Have you considered renting a villa or house on the island, some are very close to the Cruz Bay area and based on the prices you are quoting would be much more affordable if the prices you list are per day prices.

I would encourage you to check out some of the websites for management companies that oversee the renting of private homes.

RM

You could have a great villa for that price! Don't think beach front is all that great because the beach at the Westin is probably NOT the beach(es) that you are going to spend time at anyway. St. John is an island that you explore and try a different beach every day. We usually do a morning beach and then stop back at the villa to clean up, regroup and than take off for an afternoon beach.

I say book and villa and a Jeep and have a ball! You'll love it and believe me once you've done a villa vacation you'll prefer that over a hotel anyday.

Here Here on renting a villa. I've only been to St J twice and and stayed once in STT and once on STJ in a villa with 4 bdrms and it's own pool with beautiful views. If you don't want to cook you can hire a cook to do it for you or you can go out too!

I think our next trip we are paying about $4000 for a 4 bedroom with a pool and that's over a holiday week with an upcharge.

We rent from Caribbenvilla.com, and like them, but there are many more out there. I am sure others can give you some ideas. You can rent nice ones or you can rent outragously beautiful ones.

Where ever you stay, rent a jeep so you can see the island

Thanks for the responses! I hope I'm doing this reply correctly! There is so much out there in regards to villas. Can you recommend something specific? I don't want to be way off the beaten track but a villa with pool sure sounds nice!

Rent a villa PLEASE 🙂
Fabulous villas to be had (2 bedroom would cost way less than that) with own private pool etc. The beach at the Westin is the only an made beach on the island so you definately won't want to be spending time there - visit all our fabulous beaches - Trunk, Maho, Honeymoon, Cinnamon, to name just a few. I've enclosed some links to some of the more popular (and beautiful) villas so you can see the prices and do some comparison shopping - just remember these villas are just a few of the hundreds we have on STJ. Just remember you will need to rent a car to see the best of what STJ has to offer, but you would have done that anyway staying at the Westin. Come to St John - you are going to LOVE IT 🙂
http://www.destinationstjohn.com/ambiance.htm
http://www.destinationstjohn.com/coral_rays.htm
http://www.destinationstjohn.com/la_papaya.htm
http://www.destinationstjohn.com/palm_terrace.htm
ust a note about Palm Terrace - this is a condo complex (only a few though) so the pool is a shared pool but it is beautiful and walkable to town, and at only $295.00 per night for a 2 bedroom you are already saving between $1600.00 and $2900.00 over the week - enough for another trip 🙂

I second the "HOLY CRAP"!

There are villas, condos, cottages, studios etc all just as close as the Westin and for waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaayyyy cheaper than they
quoted you!

Call any of the villa agents, tell them what you are looking for and they will find something for you. Start with:

Destination St John: http://www.destinationstjohn.com/
Caribbean Villas: http://www.caribbeanvilla.com/

Both of these agents are on-island, have great reputations and have a ton of options.

I'm going to get right on this and see what I can find. I really appreciate all the help. I'll let you all know what I find. By the way, why does anyone stay at the Westin if there are villas for rent? I guess ignorance is bliss!

You are getting lots of great responses! You should be able to plan out a wonderful vacation. We also have been very happy with [www.stjohnproperties.com]. Chances are that if you start to research out the villa idea in more detail you are going to start to feel overwhelmed. A good idea is to make sure that the person you are visiting with from the rental agency is someone you immediately like and feel comfortable with on the phone. It makes a huge difference in knowing that they are really listening to you and understanding what you want. It will make the villa choice/decision much easier and you'll feel more comfortable that you've picked a great place in a great area of the island. Then you can tackle the neverending research of what you want to do while here!

I am going to respond to the other side of the anti-Westin folks (sorry).

I agree - if you rent directly from Westin you are paying way too much. HOWEVER, you can rent a 2bd/3ba 1200sqft Townhouse villa (w/ kitchen and washer/dryer) at the Westin (on the hill) for $2500-$3500 for a week from the people who own them as timeshares from a variety of websites. These are sweet villas with views (in most cases) of Great Cruz Bay. The Westin is also an extremely nice resort, and you get full resort priviledges (but not daily maid service unless requested)

I remain open to all possibilites. I am unable to find a site for rental of the villas as a timeshare at the Westin. Is there a specific site?

Also, has anyone heard of the villa Rara Avis, Hart Bay?

Thanks for all the help!

I researched this and found 2 sites:

http://www.vacationtimesharerentals.com/Caribbean/Timeshares/US-Virgin-Islands/St.-John/

http://www.stjohncondos.com/

We'll be staying at the Westin in 3 weeks and chose it because we have two sons who will enjoy the amenities and being around other children/teens (when we are not exploring the island) and high speed nternet for my husband.

Another spot might be Gallows Point which are really 1BR condos in Cruz Bay, overlooking the water, with some resort amenities. No matter what, I'm sure you'll have a great time. We can't wait to go.

O Elliot,

I have used www.caribbeanvilla.com for years, their site has a map and you can see where the locations are.

If you do not mind being app. 10 mins out of Cruz Bay, for several years we rented one on Gifft Hill, it was called SeaWatch and it a great view, pool and three or four bedrooms.

Very easy to get to.

There are many more companies that you can choose, just make sure they have someone on the island to help you if there is a problem.

rm

I think alot of first timers go to the Westin because it's the traditional accomodation for a vacation stay. Also many people want the ammenities that a resort hotel offers - someone makes your bed everyday, restaurants on property and someone right there to ask questions of and give assistance. Many have never tried the villa accomodations so it's not something that they would think about as an option. St. John is not your typical island destination really. The thing I love about STJ is that you can make it up as you go along. For us the best way is to rent a villa and a Jeep and away you go. We're not the 'sit on the beach and raise a flag for drink service' kind of people. You can have it that way if you prefer a resort or you can opt for a different kind of stay. Different strokes for different folks. But I'll bet if you do a villa you will love it.

Be sure to ask you agent about construction noise around you villa. There is LOTS of building going on and I sure wouldn't want to be paying lots of $$ to listen to a jack hammer pounding rock for 9 hours a day!! I'd be renting out in Coral Bay this year for sure!!

Hi - The 8/7-8/15 (Mon-Tue) period is tough to rent from a WSJ TS owner as their units are reserved from Fri-Fri, Sat-Sat, or Sun-Sun.

As to some of the TS rental sites - there is the classified ads on the TUG BBS (Timeshare Users Group board - free), Redweek (cost $15 to join, but you can browse), and My Resort Network (free). eBay also. Google searches are good. Also, good ways to get reviews.

Worth remembering however, is that any board that is a public forum (like this forum, or resort reviews like Trip Advisor) you must be able to discern truths from half-truths - and people's motivations for what they write. Outright lies are usually caught by the good folk on this board, but not other places.

We've been to the USVI a couple of times on land, a few more on cruises, and have visited STJ 3 or 4 times, one for a villa stay. We are headed back in June. Our sons (20 and 23) will be joining us.

As always, your mileage may vary, but my opinions. I would choose a villa over the Westin; my compromise on our upcoming trip was to get something within walking distance of the Westin (go to the Maria Bluff side as opposed to the Contant Point side). There are some places available on Great Cruz Bay that are within several minute walk and no need to get on the main road. That way the kids have the option of going to the beach/bar at the Westin if they choose. OK, they have to pay for some amenities since we're not staying there, but I don't think staying there just for those is worth it. Knowing my kids, after a visit, they'll decide that if the old man is picking up the tab at the villa they can put up with it! Might be tougher for you with a teen who is not in college/working/paying bills.

There are numerous villa rental agencies you'll find in a search, I would choose one that's direct on-island. For the numbers mentioned, you can have a two bedroom villa with a private pool, place to cook, etc. You're off season, so don't be shy about looking at 3 or 4 bedroom places, they have lower rates for fewer travelers. Food prices at the Westin haven't been mentioned, but you'll save on that, and even if you eat out some, you'll find places by driving that are more affordable. You'll definitely need a rental car with a villa stay, but personally I would end up renting one even if I stayed at the Westin - you could probably pay for it driving for meals! The beach is not that great at the Westin, I'd go to the north shore daily to snorkel.

The private villas are also generally not restricted on dates, like Fri-Fri or Sat-Sat, etc. Week minimum is typical, but if you want an odd number, 8 or 9 days starting on Tuesday or whatever, they will do it if not already booked.

irbgolfin

There is a 2Bd/3Ba WSJ Townhouse villa (2 story, sleeps 6) listed on Redweek for $2975/week. You still likely have to deal with the check-in/out times.

We will be there in June - can't wait.

Happy Friday!

Thought I would add a little more info for you to digest. I've seen several websites mentioned in other posts that we've looked at, but will add another possibility (we're renting from them on our next trip - no plug, never used them before, just found the place we wanted), and they have a place that might kinda sorta fit your needs and is available for that time. It's Blue Tang, on Maria Bluff, within a nominal walk of the Westin, simple pool, $2550 a week (plus tax, and a couple of fees, etc.).

http://www.cateredto.com/villas/Blue_tang/blue_tang.php

There was some availability on Caribbeanvilla.com which sounded good to me, maybe not quite as close, didn't look at details.

Good luck in your search!

I am still looking with all of the info you all have been so kind and patient to give me. I am waiting for a response for the Redweek villa at $2975 Westin STJ 2bed/3bath.

It's curious, the Westin somehow decreased my one bedroom bilevel suite (no kitchen) to $350/day (three people).
Has anyone been in one of these. Wonder why the change in price?

Thanks again to all of you!