USVI-On-Line

Pete (Mr. Marcia) wrote:

mbw1024 wrote:Pete, can you clarify that service charge? $7 bucks or $7 per gallon?
If it was $7 bucks Charlie probably would have put a $20 down and said thanks for saving me the hassle and next time I will know to fill it. Although frankly who doesn't know that??????

No, it wasn't $7 per gallon. It was $7 total. And, if you've seen the photos from that Monsoon Monday, $7 was a steal. But, arrogant guy would have none of it.

Mind you, we had just come from that way. We actually had to drive on the sidewalks from just about the gas station past the tennis courts...that's how high the water was. I kept thinking to myself...good luck pal, hope it was worth the $7. Hope you make it back alive.

That might be one of the dumbest things I've ever heard!

Mary Beth, it was kind of goofy. But, I did get a sick kind of joy from it.

Crisn, please take no offense. We are fond of the Suttons and are prone to give them the benefit of the doubt.

Pete (Mr. Marcia) wrote:Mary Beth, it was kind of goofy. But, I did get a sick kind of joy from it.

Crisn, please take no offense. We are fond of the Suttons and are prone to give them the benefit of the doubt.

Pete, none taken and no worries. I'm on island time in single digits!

I am using the wife's log-in here, so don't think this is Jo Ann - VA.

We have rented from Conrad for three years. If you do what they ask (which is not unreasonable by any means) then you get what you paid for. In town parking is great. The main thing to remember here is to leave your freaking keys in the car when you park there.

We went to town one night and parked at Conrad's. Mr. Conrad was in the lot and I asked him where he wanted us to park. The next 5 minutes was a profanity filled tirade about MFer's parking and taking their keys with them.. This pisses him off ROYALLY. This was not directed at me, I just happened to be the "audience" at the time. After he vented, he was very nice to me and all was good. All-in-all, I have had good luck with Conrad. Don't be an a$$ and you'll be fine. Anybody that does not realize that they need to return with a full tank is in denial. It is very plain, both verbally and in writing.

Here's the gig...I will defend the Suttons until I stop visiting the island. Because, visiting the Suttons is as much a part of our STJ experience as Maho is a beach we like.

Hi everybody. Thanks for all the advice. I guess I should have phrased my question better. All I really wanted to know was how the parking is if I didn't use Mr. Sutton. The parking list is a lot of help. We are trying to save a little money with the rental car so we were looking around at other agencies with discounted prices. We are booking last minute, so we may not even get a car!

lily wrote:We are kind of nervous to use Conrad Sutton after some reviews. What is the parking situation if we use a rental car agency that doesn't include the perks of free parking? Where can you park? Thanks.

Good morning lily,
A lot depends on the time of year you visit. We usually visit in the off season and have no parking issues. If all else fails I park in Mongoose and make a purchase from a shop before walking into town.

Pete (Mr. Marcia) wrote:Here's the gig...I will defend the Suttons until I stop visiting the island. Because, visiting the Suttons is as much a part of our STJ experience as Maho is a beach we like.

DITTO here...Love them. All of them. Ok, I am a little scared of Gladys. I had to call their house one night at 10 pm because of a car malfunction and I was scared. If you are scared, say you are scared! I was SHOCKED at how nice she was to me.

Another time I had two dudes try to interrupt Conrad and I because they were in a huge hurry to pick up their jeep as he and I were trying to deal with the above battery issue - he ended up giving me a new jeep - and he didn't take too kindly to their lack of manners. Not only were they being rude to him, but to me and he wasn't having it. Either way, he still didn't go off on them, he simply ignored them until they got the point. I am sure Mr Impatient #1 and Mr. Impatient #2 would lay into him here on the forum for his "rudeness" when in reality they were the rude ones.

I am by no means on eggshells with ANYONE on STJ. I think I am so freaking blissed out from the sunshine and warmth that I couldn't wipe the smile off my face if I tried. I think it also helps that we've taken a lot of trips so the arrival stress is not there anymore for me. The only thing that would make me go off would be my plane being delayed!

I have had to check myself once or twice because I can be a little pushy out of habit. I live outside of DC and you have to speak up or you don't ever get what you want or need.

I know the locals deal with a lot of tourists and I have seen far more rude tourists than I care to mention so I feel its kind of my duty to show respect because I know many, many (NO ONE ON THIS FORUM OF COURSE) visitors don't.

I am not saying anyone here has been rude to or gotten what they deserved from the Suttons but their experiences are 180 degrees from anything I have ever experienced, so of course I feel the need to speak up. I'll shut it now!

Newbies are prepped to be extra polite, use good (common sense) manners, etc. and then they might encounter the following:

Jo Ann - VA wrote: The next 5 minutes was a profanity filled tirade about MFer's parking and taking their keys with them.

Even if not directed at them personally, witnessing
the scene described above would be very upsetting to people who dodn't normally come in contact with profane tirades.

My Husband who spent his life in the construction business? No big deal at all and I would have to stop him from throwing in "yeah, you stupid X*%#!"

My mother/aunts? They would have broken down in tears as it would have scared the cr*p out of them.

I had a negative experience with the Sutton's a few years ago, but I hate to bring it up because they have so many fans on this forum. But as I wasn't the one to bring it up, and others have had similar experiences, maybe a little bad press will sweeten them up. I was forwarned and went out of my way to be as polite as possible, but both Mr. and Mrs. were extremely rude, and that's being generous. I'm not going to willingly have to kiss a$$ to spend my vacation money ever again. There are other agencies that may not be gushing with kindness, but they are not intimidating either. I'm sure those of you who love them have had a totally different experience than mine.

I'm not going to willingly have to kiss a$$ to spend my vacation money ever again. There are other agencies that may not be gushing with kindness, but they are not intimidating either. I'm sure those of you who love them have had a totally different experience than mine.[/quote]

I agree with you 100%...I don't need warm and fuzzy...but I do expect the vendors to treat me with respect. I can say, after reading all the bad "press" about the Suttons I will NEVER give them my business...there are too many other folks that would love to have my money WITHOUT all the rude behavior...

I've never rented from the Suttons but I almost feel like I should next time just so I can see for myself what the story is. That will be the game....will I get the friendly service or the cold shoulder?

Perhaps we can bet on it too.

Alrighty, we booked Conrad Sutton. We arrive tomorrow. Wish me luck!