beach make the whole resort " Derelict"? ( Homeless and or Abandoned) Give me a break. 15 min. work and that's straitened out. I really have to wonder what all the really negative reviews ( the sooo bad ones that is) are all about and the motivation behind them. Big problem, as understand it, is the Condo Owners Association and the Resort Management are in a feud and neither will give an inch. Who knows where the blame lies. Been going for years and while I'm sure the place has seen better days (like when it was brand new) we have always found it to be in a more than acceptable condition. Not run down and in disrepair or derelict by any means. I feel bad for the people who have reserved at Sapphire and are subject to these over critical reviews and they suffer because of them. The money involved is significant and they fear their vacation will be ruined and money wasted. Believe me folks, the sky is not falling and you will love Sapphire and have a wonderful vacation. The truth, as I see it is, Sapphire is a Mid grade or better Resort on one of the most beautiful beaches you will ever find just steps from your room. Location is perfect for Ferry trips and Red Hook is a great area with many great restaurants and or bars/pubs.

Some chairs in the water and scattered around the beach make the whole resort " Derelict"? ( Homeless and or Abandoned) Give me a break. 15 min. work and that's straitened out. I really have to wonder what all the really negative reviews ( the sooo bad ones that is) are all about and the motivation behind them. Big problem, as understand it, is the Condo Owners Association and the Resort Management are in a feud and neither will give an inch. Who knows where the blame lies. Been going for years and while I'm sure the place has seen better days (like when it was brand new) we have always found it to be in a more than acceptable condition. Not run down and in disrepair or derelict by any means. I feel bad for the people who have reserved at Sapphire and are subject to these over critical reviews and they suffer because of them. The money involved is significant and they fear their vacation will be ruined and money wasted. Believe me folks, the sky is not falling and you will love Sapphire and have a wonderful vacation. The truth, as I see it is, Sapphire is a Mid grade or better Resort on one of the most beautiful beaches you will ever find just steps from your room. Location is perfect for Ferry trips and Red Hook is a great area with many great restaurants and or bars/pubs.

And Bob...THAT is the truth!