cbradley

Has anyone stayed here?<BR>I'm really picky about where I stay?<BR>Don't like old renovated places.<BR><BR>Want to go for Valentine's weekend.<BR>It has all-inclusive prices?<BR><BR>Somebody tell me the real deal.<BR>Looks like Sapphire Beach Resorts are getting to be pretty rundown..<BR>

mb

Hello,<BR>Stayed at the Wyndham over Christmas holidays for one week. The new renovations at this hotel are lovely. The rooms and ocean view were spectacular. BUT..............<BR>For an all inclusive, I was very disappointed. I have stayed at several all inclusive resorts in the past and the Wyndham has quite a bit to learn. Firstly, the meals were just mediocre. There were 2 restaurants and a grill. Only the one restaurant was open in the morning for breakfast. Breakfast buffet was disappointing and there was not much variety from day to day. This restaurant was open several nights as <BR>&quot; a la carte&quot; and I was neither overally impressed with the food or the service. The other restaurant was 150 steps from the main level and was quite a hike to say the least. It was only open for buffet lunch and dinner. The bars situation was a disgrace. I am far from an alcoholic but... considering that the beach bar opened at 11:30 am and the main bar in the lobby wasn't open until 6:00 pm, there was not even a place to get a juice or water until close to noon if you were at the beach early in the morning. I wouldn't recommend it for a Valentine's weekend. You are right, Sapphire Beach is getting pretty run down, and although the beach is lovely, the accommodation is nothing compared to the Wyndham.<BR>My suggestion would be to stay at the Renaissance which is next door to the Wyndham, the Ritz, or the Elysian next door to the Ritz. I have also heard good things about the Marriott in Charlotte Amalie. Hope this helps.<BR>MB

KaribIslander

Sapphire is an older property that did undergo renovations in the last few years. It is more of a low rise casual Caribbean style rather than the high rise hotel concept. IMO I did not find Sapphire run down in the least and it does have one of the better beaches on the island. All inclusive is not the best option on St. Thomas and the couple of all inclusives there are nothing like the Sandals type of place. Sapphire's restaurant is terrible but there is plenty of good dining nearby. If you are picky you might enjoy the Ritz or the Mariott Reef or Morningstar. They both have nice beaches (Reef uses the adjacent Morningstar beach).

Mermaid

FYI, the USVI is not a known as a terrifc destination IF what you are looking for is a Superclubs all inclusive type resort. <BR>If that's what you want, I'd head for Jamaica, or St Lucia etc. <BR>St Thomas has several lovely resorts and dozens of fabulous restaurants. Most people visit and use the entire island as their resort. Keep your options open and have fun!

Knowing

We are going to Sugar Bay shortly with another couple, so I don't have any information to include about it at this time, but I questioned a few things that MB said that made me go hmmmm. First of all, I know that STT doesn't do AI's well. My choice was the Ritz, however, the other couple does ONLY AI's and this particular vacation is mostly about sharing time together as we live halfway across the country from them. So, that's the way it is. Also, we will spend time outside of the resort. My comments are this:<BR>Every hotel I have ever stayed at on every island, with the exception of one has only had one restaurant open for breakfast. And every day, the choices were pretty much the same. It's the same way when you go out for breakfast in your city at home, isn't it? We go out every Sunday after church and the menu's are alway the same regardless of which restaurant we go to. We also know from other posters that the beach area and other restaurant is down 99 or 100 steps, but not 150. When we were in St. Lucia, we had a ton of steps to everything in the resort, and it wasn't a big deal. As far as the bars go, again, the other hotels didn't open until at least 10AM and then only one bar, so I guess I don't think that's a big deal, either. We looked into the Marriott as they do an AI and,as much as I love Marriott, decided against it for a lot of reasons. Among them, you only get house drinks, the deli was not available to you, only some of the watersports were available to the AI people, etc. So, I understand that mediocre food was one thing, but I'm wondering if there's more to your comments? Did other things make it a bad vacation for you?

lisalu

Hi,<BR> You will love St. Thomas. I agree with the other post that you might want to stay at the Renaissance. We own a condo next to this property on the quiet northeast end and the views are beautiful. It is also affordable here so you can enjoy trying special places to eat like the Agave Terrace right next door and you can take the ferry which is only 3 miles away to take a day trip to the BVI or St. John for the day. You will love it! Coki beach is also just a beach stroll away from our beach.<BR>Enjoy!!<BR>Sincerely,<BR>Lisa

mb

Knowing, <BR>There were a few things that you said that made me go hmmmmmmmm.<BR>Firstly, who decided on Sugar Bay? I WONDER WHY. I beg to differ with regards to only one restaurant being open for breakfast. Having travelled throughout the Caribbean, Mexico, South America, and having stayed at many all-inclusive resorts throughout the US as well (all 5 stars of course), this property was certainly not up to par. You mentioned travelling to many islands, I tend to wonder if your expectations for dining differ significantly from mine. Of the resorts that I have stayed (Sandals, Beaches, etc), there is always more than one restaurant open for breakfast. I have also found that the choice of menu does differ from day to day. Yes, there will always be eggs, fruit etc, but the fact that there were not even bananas or pineapple for 3 days is totally unacceptable in my opinion. You mentioned that going out for breakfast on Sunday after Church that the menu is the same, but do you not get different choices with regards to waffles, french toast, pancakes, instead of just every day bacon, sausage, and scrambled eggs. I feel that when I have paid top price to stay at a resort like the Wyndham (I was paying for 6 adults), that I really expected better than &quot;mediocre&quot;. When I mentioned the situation with the bars, you have totally missed the point. I objected to that fact that I could not even get a juice before 11:30 am. That to me is not acceptable at a 5 star resort. I am interested in knowing where you stayed in St.Lucia. Was it Anse Chastenet or Ladera, as they are the only resorts that I know of where you would have to climb tons of steps. After you visit the Wyndham, you can count the stairs for yourself and tell me how you feel when you get to the top!!! Try doing it with a baby stroller! There were a lot of issues with regards to our accomodation, a rude attitude from the staff, too numerous to document here. The island itself is incredibly beautiful (been there several times before). Would definitely not return to the Wyndham. I'm not really sure where to begin to tell you about a FAIR vacation, but I look forward to reading your reply upon your return. <BR>MB<BR><BR>

Mermaid

MB,<BR>No one and I mean no one in their right mind would claim that the Wyndham Sugar Bay is a &quot;5 star resort&quot; but then you also seem to think that Beaches and Sandals are &quot;5 star&quot; properties. This is just not the case. <BR>There are true luxury properties in the Caribbean than most people would think. On St. Thomas, the Ritz is the only one that comes close and even there the food leaves much to be desired. <BR>As far as rudeness goes, I firmly believe that in general you get back what you give out. Exceptions happen of course and I'm sorry if you had a bad experience but I truly believe there's more to the story of your vacation than you are telling.

Knowing

MB &amp; Mermaid, <BR>Thank you for your responses. We know that Sugar Bay is not going to be a 5-star. Initially, when I started looking at St. Thomas, I looked at the Ritz and the first thing I heard was, &quot;Don't eat there.&quot; I also agree that if you are rude to others it comes back. I was merely asking questions to see what I can learn before I go. Funny MB that you mention Sandals as we have stayed at four of them and MoBay had only one breakfast restaurant, as did the Bahama's and Antigua. Only St. Lucia had two. The only difference there was that one had menu's and the other was buffet. btw, when we stayed at Sandals St. Lucia, we had many steps to climb frOm our room to the sidewalk, down again to the street, down again to the one bar and resturant and down again to the beach. We eat out all the time at home, unfortunate as I love to cook, and I can tell you we DO know good food. We live near a major metropolitan city, and our choices are unlimted. I, too, am well traveled. Started as a child with my parents who have been all over the world. As an adult, we have been to Hawaii as well as around the Carribben. The non AI's that we have done have all been 6 stars, so we have stayed well. I just got an e-mail from someone who stated that they had pineapple every day at Sugar Bay, so maybe there were circumstances where they were not able to get them during your stay. I don't see that as an excuse to bad-mouth the food. I did understand about the juice, but why couldn't you get it from the restaurant? That's what you have to do at Sandals, remember? We stayed at the Westin in GC last year. You want to talk about paying top prices for mediocre? I could write a book. I have three e-mails here that I printed out and they all state 99 or 100 steps, not 150. Would I want to do it with a stroller, no I wouldn't, but I thought someone had said there was a shuttle. This is where research comes in. Intitially you said new renovations at the hotel were lovely and the rooms and ocean view were spectacular. So, now I'm really confused as to your complaints about the accomodations. I have also heard that that the staff doesn't smile because of a cultural intimidation. I don't hink that's rudeness. The bottom line here is that I was just asking for clarification. But I, along with Mermaid, think there was more to it. I think the baby stroller(baby?) makes a strong statement. I will be happy to let you know how our visit goes. Sorry you were so unhappy with yours. I wish you better trips in your future.<BR>

LD

Re: Knowing<BR><BR>Oh &quot;well travelleed one&quot;,hmmmmmmmmm... you are in for a surprise. Like MB, I stayed at the Sugar Bay recently (January in fact). I must say that if the if you are use to staying at &quot;6 stars&quot;, you will likely have many more complaints than I or MB. If you are looking to be pampered , you will not get it here. Perhaps you can use your time wisely and count the &gt; 100 steps !!. Since you eat out a lot, you probably will not mind that the so called a la carte dining tastes like it has been &quot;mass-prepared&quot; and is not exactly a-la-carte when you have to make your own salad. <BR>Sure there is a shuttle, but also travelling with an infant, it was not always easy to fold up a stroller to fit in an 18 inch wide opening. <BR>As far as &quot;cultural intimidation &quot; goes, I am confused ? I found the staff down right rude, they even did some sort of teeth kissing or smacking when we asked for refills on our drinks. <BR><BR>Hope you have better trips in the future, I am afraid this one won't top your list ...

Knowing

Dear LD, <BR>I had sincerely hoped that with registration, the bickering would stop. Let me again say my piece in a different way. <BR>I doubt that I will be in for a surprise. I think I have a pretty good idea of what I will find there. Sugar Bay appears to be a resort that you either love or hate. It just so happens that my friends supervisor just returned and LOVED it. So, who knows, but again this trip is about friendship, getting out of the cold and just getting a much needed break.<BR>Yes, we tend to stay at 6 star resorts, however, I don't do so because I want to be pampered. Maybe that's why some people claim that certain hotels have rude staff members. We have always treated the employees with courtesy and respect and, in turn, have received it back. <BR>The steps. Well, so many people counting and coming up with different numbers. And, truthfully, I don't really care how many steps there are or aren't. As we don't have children, I guess it won't be an issue.<BR>The food. Again, this trip is not about the food. Several weeks ago, other friends who lives a number of states away, booked their trip on SJJ at the Westin, so I expect that we will also be spending a lot of time over there. BTW, I LOVE to make my own salad, so I will be extremely happy. <BR>I guess the way we deal with situations is different, because if you were having difficulty with an employee and being gracious to them, if you chose to accept it, then I don't think you have a right to complain.<BR>Finally, I think trips have a lot to do with attitude. And, as I said to MB, I think there is usually more that is left unsaid when people do complain about a trip. I wasn't trying to dispute her complaints about the food,or anything else for that matter, I was merely trying to look for more information. As a long time reader and poster on Fodor's, I've gotten to be pretty good at reading between the lines. In her case, I think Baby had a lot to do with her trip. Just as I think yours had much to do with expecting staff to indulge you. I will be happy to let you know my thoughts upon my return.

tilly2354

Planning a trip to St. Thomas in March. Has anyone stayed at Bolongo Beach? Also any info on the renaissance and Marriott.