I know most people prefer St. John but can you tell which hotel of the two is nicer?

I was struggling with the same question. I have spoken to two people that have stayed at the Westin and LOVED it!!!!

After staying at Morningstar and touring about the Westin, St. John, no comparison - hands down, the Morningstar is better for beach, nicer rooms.<BR><BR>Both are family oriented.<BR><BR>St. John is GORGEOUS tho, you just gotta go to other beachs, i.e., Trunk Bay, Cinnamon Bay, etc. We know folks that said there's dumping done near the Westin's beach; that's a major bummer.

We stayed a week at the Marriott St. Thomas in Dec. 2001. It was really neat seeing the cruise ships go by. The beach was very pretty though a tad bit rough. Our room were nice, nothing spectacular but no complaints.<BR><BR>We stayed a week at the Westin in August of this year. We liked the room a lot better. The heavenly bed was truly heavenly. The grounds and swimming pool are gorgeous. The beach was pretty seaweedy when we were there, it was gross to swim through and the water was murky unlike every other beach we saw on St. John so we didn't spend much time at the Westin beach. There were a LOT of kids at the Westin, they were having a blast, and though I enjoyed seeing the kids have so much fun there really wasn't much place to float without getting bumped into, jumped or splashed on. When we had been to St. Thomas the previous December we stopped by the Westin after a tour to Virgin Gorda and the pool was very quiet and tranquil so I guess it just depends on the time of year. No complaints though. <BR><BR>Both resorts were great, we preferred the room at the Westin because it just felt luxurious and we prefer the island of St. John because we're not big diners or shoppers and really just prefer relaxing and enjoying the beaches. Personally I'd go back to either one in a heart beat.

I would choose the Morningstar only because there is a natural beach there and the water is swimmable. You don't have to drive to the beach if you don't want to. There are no accomodations at the Westin that compare with the Morningstar accomodations right on the beach and if you want pools or more activity the Reef is a short walk away. I found the Westin's rooms rather like a motel room and not luxurious or spacious at all.

I have found a lot of posts on here that seem to imply that st thomas is more touristy where as st john is quieter and better for R&amp;R. Which room did you get at the westin that seemed like a motel?

I was planning on staying at the Westin until I posted here and was turned on to the great villa options. For the same price as a hotel room you rent a great villa with gorgeous views and a lot more room. After hearing all of the bad things about the Westin beach, I decided it made more sense to rent a villa since we were going to be driving to beaches anyway. Check out www.caribbeanvillas.com