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Hi all. I'm planning to visit USVI for the first time in mid May for a total of 7 days. I'm very excited and overwhelmed as well. I have not decided where to stay yet. I would like to stay in St John as I heard it's the better island to relax and avoid the crowds. I would like to stay in a reasonably priced place. I've learned that paying for accommodations where you spend most of your time on the beach is not the best policy. More money for shopping and great food and drinks. ( but please share your thoughts if you believe other wise)
So one of my dilemmas is that I can stay in St Thomas at a friends condo for $80 a night which is a great deal. However I'm not sure if it will make sense to travel back and forth daily for half of the trip to visit St John. Also I will need a car so renting and getting back and forth does not seem practical. What do folks suggest? What do I need to be aware as a first timer? Thank you very much in advance for your time and feedback!!!!
One of my friends just returned from a stay at MAHO and in her words...it was disgusting. Roaches everywhere, very dirty, etc. She is not picky at all and loves to camp...so if she said MAHO was that bad, I would never stay there.
Point Pleasant is very nice but there's quite a bit of walking and the beach is very small. If you're looking at PP then take a look on www.vrbo.com for condo rentals at Sapphire. You can get a studio for quite a reasonable price and the beach is gorgeous with excellent snorkeling. The location is perfect, within easy reach of Red Hook and town. Here's a link to the webcam:
dano50 wrote:
never hurts to call them direct and ask them whats the best deal they can give you! sometimes you get lucky.
When dealing with private owners via vrbo, you're dealing directly with the owners and not with a third party or an agency.
Go to VRBO and search all the St John listings. You'd be surprised how many truly affordable options there are if you're willing to forgo some of the luxury. They start as low as $500 per week. You will need to rent a car for most of them though.
I've stayed at Sapphire once and Point Pleasant twice, both have kitchens. Point Pleasant has a great new bar/restaurant that is open on the water; and great views. Sapphire has better beach access. Both have real good snorkeling.
If you can cancel the car and get a refund, I would. The others outlined costs/time of taking it to STJ. A taxi from the airport to either is $15 or so, plus $2 a bag. Then if you stay at either Sapphire or PP, you get the property shuttle to take you out to the road each morning. Then every 5 to 15 mins the ViTran bus comes along and it's $1 per person to take that 3 miles down the road to Red Hook. Then take the Ferry to STJ for $6 each way. When you come back from STJ into Red Hook you can't take the Bus back as it only goes the one way, but a taxi will be between $5 and $8 per person. It's so easy, both resorts are great for access to Red Hook b/c of the bus.
You also have Lindquist beach real close to both, and worth it for a day of relaxing on the beach without going far. Also easy to take a taxi to Magen's Bay if you want, and that taxi would be cheaper than a Car for that day.
So I've found a couple of ok deals. I found places in fish bay, cruz and coral bay. Best deal I found was about $800 a week. What spot between these do you suggest? It has been hard to find something but I need to book by tonight. Again thank you for the feedback. Also what am I looking at for a week car rental cost wise?
Depends on your preference. Cruz Bay is the busier side of the island (still not busy by most standards of course). Coral Bay is the quieter side. Don't know much about Fish Bay. Rental cars will be between 400 and 500 a week depending on what you get - 4 wheel drive is a must.
Anyone familiar with Slice of Life in Coral Bay or Geko House in Fish Bay?
So I finally found a place. I booked a place on Cruz Bay and I am very excited. The owner was very nice and the place has a great view and all the amenities we were looking for.
Thank you for the feedback and suggestions. I can't wait to get there now. May can't come fast enough. : )
