St John Villas
 

We are planning a 2 wk honeymoon in St John next May. We are excited about renting a villa but the choices are overwhelming!

The important features for us are privacy, pool, views, ac, king beds, nice decor and convenience. As first timers to the island, I thought we maybe should stay closer to Cruz Bay but am not opposed to more remote locations. We will rent a car (jeep?) for the whole stay. Our daughters (teens) may be joining us for just a few days (2nd marriage!)

Three villas that interest me are Villa Capiz, Sapphire Breeze, and Sea Stone. Anyone familiar with these? Or do you have any other recommendations? I would like to keep the price to $2200/wk or less.

Thanks!

With teenagers visiting it might be more fun to stay closer to Cruz Bay. In renting a villa, I would definitely make sure there is airconditioning in the bedrooms. It gets very hot even at night in the islands. I would also bring plenty of bug spray. We once rented a villa with an open air kind of set up (no screens) and the bugs at night were a real nuisance. Be sure to bring plenty of bug spray. It's not bad if you have got bug spray on. Whoa betide the one who doesn't have bug spray on. It's a tropical island afterall.

Yes, we do have a/c on our list of requirements. And based on lots of reading here and elsewhere I do know we need to pack the bug spray!

I am looking for specific villa recommendations to help narrow our choices. Any you would recommend?

Congratulations on your upcoming wedding. There is an overwhelming choice of villas on St. John and this is perhaps the most difficult part of planning a trip there.

I always check the archives at USVI On-Line (http://www.usvi-on-line.com/usviforum.html ) for St. John villas. Villa Capiz is an easy one to search on because of the unusual name. There are numerous very positive reviews going back to 2002 and as recently as April of this year. There was construction below it last year but that should be finished by now. One poster is going there at the end of this month.

There’s a review on Sapphire Breeze from 11-02-2003 in the review section at the top of the USVI opening page. Again a positive review.

I was unable to find anything out on Sea Stone. Don’t worry, you have tons of time to make a decision.

Thank you, Roberto!

Anyone else?
I've added a few more possibilities to my list...
Beyond the Sea
Hawksnest
Miles Away
Morgan Point
Splendore (a bit pricey)
Villa Carolina

Any insight on these?

I just returned from St John yesterday..I would recommend renting a villa that is fully Air conditioned.It was about 90 plus and very humid.Whatever you do..do not rent Bamboo villa from vivacations..it had AC in the bedrooms that did not feel very cool at all.Good luck..St John is one beautiful island.:)

Christie-

Thank you for your reply. We had given some thought to full a/c- while BR seems most important, we do want to enjoy using every room. Certainly windows and doors open with cool breezes is ideal, but I don't want to be miserable if there is no breeze or it's particularly humid.

How about vivacations? Were you pleased with their service?

crest332 - look at wimco.com

they are one of the most (if not the most) respected villa companies in the world. They have great villas everywhere, including st john (they do caribbean and europe) There are 2 gatehouses listed that are 1 bedroom, at peter bay which is a wonderful, exclusive area of st john. movie stars and rock star houses, etc. anyway, I did not check on AC for any of their villas, but I am sure it is listed. and normally you can check availability online for their villas.

Also, I have never stayed anywhere in any part of the Caribbean with AC. There are a lot of villas that do not have it. I lived in the Caribbean (a couple of places, including St Thomas) for years and never had AC. Anyway, if you think it is a problem for you, then I would consider it, but I dont really like it...

Anyway, GL, let me know if you have any questions!

Thanks for the tip on wimco. I feel like I've probably looked at every agency's website- I guess that's why I am overwhelmed by all the choices!
I had noticed that Peter Bay looks like a very exclusive area....and the rents refelcted that!

The latest update is we may need 3 bedrooms (and I like one called 'Lost Horizon') if all of our daughters go- but definitely not staying for our whole honeymoon!!

Again, thanks for your help and insight!

That villa looks really nice, 6 bathrooms, lol. Thats quite a lot. It looks like a good price for everything that is offered too.

I know its a hard choice! There are so many villas and so many companies.

I only suggested WIMCO because I know the company well enough to know that they do not rep. things that are not nice in real life...

Yes, Peter Bay is a little above the top!

crest..I was pleased with vivas service..however would chose another villa or (Caneel Resort is nice too)next time.:)I am not sure of the prices at Caneel bay Resort but I can tell you that it was a nice resort with great service,watersports,nice beaches.Check it out!!(not trying to confuse you)

Thanks, Christie. It was Caneel that made me first consider St John. But the cost for 1 wk at Caneel is close to 2 wks in a villa. And since I've looked at so many nice villas, the thought of lounging by the pool with even 1 other couple sounds too crowded :)

If you're still on the 'villa hunt,' take a look at Perelandra. Girlfriend & I just stayed there a couple weeks ago and loved it. It's perfect for honeymooners (if you read the guest comments, accessed through their vrbo site--www.vrbo.com/18786--you'll see a lot of honeymooners have stayed there & loved it). It meets all your criteria (very private, pool, awesome views, a/c in the bedrooms, nice decor, & convenient location, close to Cruz Bay & beaches). Only one it doesn't meet is that the beds are queen rather than king (but both bedrooms have a very romantic look and feel). Well worth it.

Barbara

Barbara, yes I am still looking and that does look lovely; thank you. Now we likely need 3 BR so that all 4 (!) of our daughters can go with us....because we may be getting married there. How did keeping it simple become so complicated?!!

At the top of my list (this week!) are Villa Capiz, Lost Horizon, Adeste, Sapphire Breeze and Colibri. Soon I will choose one!!

Thanks for the input- would love to hear any other recommendations too.

There is also a good link to Honeymoon Cottage..look for the post titled that.The villa is on Francis bay and looks very private and nice.I might consider it next trip.:)

JUST TO CONFUSE YOU EVEN MORE...these are some villas i know in st.john that you might like..Sunset Beach/devers bay..Orchid and Oleander("twin"villas)/klein bay..LaEncantada/chocolate hole..Ilios/hart bay. all beautiful villas. all somewhat in your price range. we have rented from caribbean villas. great group and have many villas listed.check the site www.caribbeanvilla.com good luck with your search and wedding. where ever you stay you'll be happy on this island. i NEVER have a bad day there !!

Another great site is seaviewhomes.com They have some very affordable villas.

try privatehomesvi.com we always use them. The pictures on their webpage do not do the homes justice. Our favorite of their homes was Tesseract. It's not too far from town and has great views and private rooms. Both the upstairs bedrooms have doors that open to different decks overlooking the ocean. All of the bedrooms have full baths and the master bedroom is gorgeous with a beautiful bathroom. The rental agency is very nice and helpful. They are located right on the island which I think is very important....some are not like that!

Thank you all so much for your help! You probably think I'm crazy- "how about this one? do you know that one? I need 2 bedrooms....wait now I need 3..."

Plans have changed again! But for the last time. We've decided we'll be married here so it's just the two of us going to St John for a honeymoon. And the villa we decided on? It has 4 bedrooms!!!

Thanks to Caribbean Soul, the one we finally chose- after weeks of searching- was one from seaview that I just saw a few days ago. It's called Southern Cross. I love the decor, the pool, the privacy. So thank you for that suggestion!

We're booked from May 1 through May 14 and I can't wait!

Now I have to work on finding an affordable place for a simple wedding and reception! Any ideas?!

You guys are great- I'm glad I found this place.
Susan

So glad you found a place as I am watching your posts, cuz we are planning a trip as well w/teenagers. Is this place you found on the ocean?? Price reasonable? We have been looking for AL's but being that we have 5 teenagers, maybe a villa would be better?? Or wonder if supplying breakfast/lunch/dinner is gonna break us moneywise. hmmmm.