If you look down just a bit, you'll notice that an udate was posted recently. From what I can tell there's lots of negativity for a reason.

True. I agree but still it's a wonderful beach, especially if you're staying in a unit right on the beach & if you have a car to get around you still might enjoy it but do read the other posts. Just depends on what's important to you (want restaurants right there, etc.)

Paul:

As I'm writing this I'm sitting in the lobby of Sapphire right now.

The resort is open. The restaurants and bars are closed, but they have a Bar-Be-Que grill located between buildings B & C. You can get a burger and a beer there.

It has been pretty quiet here for the last two weeks. The census is way down.....practically a ghost town. Even the cruise ship folks have stopped coming.

Another choice, close by, would be the Point Pleasant Resort. There are two restaurants & bars there. You could always drive to Sapphire for the beach. Or chose Coki Beach for more action.

F.I.

Boy oh boy, I hope it IS improving. Before I discovered villas a few years back, I was an annual (sometimes twice annual) Sapphire visitor. I stayed for 10 days at a time. I've rented 1BRs and Sapphire Resort "Villas". Over time, I grew into a state of disgust over the place - mainly the first floor units. I am not sure if the place really went down or if my expectations went up. But, I got sick of the leaky air conditioners that made puddles on the floor, the dirty bathrooms, the nasty housekeepers who would sit in my room and watch soap operas (and not even get up when I came in), the lack of response for things like towels, the missing lock cylinder in the sliders to the beach so that my door wouldn't lock AND made a loud whistling noise anytime the wind blew (which was ALL the time), the duck poop in the pool (I'll save the details - but I still think this is what sent my family to the ER) ......etc, etc, etc.....

What I did enjoy was the staff (sans the housekeepers). The front desk people were so warm and friendly. The bartenders were the best! - real fun guys who had been there forever...and they never forgot a face......always drawing a nice, friendly crowd of guests to the main beach bar!! The manager would respond to my emails asking for specific room locations and take care of me. I really miss them all and would still stop in for drinks, even though I no longer stay there....but they're all gone now. I'll never forget the fun-loving waiter at the grill.......we affectionately named him "Sapphire" (he was a bit flamboyant - which made him fun) .....and he would announce that he was the doctor who was going to take all of your pain away.....prompting everyone to order painkillers!

Sapphire DOES have an amazing beach.....drop dead gorgeous! I don't know what it would take to get the resort going again...and keep it up! I keep hearing that it was built too close to the water and can't be well kept because of the wear from the wind and salt. It really is right there in the sand....so maybe that is true. I also heard that when it was built, the resort was fined for building so close to the water line. Don't know if this is true or not. But, I don't see ANY other hotels built like that.....practically IN the water.

I can say FOR SURE that the upper level rooms are MUCH better than the beach front rooms. It is like night and day. Looking back, all of my problems have been with first floor rooms. The top two floors are "villas" (2 level suites). My experience with them has always been lovely - they are clean, bright and not nearly as worn as the first floor rooms. I WOULD stay in a villa tomorrow - but not a first floor unit. The balconies are huge! The 4th floor, which is the second floor of the two story villas, have cathedral ceilings....so they feel very spacious and airy. Get one of those on the end and you'll have a wrap-around balcony and a windows on the side...more light.

Maybe I'll stay there (in the 2 story villas) when they get it together and see how they're doing. I do miss staying there. The location CANNOT be beat!

You all have me nervous.... I have reserved a condo on Sapphire Beach next month, but I found it through vrbo.com, not the resort. Each condo is individually owned. Is this the same as the Sapphire Beach Resort??

New Englander

Thanks for all of the comments.

F.I., actually the lack of restaurant or bar really isn't that big of an issue for us, as we've heard there's a market about one mile away. We'll just keep enough food and drink in the kitchen. And frankly, the fact that there aren't many people there is a plus for us. My wife and I are going for our anniversary and we'd like to decompress for a few days. Our biggest concern was the condition of the resort with regard to upkeep and cleanliness. We've talked further to the owner of the condo and he's assured us that he has recently renovated his place and keeps it very clean.

Bluwater, your description of the "old Sapphire" and staff sounds very nice. It's too bad they've let the place deteriorate. Your comments are especially concerning, because the condo we are looking at IS on the first level, right on the beach. But like I said, the owner assured us that his place has just been updated. We're starting to believe that his assurances, plus the location and amazing beach, might trump the negatives. We're leaning toward taking it, especially since we're only going for a long weekend.

Trade, from what I've heard from everyone, the beach is absolutely beautiful and the snorkeling is great. I think we'll take our chance on the condo and pack a lunch. 🙂

Thanks again for all of the comments. We're looking forward to the trip.

New Englander, I felt the same way. We're going to be there next month too. However, my wife's discussion with the owner of the condo calmed our fears. He assured us that he recently bought it and updated it. He also uses it often. It sounds like there are vast differences from condo to condo, depending on the owner. I'd suggest to call your condo owner and discuss your concerns with him/her.

He did say that there is no restaurant or bar on the property, but there is a market about one mile away so you can stock your kitchen. He also said the pool is very nice and his experience has been very positive.

New Englander..........

send me the vrbo # because we also rented from that site. May be the same condo...i'll let you know as soon as you can do that.

Thanks!

Connie-

I sent you a PM. 🙂

New Englander

We also rented from VRBO.

Yes that's the place. I stay at the condos next door (Crystal Cove) You can't beat the beach at Sapphire. Some of the units are a little worn over there....but you're not buying them, so as long as they are clean the location more than makes up for a little wear and tear. I have been going there evey year since 91. "People ask me all the time "why do you go to the same place every year "....you will find out why!

Hi
We just returned from 12 days at Sapphire. The rental names can be confusing, because everything that is ON Sapphire Beach advertises as "Sapphire". This means it could be Sapphire House, Sapphire Beach Resort, or Crystal Cove. We stayed at Crystal Cove. We had a ground floor, 1BR unit. It was Fabulous. As mentioned above, the units are not necessarily the Ritz, but they are clean, nice, have cable TV, full kitchen, two full bathrooms, and a beach to kill for. We snorkeled with sea turtles every day at Sapphire... go to the beach, go into the water and bear right toward the sea grass beds (the reef is toward the left of the beach). We cannot wait to go back. We rented through VRBO, and have done so for more than 10 years, all over the place, without ever a problem. Another cool thing is that you are right next to the Sapphire Marina: several day-sail boats leave from here. I recommend the Nightwind (a single hull, 52-footer) and the Daydreamer (50 foot trimaran). Both were just FAB. We liked Daydreamer so much (day trip to BVI) that we took their sister catamaran, the Coconut, later in the week from Wyndham Resort which is right up the road. The Sapphire Resort is wi-fi'd in the lobby, we just walked in and used our laptop to get emails. You can rent snorkel/scuba stuff at the dive shop at the Sapphire Resort, but the restaurant is no longer there. No problem, there are wonderful restaurants in Red Hook. Another thing, Crystal Cove condos seem to each have Weber charcoal grills. We used our grill two nights to cook (good market right in Red Hook), and ate leftovers one night when we returned from BVI and were too tired to breathe! I am sure you will have a great time no matter which place you are staying at, but I recommend you check out Crystal Cove for future stays. I can send you the VRBO number, I just have to find it!!!

Yes, Crystal Cove is NOT Sapphire. It does afront Sapphire beach...but is not pat of Sapphire beach resort, NOR Sapphire Village.

Sapphire Village is the condo part of Sapphire. It is not the vacation resort. The Village is up on the hill....not on the beach. You CAN easily walk to the beach from the Village....not more than 10 or 15 mins. It is all inside of the complex.

If the owners are saying that they've remodeled. that's great. I hope it is true. There have been mixed reviews on owners' units.

Sapphire Resort is the vacation resort part. It is ON the beach......throwing distance from the sea.

Hey Blu, can't agree more about the bartenders. I've often wonder where Doc and Bert ended up. Might you know?

We are owners at Crystal Cove. Please check out our website at www.stthomasrental.net. I am sure you will not be disappointed. Hopefully we have the dates available that you are looking for!

Doc was at the Whyndam and Bert is at the Ritz Carlton. Bert works in the Great Bay Lounge which is open 4pm-11pm. It just recently reopened as a bar and is a beautiful venue. Bert is awesome so I usually try to stop by there every so often to have a beer and catch up with him.

Crystal....

I went to that website and maybe it should be updated because Sapphire doesn't have the open aired restaurants. The website should be changed and updated.

Doc was my favorite and I've been wondering here he went. I guess I cannot go see him at the Wyndham since it is AI...right?

Paul, I did have a poor experience with renting from an owner at Sapphire Beach Resort.....from vrbo.......but I don't think it was a first floor unit. I'll have to check old records. He gave away the condo to someone else after he and I had an agreement - but before I had paid for it - for me to rent it. It left me out scrambling for a place at the last minute....and he just stopped responding to my emails when I tried to make payment arrangements. I guess someone came along and offered more $.

If you PM me the name of the owner you are considering, I will remember if it was this guy. I recall his last name, but won't post it on here out of fairness.

We are a little nervous too about Sapphire Beach BUT we are renting from an owner in a newly renovated unit on the ground level in March. The owner has spent considerable time with us getting our reservations, etc. We are keeping our fingers crossed. I received an email from a guest that was there 3 weeks ago and he said it was clean and beautiful. He too rented through the owner directly thru vrbo. The owner's name is Peter. Please let me know how it goes!! When renting thru this owner you don't deal with the resort's housekeepers, or with the front lobby to check in.

KH
Illinois