We are hooked on St. John Sept. 27th - Oct. 4th

loverotties · Post by **loverotties** » Tue Oct 16, 2012 10:31 am

We have only been to St. John twice once for the day on a cruise & once we rented a villa in St. Thomas & came over to explore for the day . We were celebrating 2 special occasions our 25th anniversary & my 50th birthday . We decided to rent the villa , Sapphire Breeze , for the week in Great Cruz Bay . When we arrived in St. Thomas we took a cab to the ferry dock & had a cold caribe . It started to rain just b4 we entered the ferry stopping shortly after producing a beautiful rainbow . The day b4 we left we had to put down our 11.2 yr. old rottie, Spartacus, because we found out he had cancer . We thought that was his way of saying hello Mom & Dad .... We visited many beaches Hawknest, Jumbie, Francis, Little Lamshure, Maho, Honeymooon, Frank , Trunk & Giboney . We loved swimming with the turtles & stingrays at Maho & watched a small shark swim right infront of our beach chairs all day . We had Giboney all to ourselves & liked the tire swing . We bought our own snorkling masks at home & were so glad no leaks & such beautiful underwater adventures . We hiked to the Annaberg ruins , Francis Bay Trail & Lind Point Trail . On Sunday we hiked with the ACC ( animal care center ) dogs a 2 mile hike with some wonderful dogs . I would highly recommend this hike it's great for the dogs & people . We also went back during the week to walk 2 more dogs Delta & Dawn . Been thinking about these dogs & 1 may become a part of our family soon !!! To celebrate our anniversary we decided to hire Steve Simonsen to take photos of us on Trunk Bay & at Cinnamon Ruins . WOW what a fantastic job & nice guy . We had a blast & it was loads of fun ! Now we have the pics for a lifetime . . For my birthday we celebrated at Morgan Mango's restaurant . I had the Tues. night special , lobster , very good & the restaurant was full . We ate lunch at High Tide, Skinney Legs, Beach Bar & Tourist Trap . All lunches were excellant the Beach Bar makes a great bushwacker & High Tide makes a great lime in da coconut drink . We also had chef Ted of Ted's Supper Club cook dinner at our villa for our anniversary . It was an amazing 6 course meal . We highly recommend chef Ted . I'm usually a shopper but this trip was different as I just wasn't really into it . We did go to Coconut Coast Studios & purchased a beautiful tiled 6 piece mural in a mahogany frame . We also loved St. John spice & I picked up a Sloop Jones dress ( his studio was closed ) & another dress & some spices . We loved the vibe of St. John the small island & it's people . There was so much to do we never got to rent a dingy , go to the BVI's , snorkle all the spots or see all the beaches & hike the trails or buy a hook bracelet . We are hooked we will be back . . . After leaving St. John we went to St. Thomas for 2 nights & stayed at the Green Iguana Hotel . We were wishing we had stayed on St. John . I would highly recommend the Green Iguana it's a small 9 room hotel , very clean & the manager's John & Gwen are wonderful .

Pulley · Post by **Pulley** » Tue Oct 16, 2012 10:40 am

Welcome to SJA - St. John Anonymous!

PA Girl · Post by **PA Girl** » Tue Oct 16, 2012 10:49 am

Glad to hear you had a wonderful trip!

Sorry to hear about your rottie

stjchica · Post by **stjchica** » Tue Oct 16, 2012 11:17 am

Would love to see your pics from Steve if you would like to share some..Sounds like you had a great trip!

Pia · Post by **Pia** » Tue Oct 16, 2012 11:37 am

Thanks for taking the time to write a trip report and so glad you had a great time

Sorry to hear about your pup - I'm sure the rainbow was a welcome to St John. It would be so fabulous if you could rescue a pup from the ACC - especially Delta it just breaks my heart the time Delta has been patiently waiting for a furever home

I do have a quick question - are you the same loverotties from the gardenweb forum - if so small world

Pia

sabalpom · Post by **sabalpom** » Tue Oct 16, 2012 1:14 pm

What a wonderful trip report! I am hooked on St. John as well & have already booked my trip for next year during Carnival! I was there this past June a week after my beloved Pomeranian passed away, so I know how you were feeling.

I did not get a chance to walk the dogs from the ACC, but I did visit them & donated some of Sabal's medicine. I ended up adopting my new dog Benjie from the ACC this past August with the help of so many caring people that made it possible for him to fly to Tampa.

Looking forward to my 4th trip to STJ......8 more months!

JJShaw · Post by **JJShaw** » Tue Oct 16, 2012 3:44 pm

Sounds like you had a great time...and...welcome to the addiction...

philbetm · Post by **philbetm** » Tue Oct 16, 2012 4:01 pm

Tomorrow is our 25th anniversary...Wish we were spending it on STJ !

But this year it is going to be a cruise out of SJU. It goes to STX and we have wanted to explore that Island for a while now. Just never find anywhere that compares to STJ. But ... We will be back on the Rock next June!

Counting the days.

Sherry in SC

philbetm · Post by **philbetm** » Tue Oct 16, 2012 4:04 pm

P.S. Would like to hear what you thought of Sapphire Breeze Villa. Have looked at it before with Viva Vacations...but knew it was an older home and wondered what kind of condition it might be in ?

Thanks again, Sherry

mindehankins · Post by **mindehankins** » Tue Oct 16, 2012 8:15 pm

So sorry about your furbaby. But so happy you had a great time. It's hard to fight off the dreaded island fever we succumb to it generally. Welcome to the addiction! It DOES get better and better every time. It's like coming home, in the most beautiful way........

loverotties · Post by **loverotties** » Tue Oct 16, 2012 8:45 pm

stjchica wrote:Would love to see your pics from Steve if you would like to share some..Sounds like you had a great trip!

I would love to share some pics that Steve took but not quite sure how to post pics . I'll give it a try sometime this week .

loverotties · Post by **loverotties** » Tue Oct 16, 2012 8:51 pm

Pia wrote:Thanks for taking the time to write a trip report and so glad you had a great time

Sorry to hear about your pup - I'm sure the rainbow was a welcome to St John. It would be so fabulous if you could rescue a pup from the ACC - especially Delta it just breaks my heart the time Delta has been patiently waiting for a furever home

I do have a quick question - are you the same loverotties from the gardenweb forum - if so small world

Pia

When I called the ACC this week Kate was on vac. in the BVI's . The guy I was talking to ( can't remember his name ) said there was interest in Delta & said she probably won't be there for much longer . YEAH for Delta !!!! We are interested in Dawn both are adorable & would be a perfect addition to anyones family .

I'm not the same loverotties from gardenweb forum .

Laurie

Pia · Post by **Pia** » Tue Oct 16, 2012 9:17 pm

All the ACC puppies deserve great homes - yea for Delta and yea for you for considering adopting one of our island puppies - thank you sooooo much

Pia

loverotties · Post by **loverotties** » Wed Oct 17, 2012 12:38 am

philbetm wrote:P.S. Would like to hear what you thought of Sapphire Breeze Villa. Have looked at it before with Viva Vacations...but knew it was an older home and wondered what kind of condition it might be in ?

Thanks again, Sherry

We loved the location of Sapphire Breeze it is right above the Westin & has beautiful views . The tile work is amazing, murals all around the outdoor space . The pool is great rafts & noodles provided along woth snorkling gear if your not bringing your own . The pool has a waterfall & a fountain . The jacuzzi is big & feels great after hiking & snorkling all day . The gas grill is new we used it quite a bit. We used the master bedroom by the pool the bed was very comfortable infact we both slept more than usual but I was waking up at 5:30 - 6:00 every morning . The villa does have Dish tv .The bathroom could use some remodeling for such a big villa it only had 1 sink & the shower is small . The loft area we never used it was hot up there during the day & did cool off at night . The other bedroom on the main floor was about the same size as the one we used & the bathroom was right off the kitchen. The lower level apartment was locked not sure why as we paid to use the whole villa . The tiled wet bar on the lower level was cool but there was no bar stools . The window in the pool above the wetbar was a first for us . There was 6 lounge chairs around the pool area but they had no cushions & neither did the large table(metal ) that most familys would use to eat together . The lounge chairs on the lower level ( 2) did have cushions . The furniture in the bedrooms, loft & living room are showing their age . The 1 thing that did bother us was that the villa needs a good cleaning . When we arrived the stove, microwave & kitchen was very dirty I mean the knobs were disgusting & burn't on grime . I did call Viva in the morning & they did have someone come & clean up the kitchen . There was thick dust on the glass shelves in the living room & the loft area needed more than a dust rag . Viva was great to work with answering all our ?? I would book with them again . Hope this helps & the villa gets a good cleaning .

Laurie

philbetm · Post by **philbetm** » Wed Oct 17, 2012 11:43 am

Thanks Laurie...this helps a lot with decisions for June!

Sherry

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