Please help me choose an island and villa

[jiffer]

Hello,

I was hoping my fellow travelers can help me with a choice. I am planning a trip for myself and 4 other friends and we are having a hard time choosing between St. Croix or St. John. What we are looking for is an island that is lush and tropical, great beaches -it is ok if we have to drive to them- we really dont need a lot of nightlife but going to a local bar for a nightcap sounds good to us. We have two house to choose from and I am not sure if they are a good location on either island so guys please fill me in on any opinions good or bad.

The house in St. Croix is called Buck Vista it is located on the east end and they say you can see Buck Island from the deck.

The house in St. John is called Sea Dream and it is located in Chocolate Hole.


Thanks.

[Xislandgirl]

Well, on this board I think you will find that everyone will tell you STJ hands down, but really there is no comparison.
If you are looking for a tropical island vacation, STJ is the way to go. STX is nice but nothing like STJ. The majority of STJ is National Park, STX has an oil refinery and fast food. While there are great areas on STX, it is just does not have the tropical feel that STJ does.

[jiffer]

Thanks. I was leaning moe toward St. John myself. Is chocolate Hole a good area to stay in? Have you heard of the Sea Dream villa? Good/bad?

[Xislandgirl]

For a first timer Chocolate Hole is a great area. I am not familiar with the house but the pics look great.
Be careful, you willbe hooked after your first trip.

Feel free to ask any questions that you may have, we are all STK addicts.

[jiffer]

I just read the ferry to St. John is about $5 each way from Red Hook and they charge $2 for each peice of luggage. Is that right? I like to know so I can budget for th trip. Also about how much would a taxi cost for 5 people to the ferry dock from the airport.

[ihochman]

I don't know what villa you'll be in but you MUST
stay in St John. There is no comparison between
St John and St Croix. St John is lush, relaxing and
absolutely gorgeous. I've been there at least 5 times
and will definitely be going back again. Not this year however. This year we're sailing around the BVI's on a
catamaran. I am so psyched!!!

[Ksea]

As newbies this year, we rented a villa in Chocolate Hole. The convenience to town, and the paved roads are a plus, but in my opinion, the views are not the best to be had. Not to worry though, you will see pa-lenty of beautiful views as you venture out. You have the ferry costs right. The taxi pp is about $15 as I recall, plus a little more for luggage. The taxi ride is whooo wheee fun! I loved it! Some prefer the CA ferrie which costs a little more but there is less taxi fare, so it evens out cost wise.
We have 2 trips planned for 2008 already, so obviously we love love love STJ. Happy travels whatever you decide to do!

[cypressgirl]

Everyone on this forum is going to tell you that STJ is the island you want to choose. It is everything you say you are looking for. I have not seen Sea Dream, but from the photos, I can tell it overlooks that ugly (IMHO) salt pond that I don't want to see. The price seems reasonable and if you're looking to stay in that price range I'd suggest something like Hale Lani from Destination St. John. There is a recent review on this forum. It is in the Maria Bluff area and has wonderful views, much better than where you are looking to stay. It's also a very easy drive to town, even closer than Chocolate Hole. It's just a suggestion and I'm sure others have more suggestions. You will have fun no matter where you stay.

[jiffer]

Thanks for the suggestion. The problem we are having in finding a house is finding everything we want in our price range and that is available. We like a house that has a/c (at least in the bedrooms), pool and we like to stay in the $2500 range. We will need three bedrooms. Any suggestions??

[vacationpants]

We have stayed at Long View Villa in Chocolate Hole. We stayed there two years ago and are returning this summer. It only has two bedrooms. The master bedroom has a king size bed and the downstairs bedroom has three twins - would this work? the views are really good - it has a deck that wraps around two sides and you can sit on either side and see water - the landscaping is really nice also. It is close to your price range I believe. It is not drop dead gorgeous - but it is nice, has a pool and is in a convenient location.

[Margy Z]

Just info on STX from a recent convert – here’s a previous thread:

http://www.virgin-islands-on-line.com/f ... highlight=

We love STJ, as well, but are returning to STX in April for our second trip. The USVI has three distinctly different islands – and, after finally taking our first trip to STX last spring we are convinced that each of the three appeals to us for different reasons at different times. We’re so glad that after many, many trips to both STT and STJ we took a look at STX and liked what we found.

Just to address what you were looking into on STX – I was just talking with someone the other day who stayed at Buck Vista and mentioned that this was a “hot" house (meaning the villa did not capture a lot of breeze). There are other villas on the east end of STX that have the north Buck Island View. Suggest you take a look at EastWinds (owner-managed) which is right across the road from the Reef Bay Beach, the Reef Golf course and Duggan’s Reef restaurant. The largest villa manager on the island is Marti Gotts at Vacation St. Croix – great folks to work with, lots of villas under their management. The area called Cotton Valley Shores on the southeast shore has another group of great villas and shares a horsehoe shaped beach with the Divi resort. Some of these properties have water access. About mid-island is Cane Bay – right up a driveway from the Cane Bay Beach is Villa Dawn (owner managed and has its own website) - IMO, one of the best villa values around. Besides being a short walking distance from Cane Bay Beach which has great diving and snorkeling, there are also two beach restaurants within walking distance of this villa, one of them the fun “Off the Wall”. It's a fun villa, well maintained, great pool with underwater perches of toasting the fabulous sunsets right from the pool.

Good luck in your island / villa decision.

[linne]

Just want to say that I agree with Margy Z. STX is also worth a visit, and the island has much more to offer than an oil refinery and fast food. One of my best meals I had in Christanssted, and if you aren’t near the oil refinery, you don’t notice it. But if you want lush and tropical, great beaches you definitely has to choose STJ. It’s just a paradise.


Linne

[djmom]

Shhh! We are supposed to be telling everyone how AWFUL it is!!! Oh, the roads! The mosquitos! The rabid foaming wild animals in the streets!

[b-as-u-r]

STJ definitely!! I was hard pressed to find a really good beach on STX and if that's a priority (which for me it is), then STJ's the island for you. Unfortunately, I think that crime is a real issue on STX. I agree with Cypressgirl about the salt pond, keep looking, there are sooooo many fabulous villas to choose from. And for the future, I'm with ihochman, sailing around the BVI's on a catamaran is a must!!! Have fun with the planning. Ali~

[Nic in KC]

I also agree that St.John is a great choice and seems to be what you are looking for! I would recommend Sundance Villa managed by Marcy at Cloud Nine villas. It has three bedrooms two with kings and one with twins. It also has very strong A/C throughout, a hot tub, a pool. It's not fancy, but it's nice and in good condition. It is a short drive to Cruz Bay and easy to get too. The only down side is that it also overlooks a salt pond when looking one direction. That didn't bother us at all because their is a gorgeous view in all other directions. You can also hear the waves of Hart Bay which was very nice! I hope you have a blast whatever you choose!

Nicolle