I will be taking my family (3 couples total and a 1 year old) to St. John this upcoming December/January. We want a place that has easy, sandy beach access, nice views, ideally kayaks/SUP's to use, and can accomodate all of us. The Westin resort meets this criteria if you can get a 3BR unit on the "water side", however they will not commit to what location you will be in, making this a risky choice. I've seen numerous web sites that will rent the Westin Villas, does anyone know if these are risky vs renting directly from the Westin? Any other suggestions on places to stay or areas I should look at that may meet our criteria? Thank you!

There are not many choices at all on St. John for walking out your door onto a beach. This is because most beaches are within the protected lands of the national park. So the Westin would be your choice. I live in St. John and never heard of scams going on by renting at the Westin from a private party. They are more than likely timeshare slots that they are trying to fill.