I am thinking of spending some time at Concordia Eco Tents this summer and am hoping for a little insight.

I have two toddler girls (ages 3 and 4).

I expect the place to be pretty rugged, and that's okay -to a point. I'm sure a few bugs will get inside. No problem. But if they're absolutely everywhere, that's a different deal. I decided against Maho because there were so many stairs and no hot/warm showers (plus, the reviews I've read indicated it was not the best choice for small kids, among other things).

Regarding bugs, I was just thinking I could burn some coils and keep us all protected with spray, lotion, etc. What are your thoughts?

When it rains, does the tent protect you pretty well? or does everything inside get wet?

How big is the 'cooler' inside the tent?

I know there's a compost toilet. But is there running water(a sink) inside the tent?

And finally, are there some units that require less stair climbing?

Thanks so much in advance for any info you can provide.


Best regards,
Julia

If you don't get an answer on Fodor's try posting at USVI On-line or search the archives there. Very active St. John forum.

http://www.usvi-on-line.com/usviforum.html

I stayed in the Eco-tents about 5 years ago and thought they were wonderful and have always wanted to return. We did not see any bugs at all (traveled in mid June), I can't remember the exact size of the cooler.. I would say the size of a large ice chest?, there was a really, really windy rain storm one night and not a single drop of rain came inside, and there is running water but of course you need to try to conserve. I remember a lot of steps! It was not nearly as rustic as we imagined. We loved it!

The girls should like Concordia. Quite a few steps, but not anything like Maho. The bathroom is right there in a separate room, the kitchen works well, the cooler is plenty big enough, you won't get wet, there really aren't many bugs that time of year....plus there's a great pool for those times when you just want to hang out.

Concordia's sort of tucked away by itself. You'll need a vehicle to get around some very curvy roads.

We stayed there in Feb of 02.

Bugs were never an issue and the "tent" was very dry. These are the fanciest "tents" you can imagine. They are more like cabins with roll up sides. There is running water but b=not for drinking. The coller is about the size of a 48 Qt. cooler and stays cool but not frozen. The solar shower never really got hot...only very warm which was fine after all the sun we got. There's an outdoor shower with very hot water by the pool although it is for rinsing but soap is frowned on at that shower.

The eco-tents are at the bottom of all the stairs as is the office and pool. We stayed in tent #9 and it was lovely. There is most often a breeze that keeps the bugs non-existent. Beautiful sunrises. I have quite a few shots of Concordia mixed into our vacation shots here:

http://www.pbase.com/peterb/st_john_feb_02

I would return.


Just be aware, there is no beach, store or food service at Concordia so you'll be driving out for those things.