My wife and I would like to take a 4 night trip to the Caribbean in mid December. We will be bringing our 10 month old daughter with us. We are looking for islands that have a nice beach and direct flights from NYC, one day being mid week. (Sat-Wed or Wed-Sun stay). We also want either an all inclusive resort or room with a kitchen. I understand this limits us.

Our first choice was Turks & Caicos; however, I tried several combinations and there are no seats left on the direct flights. We are now looking at St. Thomas. We are looking at the Bolongo Bay Beach Club which seems OK but the beach is not rated that great.

Anyone else have other ideas for nice hotels on St. Thomas or other islands that we can get to by direct flight from NYC?

Probably the best beaches with hotels and/or condos on St. Thomas are:

Sapphire Beach (Sapphire Beach Resort or Crystal Cove condos)
Secret Harbour (condos)
The Ritz (no kitchens, pricey)

The Wyndham is all-inclusive but its beach is just average.

The condos listed above obviously have kitchens; not sure about the suites at Sapphire Beach Resort.

We stayed at Crystal Cove and loved it, but the units are "older" (circa 1970) and I understand that some are in better shape than others.

i think you would really like secret harbour. the beach is beautifulwith excellent snorkeling and straightened up every night. the on site restaurant the blue moon cafe does 3 meals daily about 30 feet from the sea. their bar is way fun. the condos are all huge, have full kitchens, with patio or deck. fully air conditioned. nicely owner furnished. very nice staff. about 5 mins drive to large grocery (you'll pass it on your way from the airport) to stock your kitchen. web add: www.secretharbourvi.com

I agree with Secret Harbor! I have a friend who lives there and it's great!
Nice restaurant as well (Blue Moon)check out their websites.

Belle

Sapphire Beach or Secret Harbour also.

I cannot imagine staying anywhere on STT except the Ritz-Carlton. Have not been (yet) but it seems perfect for such a busy island.

The image of St. Thomas as "busy" is somewhat misleading - it all depends on where you are.

The worst thing about the island is the volume of cruise ship passengers, who flock to downtown Charlotte Amalie, Magens Bay, and Coki Beach.

You can definitely avoid these crowds at the Ritz, or at Secret Harbour, Point Pleasant, or even at the Wyndham or Bolongo Beach. And there are some undeveloped beaches (e.g. Hull Bay, Lindquist) that are very quiet.

Sapphire is a bit busier than some of these other areas, but not as bad as Magens or Coki.

I found it interesting that in Charlotte Amalie, while the shopping area was teeming with cruisers, the historic neighborhoods a few blocks east (99 steps etc.) were almost deserted.