vmonk

Hi,
We're two couples with two 13-month old toddlers looking to have a relaxing vacation in St. Barts (I've been to St. Martin already, so we're excited about St. Barts).

1) Any general advice for us? It seems like it'd be a relaxing island (after all the flights!).

2) Bugs: I'm hoping we'll miss the hurricanes, but it sounds like the mosquitoes are a year-round issue. Is it just isolated to dusk/dawn? Are they blood-thirsty and aggressive? We'd rather not have to douse our babies in DEET, but some forum chatter and the CDC site about dengue fever have me concerned.

3) Baby-friendly Beach: We'd like a place that's on a baby-friendly beach. It'll be hard to coordinate drives to a beach while managing baby nap schedules. Some place with calm waves that isn't too far from civilization would be preferred. Based on my research, it sounds like Petit Cul-de-Sac or Marigot?

4) We'd also need a 2 bedroom with a kitchen (again, I don't see us getting out for meals often). I didn't find anything great on homeaway...any other trusted sites to try? Has anyone used this website http://www.frenchcaribbeanvillas.com?

Thank you...merci!

J_R_Hartley

Hi

General advice? Just enjoy...St Barts is all about relaxation, restaurants, beaches and massages.

When are you travelling? September and October are peak hurricane season.

Dengue is rare, there are babies living on island year round. There are numerous baby friendly products out there, the natural ones based around Lemon Grass appear to work

Baby friendly beach would be Grand Cul de Sac, the mouth of the bay is enclosed by a reef, so it is shallow and calm. You have two hotels, some beach restaurants and a supermarket not far.

Most of the accommodation on St Barts is in villas.

I would pick one of the companies that deals exclusively with St Barts rather than one that covers many islands. Logically a company can't be expert in that many destinations and it is best to have local representation on the ground.

www.premiumislandvacations.com
www.sibarth.com
www.icietlavillas.com

J_R_Hartley

Forgot to add, the dengue mosquito is indeed more active at sunset and sunrise.

The nasty version of Dengue is unknown on St Barts.

vmonk

We're trying for July. If that doesn't work out, we'll look into late Oct/early Nov or maybe March 2013.

I'm looking into beachfront villas on Grand-cul-de-Sac, but what are thoughts on including the bays Petit Cul-de-Sac, L'Orient, and Marigot in my search? Do they meet our criteria of having calm water and being near provisions?

Thanks!!

J_R_Hartley

There aren't that many beach front villas in general, so you w

Petit Cul de Sac is quiet however no provisions nearby, no villas directly on the beach.

Lorient the sea is quite rough and the reef comes up onto the beach, however a fair amount of facilities around. Some very nice beachfront villas.

Marigot is pretty quiet, and there is a supermarket. That said it's not a very "attractive" beach", more of a cove really.

There is only one property on the beach in Marigot, no pool.

Is there a way you can contact me directly? I think putting my email address is banned>

blamona

Just to add, no-see-ums come out after rains, and at dusk every night on every island. St Barth is a little more lush than other islands, so they will definitely be there.

Another note, St Barth has some of the best restaurants in the Caribbean, it's what it's known for, why would you go there and not partake in the best part of the island? I dont mean to sound snooty, but it's what St Barth is about! The main attraction is people watching at meals.

You could do another much more kid friendly destination and save St Barth when child is over, or you could get your child used to fine dinning. ;-)

blamona

I didn't mean ov! I meant older!

J_R_Hartley

St Barts has a lot more to offer than just restaurants.

Safety is a major plus, there is no threat whatsoever in terms of personal safety, it is a great place for kids from that angle alone.

vmonk

Thanks J_R_Hartley - I appreciate the info on the other beaches. I'm not sure how I'd contact you directly if you can't provide an email address... If you're in the US, I could call, or we could Skype. Also, it probably wouldn't make sense to until we're more certain that we're going.

blamona - thanks for letting me know about the no see ums. Maybe we'll bring some mosquito netting with the tighter weaves to help protect the baby. Arg...bugs...

We'd definitely make it to the restaurants, but it probably wouldn't be on a daily basis...it's just too hard to coordinate, especially since the other couple's baby likes to be in bed by 8pm. Ours will stay up until 11pm if there's entertainment and so far, will eat anything we give her. That said, we usually take the early seating (5:30pm or 6pm) to avoid disturbing those who are trying to have a romantic dinner out. Any idea if taking kids for early dinners would work out well in St. Barts? (do they tend to have highchairs? start serving at 5:30 or 6pm?)

J_R_Hartley

vmonk, email me on [email protected]

No seem ums aren't really a problem , have only come across them once in nine, on some waste ground with standing water.

The more upscale restaurants don't really start opening up until a lot later, however you will be able to find food around 530 6pm

The Select, Creperie, JoJo etc