Villa provisioning, St. John
 

We are going to St. John in July and have rented a villa for the week. There a re 5 of us- 2 adults and 3 teenage girls. I have a question about the provisioning services...has anyone used them and were they what you expected? I can see what a convenience they would be but was wondering if the cost is much different from what I would pay doing it myself. I know there is something like a 20% charge over the cost of the items. Our villa provides a welcome basket with water, fruit, cheese and crackers etc so the palce won't be totally empty. I have a list of a few from the villa site we used- Katyilady and I think the other one is Christa's(sp?). Any suggestions appreciated! Thanks.

I think you're referring to Christie's Classics. Far from trying to dissuade others from using a service, you may wish to consider provisioning for yourself for most of the trip. I seem to recall there was another post recently regarding provisioning and the poster was dismayed with the relatively high cost of having a service provision for you. IMO, it's just as easy and much more cost effective if you just do a little shopping yourself. In Cruz Bay, the larger markets are Dolphin Market (cheaper) and Starfish Market (bigger, more selection) and in Coral Bay there is Love City Market and Lily's Gourmet, all stocked with the essentials for your weeklong stay. I find that a quick trip at the beginning of a stay can provision for a week. One of the things I also recommend is buying plenty of water in gallon jugs sold at the markets. The water in the villas is always from a cistern and some of the filtration systems may not be reliable. For a week stay, why take the chance of getting a tummy bug? Also, by shopping yourself, (and I doubt you'll escape going into a store at least a few times during your trip) you may also come across things you forgot to put on the list for the agency. Also, you may not want to cook the first night you get there (I sure refuse to) and have a service put enough into the villa for a nice breakfast and maybe a picnic lunch for the first full day. That way, it allows you to have the opportunity to get your bearings before you decide what else you may want or need.

if you are renting a car, or even if you use the taxi, i would definately go to the market, food is very expensive and any percentage premium.... a jar of peanut butter was 5 dollars last november. pineapple, 7 dollars this was at the starfish. we didn't use dolphin as pulling into the starfish was so easy and on the way to our villa near reef bay.

the market in coral bay was cheaper by a little bit. but there is no doubt that the starfish market had a good selection including alcohol. and there was a coffee store in the complex where we treated ourselves to good coffee on vacation....

also things you are used to getting, may not be available it may be hard for a service to give you substitutions.

Terric-We used Katilday for the basic initial provisioning-bread,eggs,cheese, ham, chips,cookies,soda and beer type package- for our first Villa trip a few years back. We were arriving later in the day and I was unsure how quickly I would want to turn around and drive to a grocery store. I found it a great stress reliever and nice way to initially relax in our villa. The next day I went out at my leisure and shopped. On our second visit we were arriving earlier in the day and I had my bearings, so we did not need to use them. Hope this helps.

Thanks to all! I think we have decided to do the initial provisioning and then shop for ourselves. I'm also planning on packing a few non-perishables(cereal, mac and cheese and some snack foods) to keep the costs down--$5 for peanut butter is ridiculous!!! Good advice as usual from Fodorites!

FYI

http://www.stjohntradewindsnews.com/...5&Itemid=1

Aside from provisioning having a chef come to prepare dinner (and clean up) is a nice treat also.

Great advice. We are also looking into renting a villa..This is our first time at St Thomas..Looking for a 3-4 bedroom on or close to beach? Family vaca with 5 children all in their 20's...

ooops...left off the part taht I need advice on wheer to look...any web sites? thanks..

Tuxedocat hit it right on the head. Starfish is as easy as ever. Also, there is a great chinese take-out in the same little shopping center. Can't remember the name, but might be an easy first nights dinner.

noridog: Just a clarification, St. Thomas and St. John are a 20 minute ferry ride apart so the provisioning services won't be the same. For villa possibilities, try www.caribbeanvillas.com or www.caribbeandays.com just 2 of many good websites.

Thanks Tuxedocat for the websites. I'll take a look.