What's your favorite villa on St. John?
 

Researching these villas is mind boggling! My husband and I are celebrating our 10th anniversary and looking for a beautiful place to stay. A pool would be great and would like to be within 1o minutes of Cruz Bay. We'll be renting a jeep and probably go in May. Any suggestions would be so helpful. Thanks!

Orchid Hill in the chocolate hole area is amazing..10 minutes from town, pool, jacuzzi, awesome grounds and view..we loved it there..Go thru Vacation Vistas- they have a website...

thanks kate...I knew somebody out there would respond!! Would love to hear more from others.

We will be going to St. John for our 3rd time in Dec. We absolutely love this Island. Our first time we stayed at Coco Lobo, you can see it at Carribeanvillas.com, excellent villa with unbelivable views, but the ride up to it is a real Mr. Toads wild ride. Our next villa was La Te Te Rouge. You can see it at islandgetawaysinc.com

Beth - <BR> <BR>We stayed in Plumeria Villa last year (perfect for the two of us) although it accommodated 6. Had a nice pool and lovely views and breezes and was rather economical. Try Aurora through www.cateredto.com as well. I believe we rented Plumeria through them. Individuals also seem to love Gallows Point - a small condo complex right on the water - not overlooking it like most of the villas. Morningside is also a very nice villa. We weren't real fond of Le Tete Rouge (stayed there about 4 years ago) because all the decor was so dark and there was no A/C in the bedrooms, but perhaps that has changed. Also, Anole villa on the North Shore is only a few years old - wonderful villa, except the pool was in the shade each afternoon and we like to come back from the beaches and enjoy the villa's pool. <BR> <BR>Good luck; there are so many wonderful villas from which to make your selection. Keep in mind you are charged by the number of people and not be the size of the villa. <BR> <BR>Let me know if I can be of further help.

well, since someone brought up Gallows Point, I figured I'd jump in. We stayed there (ocean view loft unit) in April 1999 for a week and it was wonderful (especially for two people, although they do sleep 6 (two in the bed in the loft, two on each of two sleeper sofas)). The location was great, right on the water, with a small snorkeling beach and floating dock (although the best beaches are on the North Shore). It has a small pool, nice grounds, good restaurant, and is within a 5 minute walk of downtown Cruz Bay. We walked into town at night for dinner/drinks and didn't have to worry about navigating home on the roads (on the opposite side of the roads as in the U.S.). The unit, 3C, was great. Comfortably furnished with upholstered wicker furniture, saltillo tile floors, living room with french doors (jalousie windows) and balcony on the water, view of St. Thomas. We had a full kitchen (great for breakfast & snacks), a full bath downstairs (with a tile oversized shower), and then the loft upstairs with queen bed & half bath. Coolers & beach chairs provided (to take to the beach). I would really like to go back. It was not super luxurious but very comfortable and it was great being on the water and within easy walking of Cruz Bay. Also, Gallows has an on site gift/convenience store that also functions as the concierge and can arrange day trips to the BVI's, rental cars, etc. and the woman there was knowledgable about which charters were best based on what we wanted.

sorry for the long post, forgot to add that our unit in Gallows DID NOT have A/C. It was not a problem in April until I got sunburned and couldn't cool off. If you go outside Dec-March, I'd ask for one with A/C (the lower level units have it in the bedroom, also I read that the units managed by Suite St. John have it in all units).

We thought the villa "Dream Catcher" was a real bargain at only $1540 for the week (off-season). It has both a pool and a jacuzzi, A/C in the bedrooms, and a awesome view of Great Cruz Bay/St. Thomas. Also, it's only about a mile from town, which we found very convenient. We couldn't have been happier with our choice.

Has anyone rented the villa Argonauta. I think it's in the same neighborhood as Aurora...Contant Point area...near Great Cruz....Please respond, we have a deposit down...but have plenty of time to reconsider...<BR><BR>We love a villa in Coral Bay but the views of the ocean seem so far away...and have also heard Coral Bay is so remote...<BR><BR>This is honeymoon, that's why we are being a little more fussy...<BR><BR>Thanks,<BR>Nancy<BR>

I liked/disliked gallows point for a couple of reasons. nice, large, comfy villa. Less than 5 min. driving to cruz bay or 30 min. walk. <BR>The downside: very small pool, no beach, a lot of rocky points. Resort close to cemetary...when you're walking, you have to pass it. it's kind of creepy.

Wanna know something even creepier? Ask the next time you stay there why they call it gallows point.

Nancy,<BR><BR>I don't recall this neighborhood from our recent visit to St. John and I haven't seen Argonauta in person, but FYI--I do recall someone on this board saying they didn't care for the Contant Point area. If you haven't already, type "Argonauta" in the box above, highlight the USVI area, and read the three posts that come up. Good luck and have a great honeymoon!

Hello,<BR><BR>Do any of the villa's have resturants on site or bars?<BR><BR>Thanks

A villa is a home so it would not have a resturaunt or a bar onsite unless you make one of your own. As far as Gallows Pont and the rest of the condo type rental properties, I am not sure.<BR>

OOOOH, GOODIE!!! I'm glad no one has mentioned my favorite villa! It's not a popular one, but to me it's the most beautiful, secluded, natural... Call me a snot, but sorry, but I have to keep this one to myself--don't want anyone trying to get in the same week as me!!

Bebe, was the villa Splendore? Well anyway its a great villa, you may want to try it out. Its very popular so book early. Here is a link:<BR>http://www.ivacation.com/p8428.htm<BR><BR>Lisa durgin is a great property manager she will not dissappiont you. If you like tennis I stayed at Great Expectations and would recomend it. Here is a link to that one also:<BR>http://www.greatexpectationsusvi.com/index.html<BR>Have fun!

oh if those dont work for you try this site:<BR>http://www.caribbeanvilla.com/<BR><BR>It shows you a calandar with available dates on all of the properties

Bebe..awfully inconsiderate post..You must not be a very nice person.I thought this was a place to share information not brag about it and then keep it a secret.

xx: you're so perfect. i want to be just like you.

Bebe<BR>Never said I was perfect just that your post was rude and unnecessary.

Many thanks to everyone who posted...I have to confess...I posted this so long ago and had a few responses that I was shocked when I rechecked it and saw all the kind people sharing their thoughts. Happy Holidays to all of you ...I am starting to get back into the planning mode again!

Dear Beth,<BR> My husband and I are celebrating our fifth anniversary with another couple in June. I have never been to St. John, but I am a very picky villa renter! My absolute favorite is the "Casa YaYa" I believe it is caribbeanvillas.com. It is a bit pricey, but to me it seems to be romantic and well appointed, though not too showy. Best of luck to you-and happy anniversary. (We will be spending our actual anniversary staying in St. Thomas. Has anyone stayed at Hotel 1829? Would you recommend it? How about the restaurant?)

Help please - I have spent hours researching to rent a villa for 2 couples next Feb and I finally narrowed my list of 10 down to 3 and just found out that 1 of the 3 are now reserved. Has anyone rented Clifside Terrace or Orchid Villa thru www.caribbeanvilla.com or Hibiscus Garden or Orchid Hills thru www.vacationvistas.com? I was able to find good reviews for most, but looking for current info. Cliffside doesn't have a/c and most posts stress that a/c is a must. We like the idea of walking to a beach, too - Cliffside and Orchid Villa offer that benefit.

Vernettm: I haven't stayed at either villa but am pretty familiar with the areas (Chocolate Hole and Klein Bay). They are both on the southside of the island which does not offer alot of sandy beaches. I don't really care about that sort of thing, personally, because, the water is still beautiful and you can still set up a nice lounge chair even on pebbles. Also, the beaches are pretty calm and swimmable most of the time, even if you should wear reef shoes, it's not a big detractor IMO. The villas are both lovely, and February is one of the cooler months. But if you want to play it safe, I'd go with the airconditioning. We've stayed on Great Cruz Bay/Chocolate Hole, and don't think the breezes could compensate for lack of a/c. Other than that, both villas seem comparable. Klein Bay is a little bit farther from Cruz Bay than Chocolate Hole but it's a matter of a couple of minutes. If you have a jeep, it won't matter.

Stayed in Orchid Villa 10 years ago. Very nice. My favorite villa is a 4 bedroom but you could only use 2. Villa Colorado - good friend of mine owns it. Drapier Jensen. go to www.villacolorado.com and check it out. Close to Cruz Bay and has a great pool. Good luck

We have rented 3 different villas. So far. our favorite is Biet Hawa. It's around 300 a night, we shared with 2 other couples. Beautiful view. ON rocky beach, small fountain you can sit it, but no pool. A/C in master only.

http://www.islandhideaways.com/villa.php?villa_id=984

Publisher: Since you've lived on St. John for awhile, I was wondering if you know what has become of the villa on Great Cruz Bay once known as &quot;Fantastic View.&quot; While we loved the villa itself, renting it from the owner in 2002 was a complete nightmare. He lives/lived in Germany and turned out to be the most unreasonable and awful creep. (Later found out this was a very common experience.) I hope someone else has it now because I wouldn't recommend that place unless it's changed hands.

ttt

Gallows Point is wonderful in many many respects, but by no stretch of the imagination can it be said to have a great beach. It has virtually no beach at all-- on an island which has some of the most gorgeous beaches in the Caribbean.