Can anyone one explain to me why most Villas require payment by cash instead of Credit Card. I'm in the process of planning my trip to St John and the Villas I'm looking at are asking for check or money order. It makes me feel a little uncomfortable sending a check.

This is very common for villa rentals in the Caribbean. It's an absolute certainty if you are renting directly from the owner (individual people don't take credit cards). But many brokers also don't take credit cards (too many fees and all the shared commissions, etc.). Remember that it can cost a vendor several percentage points just to process a transaction. The way to make yourself feel better is to make sure you are dealing with a reputable broker.

Doug is right - it's common practice to pay by check or money order, not only on St. John but throughout the Caribbean. This has been going on for years and rarely has any renter been "burnt".

You'll probably also be asked to have the entire rental fee fully paid weeks or even months prior to your arrival - again common practice.

It is definitely for your own protection. We were once required to send a certified check and the boat transporting the mail sank. The dispute was handled bank-to-bank and we were (mercifully) out of it. These things happen in the islands.

More recently, we've seen many owners accept Paypal.

Remember - you can send a payment via Paypal to anyone with an Email address and your payment is protected. Via Paypal, you may even pay via credit card to Paypal and the receiver can choose how they want to receive the payment and even direct it to their bank account.

Good luck!

Mom