Bluebeard's has many, many stairs, so I would call and request a room that has as little as possible. They may notbe able to accomodate that request, as they are a timeshare resort,nad most of the roomseach week have someone that ownsit already registered to stay ther...indefinitely. When you get there, ask about taking the timeshare tour (if they don't immediately jump on you) and they will give you a 2 for the price of one coupon for the New Horizons full day sail and a nice souvenir bottle of rum and a VIP card,which will give you discounts at various stores and activities around STT. I recommend spending that hour picking the saleperson's brain for where to go and who to see and what to do, then just say "No, thanks" when they ask you to buy into their timeshare. If their timeshare interests you at all, I recommend that you call or e-mail me first ,and I can give you a lot more inside info, as I worked for them for 5 years. Some of their salespeople are good and they make it sound very enticing, but there are much cheaper and better places to spend your money for vacation packages, and they give a lot more bang for your buck.

As far as taxiing or renting, that's really up to you. Depends on how much getting around you plan on doing. Bluebeard's has a free shuttle that you can utilize as much as you'd like to cut down on the cost of taxis. For example, when their shuttle goes to The Elysian (one of their other properties), you could ride the shuttle, and then taxi from there to Red Hook. Much cheaper than taking a taxi from Bluebeard's.

Hello Ofelia,

Congrats on your 25th!! For a great dinner you should try Banana Tree Grill at Bluebeards; Room with a View is also very nice.

Taxi vs. Rental: Are you planning on doing a lot of shopping, beach hopping, siteseeing?

An island tour to see Drakes Seat, Mountain Top, Blackbeards Castle... is a good option for a first time visit. You can do this on your own if you have a rental or with a taxi. The St. John trip sounds great and will be a nice day.

--Islander

hi marty and islander,

thanks for the info. we already own a timeshare so we are not interested. we will try the banana tree grill and we hope to see some of the island and shop a little for our two boys 19 and 20, and a23 year old daughter.

how's the weather like in nov? we will be there on 11/11-15/ 04. what type of clothes should we pack? is the atmosphere a lot like hawaii?

thanks again
ofelia

Weather here doesn't change mch. Check out https://www.vinow.com/usvi/weather.php

The atmosphere as far as weather? Or as far as the ambiance? Ambiance is nothing like Hawaii, IMHO. I like it here much better. Hawaii is too much like the States for me.

My wife and I spent our honeymoon in St. Thomas and return every year for our second, third........ honeymoons. We love the islands and the people. Congrats on the 25th, a milestone many of us never reach. Have a wonderful time in paradise.

Ofelia
Also my congratulations on 25th. My wife and I celebrated ours on STJ this summer. Brought our 16 & 21 year old kids along and they loved it.

You mention having an all day snorkel trip planned for Trunk. Is that a tourist arrangement or are you doing it on your own? Trunk is very nice but tends to get crowded when the cruise traffic comes by. Of course crowded is a relative term on STJ but having your own space is really what you're there for. If you get a chance, visit Hawksnest or Francis Bays. Waterlemon Cay is also a great snorkel trip.

Make sure you both see a sunset or two. Still special after 25!

marty,
thanks again for your input. you're a good sourcer of very helpful info

ofelia

hi, rick
thanks for responding, and we are looking forward to uor vacation!

ofelia

chris,

congratulations to you ,too!

we are very excited about this trip since it's the first time that we are going away by ourselves. none of our kids wanted to miss school.

thanks much for replying

ofelia

Yep, it wasn't an option to take our kids on this vacation. We didn't get to celebrate our 25th last year, so going to St. Thomas is the 'make up' this year. Our kids are 24,21,18,&16. So we will be only worrying about the 16yr old daughter while we are gone!
Sounds like you both will be there the same time as us!
I will be printing out all this info to take on the plane with us! Hopefully I will have it all memorized before we get there.
I have already started packing, & I am not planning on taking very many clothes along! (that didn't sound very good!!) I meant....I don't think you'll need very many as the temperature doesn't change much lilke back here at home where you need to change clothes in the middle of the day due to temperature change!

Sitter
"...not planning on taking very many clothes along!"
Sounds as if you are already enjoying your vacation. Don't study the materials too much as there is no final exam when you get there. We found it best to pick a few 'must do' things and let the rest happen.
Aside from evenings out, we found ourselves using 1 bathing suit, 2 pair of shorts and 2-3 T-shirts for the entire week. Could have packed everything in one bag. Of course my wife and daughter came along and although they only used a few things, they needed to have a lot of choices.
Go figure...

Must be a 'female thing' that we like choices! I will probably bring more than you mentioned, but I'm sure huuby can live with that amount! And of course, we do like to shop for new things!!
It seems I always need a siutcase for the 'gifts' that I bring back for everyone else!
I like the idea's of getting food at the local market & sitting on our patio/deck most of the time, & eating out a few times! Hubby is bringing along his **MUST HAVE** guitar to sit & play while I get to bake on the beach!

Now that's an anniversary if you ask me!!

sitter

i'm not planning on packing a lot ..i also need room for the "gifts'' to brong home to the kids.
how dressy is it to go to a nice dinner?
chris , can you be of help?

I was just planning on bringing a denim jumper for dinner...hubby polo shirt & khaki shorts. How's that?
I read somewhere...someone said to bring along a collapsable cooler to carry drinks & snacks to the beaches for the day. I like that idea.

dress is very casual almost everywhere.....i took way too many clothes last time...hardly wore any of them....next time i will leave room for shopping in the suitcase...