St John experts ~ Should I do this?
 

A couple we knew took their honeymoon at the Westin St John and gave our name to them as soemone who might be interesed in a timeshare there I guess. We are not, but we got an offer to stay at the hotel for 5 nights for $899 (for 2) plus free ferry transfers and a $100 hotel credit for food or whatever. I realize I will have to sit though a timeshare talk but I would love to visit st John. Is this a great deal (as long as i am willing to sit through the talk)? or is it not that great? I would have 18 mos to use the trip.

Thanks!

Kristen,
I think that it is a wonderful deal.

We paid $1500 for a villa for 6 nights.That was just for the villa,no food,rental car or anything.

I would do it if I where you.:)

Christie

Hi Christie. What did you think of the resort overall? I have read that the rooms aren't great and I'm sure we would get stuck in a low end garden view room but i don't care. Would we need to rent a car do you think? And how are the beaches and snorkeling?

Thanks!!

P.S. Where are you headed next?

Kristen: There is an old post on the US Board that talks about the different timeshare pitches. I believe the Westin is one mentioned toward the bottom. Original poster is DebitNM and so I would type her name in the US. It is still in the top 50. I can't remember who brought it back up. It might help to read it.

Personally, if you want to go to St. John, then why not take the presentation. Just remember they are good salesmen and you must be resilient or you will own a piece of the resort :)
Good luck and let us know if you go!

Hi Kristen. For those kind of things, usually both you and your husband are required to attend and you wouldn't be able to bring your daughter to the presentation (kids are not allowed). Details should be in the fine print. The Westin does have a kids club. Don't know how good it is.
We stayed in a gardenview room when we were there over 3 years ago. The room was spacious but a bit dated. Good resort overall.

Not a St. John expert, but I would certainly consider a 5 night stay for that amount on an island I was interested in traveling to. Sitting through a timeshare talk wouldn't be that big of a deal--probably an entire morning or afternoon. With the free ferry credits and the $100 voucher, you could do much worse, I think. I'd also consider staying an extra night or two on the island at a less expensive place just to maximize my time away.

With St. John's reputation for beautiful beaches and snorkeling, I imagine you'd like it quite a bit.

Thanks everyone. i did check out the thread on the US Board. Caribtraveler...I highly value your opinion so i'm glad you think it's a nice resort. Do you have any photos from that trip?

I was thinking thsi may eb a good anniversary trip for hubby and I in December...

I did not stay at the Westin but heard that it is a decent place to stay (probably better than the villa we rented)

We did get a massage at the Westin and thought the resort was very nice.

I would highly recommend renting a car so you can enjoy St John at your own free will.The beaches are some of the most beautiful that I have seen and snorkeling is good.

If you loved Grand Cayman's beaches....you will love St John's beaches.

Be prepared for some steep, mountainous roads and driving on the left side.We got used to it by our second day on island.We felt like pros by our second trip.;)

My husband and I are trying to work out going to Negril in May or June.It's not set in stone yet but we hope to go.We both work now, so we are trying to arrange vacation at the same time.

Good luck with the planning!St John is beautiful!:)

Christie

Christie, I hope you *finally* get to Jamaica this time! I didn't realize you're working now. Are you enjoying it or do you miss being the full time mom?

Kristen: As you well know, my husband and I love our little getaways. So I hope you get to do one with your husband :-) . No digital pics from me re: St. John. That was the trip when my camera screwed up and all the pics were ruined. That's how my husband finally convinced me that a digital cam was the way to go.

Did you ever see the trip report by iamq? He has great pics. As Christie said, the beaches are beautiful. However, they're not long stretches like the ones on T&C & GC. The beach at the Westin is very unimpressive. I knew that before we went so I was not really disappointed. Yes, you must rent a jeep to go see all the beautiful beaches.

Kristen,
Here is a link to the photos that caribtraveler mentions.

http://new.photos.yahoo.com/bquarre/...60762310457895

-Bill

It's been ages since we went, but I imagine it couldn't have changed that much... Here are more photos from our 2000 & 2001 trip
http://imageevent.com/kajugo/2000usvi

That offer is amazing! We sat thru their timeshare pitch last time and all we got was a stinkin' $75 hotel credit. And the salesperson definitely blew it from the start when he didn't carefully read the profile we filled out and as a conversation turned to my hubby and said "So you're a software engineer and your wife is a librarian." Haaaa! ;)

I am going to check out the pics now..thanks!!

I just got off the phone with them and they said we are not oblifgated to attend any timeshare meetings at all.

And we would get the lowest possible room category but again that's not a big deal to me.

I have until january 31 to decide so i'll let you know what we decide!

Oh and if I do go and any of you would like me to give them your name for a similar deal, let me know!!

Caribtraveler..did you see my cruise review?

I was very disappointed in Cozumel. I knew the beaches weren't all that..and the ones I went to definitely were not. Plus the people at the ebach clubs were very "in your face". But the biggest disappointment was the water..very murky. I am sure there are nice spots but based on what I saw, I won't go back there.

Kristen: I missed your trip report but just read it. I'm so sorry you didn't like Cozumel. I do agree the people there can be in your face. I think I mentioned to you that I had experienced that. The only beach we went to on Cozumel was the one at our hotel (the InterContinental). That beach is small but with clear beautiful water and great snorkeling. That's a bummer that the one you went to was what it was. :-(

By the way, I'm thinking of Eleuthera for this summer. I know you've been thinking about that. Or was it Harbour Island? Anyway, I was set on the BVIs... but as usual, I've changed my mind. Ask me again in a week. :-D

I still want to make it to Harbour Island/Eleuthra and/or the Exumas. I hear the Pink Sands Hotel (or Coral Sands) and the Four Seasons are supposed to be really nice.

One thing I like about the idea of St. Johns is being able to take a day trip to the BVIs.

Kristen,

My wife & I just got back from 9 days on St John, and loved it.

Renting a jeep is a MUST, you have to drive out to the best beaches as the Westin beach is average at best. Within a 10 minute drive, you'll find postcard beaches, one after another.

We didn't stay at the Westin, but walked through the resort, and thought it was very nice. We did massages there, and highly recomend them....very good.

The room won't matter, as you'll be exploring beaches all day anyway. The snorkeling is excellent, and most beaches have reefs to swim out to. The only negative I see with the Westin is that you will have to drive into town as the walk would be too long.

The driving is a bit "White Knuckle" your first day, but you'll get used to it very quickly. Definitely get a 4WD, as you simply won't make it up certain hills without it, even on pavement. You'll see what I mean soon enough. But please don't be afraid of the roads there, it really isn't that bad, and you absolutely must explore here.

There is a very active forum on caribbean-on-line.com. Just go to the USVI board, and you'll be able to get all the info you want, and also read tons of trip reports as of late.

Out of all the islands we've been to, St John is by far our favorite. A return trip is a definite. Even with 9 days, we didn't get to hald the beaches hitting 2-3 per day....simply heaven on Earth.

Kristen,

My wife & I just got back from 9 days on St John, and loved it.

Renting a jeep is a MUST, you have to drive out to the best beaches as the Westin beach is average at best. Within a 10 minute drive, you'll find postcard beaches, one after another.

We didn't stay at the Westin, but walked through the resort, and thought it was very nice. We did massages there, and highly recomend them....very good.

The room won't matter, as you'll be exploring beaches all day anyway. The snorkeling is excellent, and most beaches have reefs to swim out to. The only negative I see with the Westin is that you will have to drive into town as the walk would be too long.

The driving is a bit "White Knuckle" your first day, but you'll get used to it very quickly. Definitely get a 4WD, as you simply won't make it up certain hills without it, even on pavement. You'll see what I mean soon enough. But please don't be afraid of the roads there, it really isn't that bad, and you absolutely must explore here.

There is a very active forum on caribbean-on-line.com. Just go to the USVI board, and you'll be able to get all the info you want, and also read tons of trip reports as of late.

Out of all the islands we've been to, St John is by far our favorite. A return trip is a definite. Even with 9 days, we didn't get to half the beaches hitting 2-3 per day....simply heaven on Earth.

ScottB, Glad to hear you had a good trip to St. John. If I remember correctly, aren't you a big Grand Cayman fan? How do you compare the snorkeling? The food? Where did you stay? ST. John is still our favorite mainly because of Caneel. Owa

Take the deal and ask for a sales rep by name of Jennifer Doran.

No high pressure.Just straight talk.
Her sister owns La Tapa Restaurant in town too.

Check out: www.usvi.net