Villa provisionng
 

Arriving in mAy , want to get straight to the villa and have liquor, something to throw on the grill and breakfast for the first day waiting on us. I have seen a couple of caterers, but was hoping for one that I could pick my grocery list. Any suggestions? Thanks

Arriving where in May? Some villas will stock you up for a fee. Ask the agent where you're renting.

hi k, assuming you are taking the ferry from red hook. about 5 mins before you come to red hook is a good sized grocery store on your left. they will have everything you need for your first couple meals and they have a large selection of liquor/wines. this way you will get exactly what you want and pay no extra. they should have styrofoam coolers for sale and they have bags of ice.
also smaller more deli style grocery just across from red hook ferry (fancy cheeses...)
you can do any add'l shopping on st.j.

Our agency is Caribbean Villas ans were told they do not pre-stock nor will be able to stop for provisioning. Thanks Virginia! This is our 2nd trip and I thought there was a market at Red Hook-didn't know what they had, but you are suggesting to stop on the way to the ferry? That would be ideal! Hope I got your response right. Will the taxi stop for us to shop?

yes, i am saying stop on your way to the ferry. can't really speak for the taxi driver but i'm pretty sure he will stop if you let him run the meter...if this seems like to much extra $$ you can still go to the little store that is actually in "downtown" red hook. you can walk easily from the ferry grounds - its just across the street (but it really is much smaller with less "regular foodS" stock though.

Easy things to pack with you that are always more expensive or not found is USVIs/St.Thomas/St.John:spices/herbs, chocolate, olive oil/sherry vinegar/sesame oil, cheese.

Kberbones: Are you driving from the airport or taking a taxi? If you're picking up your car in St. John or even if you're driving from the airport, perhaps you would prefer just getting the ferry on time? We drive over and stop at Dolphin Market or Starfish Market in St.John prior to going to the house. St. John prices are about 10-15% higher, but I don't mind paying for the convenience. I do shop in St. Thomas if I am buying large quantities. But for the usual, basic provisions, there are plenty of places on St. John. Also, on the liquor, don't forget you can stock up at the airport store quite cheaply. What time of day are you arriving? How long are you staying?

This is a topic that's been covered many times, so I'll keep this brief. It is problematic to stop for provisioning between the airport and Red Hook in St. Thomas because cabs are actually shared vans. There is no meter to keep running. It might be possible to get transportation for just yourself and then a stop might be possible. But it's also a hassle to carry everything on the ferry. But there are markets at Red Hook and on St. John.

www.katylady.com -- they do villa provisions but not sure if you can give them a "list", think they have a standard arrival package.i would also suggest you call caribbean villas again and ask about info regarding your needs. they probably have a list of people who do such a service. they would be your best resource since they have an office on the island. good luck !

Thank You everyone for your input. Yes I am sure this question has been asked many times-but some of us are new to the game! i appreciate the spice advice from tiverton. and Tux, we are getting a taxi from airport to St John- but we rented ajeep from our agency and they will take us staight to the villa. It will be about a 12 hour day by the time we get to the villa, so would like to keep things simple that first day.
Christy's has not responded back as of yet.

For the first time we used a form of villa provisioning - we used Christy's classics - had Susie pick up and deliver from Joe's barbeque(ribs, chicken, salads) and a 15 item basic groceries list of our choice - we arrived at 5 p.m. from a 2:30 arrival in STT (with an hour delay over baggage) - an ice chest was full of ice and beer and tonic water, bottled water,limes (for the g & t) bread, breakfast provisions, etc were waiting - we were sitting at the pool with a cold beer and chilling by 5:15 - the next morning we had a lazy breakfast - we had enough provisions that we didn't actually need to shop until the following day - sure it cost but the savings of time and enjoyment on our first day was well worth it. Plus Susie added the best key lime pie we had on the trip - and we tried several.