Thank you for the informative post kjrbarnes and welcome to the forum. I really do appreciate you taking the time to let us know how you were treated and your opinon but please don't tell me who to rent from and who not to. With the information out here we can all make up our own minds. I hope the rest of your trip was pleasant and trouble free.

Hey Toes in the sand… please do not tell people what they can and cannot do… free country and all that. Plus this review is helpful to those who are looking for good service.

I happened across this comment when searching for Conrad Sutton on the web because I too rented from this person and was very displeased.

Never have I been treated so rudely by a vendor. After spending $600 for an average service I expect a thank you or something. This guy was nasty, rude and threatening.

Be assured his actions had nothing to do with anything I said or did. Before I could even open my mouth to say good morning he grabbed the paper work out of my hand to go inspect my car. He said nothing until he tossed the papers on the counter and told me they were mine. Then our conversation began. I am from Philadelphia and deal with many different types of people. He ranks at the top of the difficult list.

If he does not like tourists he should get out of the business.

Just to play Devil's Advocate, you can find both good and bad reviews of just about every car rental company in these islands if you use the forum search engines. Some people have wonderful experiences to relate with a company and others have the worst ever time with exactly the same company. Maybe the phase of the moon at any particular time has something to with it but, in the meantime, only The Shadow knows! 😀

I always read the reviews and recommendations on products and services. I appreciate it when someone advises of their mistreatment as well as when they receive great service. Thanks for this advice; we will steer clear of Conrad when we're on St. Thomas next month.

Ruby wrote:
I always read the reviews and recommendations on products and services. I appreciate it when someone advises of their mistreatment as well as when they receive great service. Thanks for this advice; we will steer clear of Conrad when we're on St. Thomas next month.

You don't have to worry - Conrad Sutton is on St John, not St Thomas.

I'm sorry,. but I can't help but post to this. I should mind my own business, but, what the heck. First, the OP and RLRPA have posted on this site complaining about a car rental agency on STJ. FOr each of them, it is their FIRST AND ONLY post. Ok, thanks for the advice guys, but Toes in the sand is a regular here and you jump on her case? How dare you? She ONLY asked you to not tell her who to rent from. She didn't say to NOT post your thoughts. RLRPA, that was very rude of you.
Second, was your entire trip ruined because of the car rental agency? Did nothing GOOD happen on your trips? If your entire trip was ruined, then don't tell us. BUT if something wonderful happened, why not share it as well. You want everyone to know what NOT to do, how about sharing what you enjoyed so others can benefit from your wisdom.
That's all. Thanks for letting me speak my mind. Freedom, you know.

RLRPA wrote:
Hey Toes in the sand… please do not tell people what they can and cannot do… free country and all that. Plus this review is helpful to those who are looking for good service.

I happened across this comment when searching for Conrad Sutton on the web because I too rented from this person and was very displeased.

Never have I been treated so rudely by a vendor. After spending $600 for an average service I expect a thank you or something. This guy was nasty, rude and threatening.

Be assured his actions had nothing to do with anything I said or did. Before I could even open my mouth to say good morning he grabbed the paper work out of my hand to go inspect my car. He said nothing until he tossed the papers on the counter and told me they were mine. Then our conversation began. I am from Philadelphia and deal with many different types of people. He ranks at the top of the difficult list.

If he does not like tourists he should get out of the business.

Good morning RLRPA and welcome to this forum.
If you were to actually read my post to KJRBARNES you would see that I thanked him or her for their post and welcomed them to the forum. I then politely asked that they not TELL me who to rent from and who not to rent from as the title of the origina post did. I did not tell them what they can or cannot do (such as you did). I really do appreciate hearing about their tribulations with Suttons. It helps when choosing who I do business with when visiting StJ. I prefer to take in all information and make up my own mind thank you. Yes, it is a free country and I enjoy those freedoms everyday thank you. As far your troubles with that particular car rental agency, I have no doubts that you were treated rudely. I have found that usually rudeness is met with rudeness. I am sure you encounter that regularly. Perhaps I have jumped to an incorrect conclusion regarding your social skills but your first and only interaction here is a rude start. I hope to hear more of what you liked and did not like about the USVI.

austinhill - thank you for speaking your mind. Just to clarify, Toes In The Sand is a he not a she, regardless of the acronym my handle might imply. :$)

Good grief. So many years and so many negatives about so many vehicle rental companies and so many assumptions. So many visitors who rent vehicles on STT and STJ with never a problem where either vehicle stability or the "personal" touch is concerned.

I reman both flabbergasted and also very well aware where some of these foul-ups occur which have everything to do with "attitude". As much as we can try and explain to visitors the local mores, having it sink in and be applied is a whole 'nother story. When in Rome ...

"Just to clarify, Toes In The Sand is a he not a she, regardless of the acronym my handle might imply."

Well, color me embarrassed. LOL Sorry, toes about the mistake. 😛

I've rented from Conrad on a couple of occasions and never had a problem. Being a frequent traveler and car renter - I have learned that when renting vehicles I take "dated" digital pictures of all views of the rental before I leave the lot. Doesn't take long and can quickly resolve an issue when you return the vehicle.

This is pretty funny.
Yes… my first post was negative. Austin and Toes you did a great job of smacking me around.
So you know - I bend over backward to be nice to people because I believe all people have an absolute right to be treated well. I am overwhelmed when people respond to that in a rude and threatening way. It was because of the extraordinary way that I was treated by Mr. Sutton that I posted.
I find it incredible that the people in St. John consistently express the point of view that if a native to the island is rude it is because the visitor acted inappropriately. I have read several places instructions on the proper etiquette of greeting a St. John native and I suppose that if you don’t follow that recommendation then it is fine with everyone down there if they just treat you like dirt.
Sorry, I am not buying into that. All people deserve to be treated fairly without exceptions.
You have a beautiful home but I get the distinct feeling that you do not want visitors. I am sure that you will be glad to know that I will not return.
I congratulate you for breaking the code and assume that you have many friends that are native to St. John. The people I greeted on the street made no acknowledgement of my greeting. Perhaps you can talk to your friends and mention to them my experience.
If you are ever in Philadelphia let me know. I will give you suggestions on where to go and buy you a beer.

"Toes you did a great job of smacking me around."

If the responses to your post are what you would consider being "smacked around" I can understand why you would consider the people of StJ rude.

"So you know - I bend over backward to be nice to people because I believe all people have an absolute right to be treated well. I am overwhelmed when people respond to that in a rude and threatening way."

Perhaps I don't see it here because of the emotionless form of communication but I don't see the bending over backward to be nice or the rude or threatening responses of which you speak.

Mr. Sutton has been providing vehicles and services to the people and visitors to StJ for many years now. I have not had the pleasure of meeting him but I imagine that with the competition he faces that the market would have or will decide if "he should get out of the business."

"Sorry, I am not buying into that. All people deserve to be treated fairly without exceptions."
Ever been to Paris?

I would just like to know (besides the car situation) why RLRPA won't go back to STJ.

I can understand how you can be treated badly in the Islands by some people. It definetly happens. I could be nice as I can possibly be with a smile and they look at me like I'm an alien.

With that said, it's not the first time I heard Conrad Sutton was rude 😮

toes in the sand wrote:
"Toes you did a great job of smacking me around."

Ever been to Paris?

Forget Paris, ever been to Philly? (with all due respect to my friends from there)
Hell, they booed Santa Claus.

We have rented several times from Conrad and never had an issue

That's the Eagle Fans for you Chris:P

Wow this string sure has grown since last I was here. I've decided to take taxis instead .. I'd probably forget and drive on the wrong side of the road anyway and I'd rather be safe. Are taxis safe on St Thomas?

Taxis are safe. Hopefully you've researched the taxi rates (scroll down "St Thomas" link above) and understand that they charge per person. Even a quick trip between the Elysian and Red Hook will cost you $5 pp one way. Thousands of people rent vehicles and drive here every year. With the maximum speed limit 35MPH you can't get into much trouble.

Is there a bus or shuttle and if so how safe is that? Someone posted somewhere that when driving at night make sure you are not being followed .. Meaning potential crime and it kind of scared me.

The local buses whether they be the regular Vitran buses or the safari buses are not recommended to visitors. The government-operated Vitran buses don't run on a regular schedule, $1-2 safari buses (converted pick up trucks with bench seating) only run in a circular route and only during daylight hours and again not on a schedule. None of the buses' routes go past the Elysian and you would have to get to the main road, Rte 38, which is a quick drive but a very long hot walk on a road with no sidewalks.. Simply not a viable proposition. As far as someone following your car at night I guess that could happen anywhere in the world but in close to 30 years of living here I've never heard of it being an issue here. If you don't want to drive of course that's fine but just budget sufficiently to cover the taxi fares.