Sugar Bay House is AWESOME! It has fantastic views of Salt River, Salt River Marina and Columbus Landing. It is located on the North Shore of St. Croix, up a winding road and is on a hilltop. The house is very tastefully decorated and the kitchen has just been completely re-done. (New cabinets, countertops and windows). The dining room has a huge wooden table with many chairs and the living room has also be completely re-done. There is a private bar area called "Harry's Bar" (named I think after the owner) and has glass doors that overlook the huge pool. The bedrooms are all connected by an outside gallery. The pool area is exceptional. There are very comfortable lounge chairs, and sleeping type cushioned beds. There is a huge outside grill (under cover of the gallery) and also a covered outside eating area by the pool.

This has got to be one of the nicest villas on St. Croix. For more info and pics go to www.vacationstcroix.com.

I forgot to mention...all the bedrooms are decorated very nicely and have comfortable beds and all have A/C. Awesome!

TxSissy

Thank you for your response. Each website we viewed had awesome pictures. The owners site is informative and useful as well. Sometimes the pictures are outdated and some of the properties we've rented have been run down. Just wanted some first hand advice. Thanks again.

My husband and I stayed there 7 years ago and have raved about it so much that my daughter decided to have her wedding there this June. We are looking forward to another fantastic week there. I can't think of a single thing about it that isn't just perfect, with the possible exception that it is not right on the beach. (Although we actually prefer to be a little more up in the hills because it is cooler, breezier, and more private than beachfront.) There is a nice beach at Gentle Winds condos very close by, I think.

More about the house: Pete, the caretaker, lives in the ground floor apartment and he is very nice, but you won't even know he's there if you don't seek him out. You will need a car while you are there because the house is a few miles from Christiansted and other interesting places that you'll be sure to want to explore. Definitely drive up the North Shore to the Carambola resort and enjoy the spectacular view along the way and the funky beach bars around Cane Bay. There is a very nice restaurant and bar just below the house--Columbus Cove Grill, I think it's called. It's right at the marina, and it seems to be popular with locals. The prices are very reasonable and the food and friendliness of people there are both great. If you are going between now and June definitely take some photos of the new living room--I'd be curious to know how it's been redone.

Utmargarita
Thank you for taking the time to respond. This feedback is exactly what I needed. We will be traveling in September and everyone is trusting my judgement on this. We will definitely provide a trip report. Did you do one for your trip?

We lived on St. Croix for 8 years in the 90's. Lived at the Kumpitch house which is now part of VI Tourist Services for the National Park at Columbus Landing. If you look out Salt River Inlet to the North from Sugar Bay house you'll see the white house with the tower on the next hill closer to the shore. We know Peter (the caretaker) and Emy Thomas (lives just down the hill in the pink house) who is an author and artist. We used to go down the the marina at Salt River on weekends for dinner and a few libations. The earlier comment about driving up the North Shore Road are correct. That's actually the road that Tim Robbins is driving along in the convertible near the end of the Shawshank Redemption. Also the scene at the end of the movie when they meet on the beach is at Sandy Point at the West end of the island. Cane Bay to Carambola has some funky bars (Off the Wall, Cane Bay Beach Bar etc.) and used to have a couple of good restaurants (No Name, Picnics in Paradise). Downtown Christiansted has a couple of good places to eat like Kendrick's and a little further out of town heading East try Cheeseburger in Paradise (no offense to Buffett) They have food cooked on grills, rum drinks, and used to have live music on Fridays & Saturdays. You also have to make a trip to the West end via the mahogany road up to Montpelier Domino Hut and check out the beer drinking pigs. Also a good beach restaurant & bar is Duggan's (North Shore, East End).
Oh yeah, Sugar Bay House is an excellent place to stay. Quality built (was re-built after Hugo) and well maintained. the beach at Columbus Landing is no great shakes, but you can probably still go down and use the beach at Gentle Winds Condos. They have a little beach bar with burgers etc. down by the pool and the beach so you don't have to trudge back up the hill if you get hungry or thirsty. Best beach on the island with no services is Shoy's Beach. Go to Carambola Beach for a day and also try the beach at Buccaneer if you want some hotel amenities. If you golf, Carambola would be my first choice, Buccaneer second. Take a daysail with Cap'n Big Beard out to Buck Island for some snorkeling. Hope that helps. Have fun with life in the left lane.

We were fortunate to get an in-depth look at this villa through Vacation St. Croix on our recent trip to STX (April 16-25). Pete showed us around and was just delightful- he knows so much about the house and the surrounding area. I am considering SBH for an all-girl trip next spring. Here is a link to the pictures I took of the house and surrounding area that day, including a couple of shots of Columbus Landing Beach, Gentle Winds, and the Cane Bay area (shot from Off the Wall). Eventually, I'll get around to a trip report and some villa reviews of SBH as well as Villa D'Estasi and Amonoka as we also were able to tour those villas. In the meantime, be happy to answer any question about the house that I can -

http://s159.photobucket.com/albums/t127/margyz/STX%20-%20Sugar%20Bay%20House%20-%20North%20Side/

Ron and Margy

I can't thank you enough for the recommendations and the pictures. I am confident this trip will ROCK for all of us. Thanks again.