Gardenia (Cloud 9 Villas)

Travel discussion for St. John
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cubsfanone
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Joined: Fri May 18, 2007 1:19 pm
Location: Cincinnati, OH

Post by cubsfanone »

You guys are great, thanks for all of the replies! I posted a similar question on two other forums at about the same time yesterday - and I stil don't have any responses. Thank you for the reviews and recommendations, I'll let you know where we end up staying and I'll be sure to leave a review following our trip. The funny thing is that Sail View and Windwardside (which were two of the first ones recommended) were our first two choices - though they are unforutnately not available. :( I'm sure we'll be happy wherever we end up, after all it'll be our honeymoon and we'll be on St. John...what more could we ask for!

Thanks!
Brian
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patr
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Joined: Mon Aug 07, 2006 6:42 pm
Location: Illinois

Post by patr »

Cubs Fan? I don't know if it is legal to post for you or not, we're Cardinal fans here, :wink:

Ron, we have stayed at Sailview and would definitely recommend it. It is very nice and quite affordable; the owners are on the property and are super nice people.

The guests suites are pretty private and even tho' technically it is Coral Bay, it is only a 10 minute drive to the North Shore beaches.

http://www.vrbo.com/112698

Coral Bay a lot quieter than Cruz Bay and one can even find parking spots at all of the restaurants!
Patr

~~Longing to be back on St. John~~
cubsfanone
Posts: 14
Joined: Fri May 18, 2007 1:19 pm
Location: Cincinnati, OH

Post by cubsfanone »

Thanks for everyone's recommendations. We've narrowed it down to these four villas:

Gardenia (www.cloud9villas.com/Gardenia)
Calabash Views (www.calabashviews.com)
Meritage Cottage (www.meritagestjohn.com/cottage.html)
Astral Cottage (www.coralbayvacations.com/astral_cottage.shtml)

They all seem to be very nice, now we just need to decide if we'd prefer to be closer to Cruz Bay or Coral Bay and how much we can spend. :D If anyone has any insights on these villas I'd love to hear what you think. Has anyone had any luck with "haggling" with villa owners, or is the listed price on their website pretty much non-negotiable? Also, to anyone who has stayed at Meritage - is it private? We know it is a part of a larger villa (Meritage Great House) and just want to make sure we'd be seperate from any renters there.

Thanks again!
Brian
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Pia
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Joined: Mon Aug 07, 2006 10:38 pm
Location: St John

Post by Pia »

I have not seen Astral Cottage but have read nothing but great things about it.

Pia
papabou
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Joined: Sun Aug 13, 2006 9:34 pm

Post by papabou »

brian,

i posted following last week on other board:

brian,

bride &I stayed 1 night at gardenia in dec 04 prior to a weeks stay at moonsong. only 2 things missing from her being a great small villa, no view or pool but that's fully reflected in her rates. i know of no other place her size and equipment for under $100 per night. like all c9 villas (stayed at c9 3 times, moonsong twice and sundance once), we found gardenia clean, well maintained and well equipped for stj vacation including beach chairs, coolers etc. good convenient location but you will need a car for transportation.

property manager, marcey appel, is very accommodating, responsive and informative (she has lived on island for several years just up the road). you will not find a better bargain on the island (and imho moonsong is island's best value with a view). if had to choose between a more expensive viilla and less madd money for other things while on my 1st stj vacation, i'd go with gardenia and use the extra money for other funthings on island such as sunset sail, renting a dinghy, lunches at skinny legs, ship wreck and the many fun places in cruz bay.

papabou

c9 does offer and posts last minute discounts usually when have vacancies 4 wks out in off season. we are last minute travelers and have gotten some very good discounts. meritage is up tamarind rd from moonsong and sundance with similar views/locations but otherwise i am not familar with villa or rental agency. having stayed at moonsong (lastest jan 07) and only seen web pics of meritage, moonsong appears the better value at book rates. hot tub on privaye deck with views of stt in distance and sound of hart bay, very romantic, but i thought you were looking in 100 night range.

go with your heart and i believe you'll have a great honeymoon whereever you and yours land because you'll still be on stj!

papabou again
cubsfanone
Posts: 14
Joined: Fri May 18, 2007 1:19 pm
Location: Cincinnati, OH

Post by cubsfanone »

Thanks to everyone for their recomendations and reviews! We've booked Meritage Cottage for our honeymoon, thanks to Knolmom for letting us know about the special deal they are offerring. We could not be more excited about staying there for our honeymoon. Though we've found there are many great places to stay, so my fiancee and I have decided that this will have to be the first of many trips to the island. I'll be sure to leave a review of Meritage upon our return.

Thanks,
Brian
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mbw1024
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Joined: Mon Aug 07, 2006 4:54 pm
Location: The Garden State

Post by mbw1024 »

cubsfanone wrote:Thanks to everyone for their recomendations and reviews! We've booked Meritage Cottage for our honeymoon, thanks to Knolmom for letting us know about the special deal they are offerring. We could not be more excited about staying there for our honeymoon. Though we've found there are many great places to stay, so my fiancee and I have decided that this will have to be the first of many trips to the island. I'll be sure to leave a review of Meritage upon our return.

Thanks,
Brian
congrats on your decision and have the time of your life!
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