Sara8374

Which has nicer beaches? Service? Food? How far are they from one another?

Looking for relaxation and pampering. We have enough free points to stay at Westin for part of stay.

TedTurner

Westin's beach might as well be listed as a 'non-beach' relative to others on St. John. It's a humble man made beach and not good for snorkelling/swimming. The service at Westin is OK (recognizing that service in the USVI's is not stellar in general).
Westin's pool is nice though.

Caneel is all about its 7 beaches and peaceful expansive grounds. Service is decent, rooms are not luxurious but they're nice enough. Food is not great at either place, but there are several good restaurants in Cruz Bay (close by).

caribtraveler

Caneel Bay (hands down) has the best beaches. We actually stayed at the Westin and their beach is man-made and had lots of seaweed (we never went in that water).
We spent one morning at Caneel's Beach (very very nice). On top of that, Caneel has several other beaches for guests only...which are absolutely beautiful, according to other Fodorites.
Westin food was just ok.
Westin service was really good for us. I think it's because we had our 18-month-old (at the time) with us who's just too cute
We did Caneel breakfast once..thought service and food was ok (nothing spectacular).
There's this one long winding road that takes you to all the beaches, one after the other. If I remember correctly, when you start out at the Westin, Caneel Bay is maybe a 10-minute drive on that road.
If you do a search for my screenname, you will find my St. John trip report.

sunshinenrain

We stayed at the Westin a couple of nights and did not like it. It was very loud (we could hear the entire conversations of the people next store to us) and way too many people around. It was difficult to even get a lounge chair by the pool. And I agree that the beach there is not worth swimming in. We drove to Cinnamon Bay and other beaches that were MUCH more beautiful. I haven't stayed at Caneel Bay, but I know the location is better than the Westin and it did look like a nice resort. We took a ferry in from the hotel at Little Dix Bay (in the British Virgin Islands, Caneel's sister resort) to Caneel Bay in order to get to St. John's. If you are looking for relaxing and pampering, I would definitely go with Caneel Bay. If it's anything like Little Dix was, you'll love it!

Claudette

FYI: no TV's in the rooms though at Caneel..in case that is important to you..that's why we booked Westin. We can always drive the jeep over to other beaches.

leechness

We just got back from a trip to St. John and split our visit between the Westin and Caneel. Caneel has better beaches HANDS down. The Westin beach is tiny, and as you may have learned, it has seaweed in it and is generally not that pleasant for swimming or snorkeling. That said, it is a much more kid and family friendly type place, if that makes a difference to you. The pool is great and it has a definite commercial, high-end resort feel. I think it gives you more bang for your buck. If you like convenience, then you will enjoy the Westin. Just make sure you take a cab or a jeep to one of the other lovely beaches, like Cinnamon Bay, because the Westin beach is nothing to write home about.

Caneel, on the other hand, has no phones or TVs in the rooms. The rooms are pretty basic. We stayed in a garden view room, which was quiet, secluded, and romantic, but it definitely had the feel of being in the middle of the woods. Sort of like a summer camp for people with money who seek privacy. The only thing we heard at night were birds and crickets. As far as service goes, both were comparable. Neither one was out of this world, but both were adequate. As for food, both are overpriced and you would be far better off taking a cab ride into Cruz Bay where there are plenty of excellent restaurants with great service, great food and fabulous drinks for half the price. Caneel and Westin are about 10 minutes away from each other--about a $6 cab ride or so, if I recall correctly.