Caneel Bay trip report - 4 nights; part one

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martini girl
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Joined: Wed Aug 16, 2006 4:29 pm
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Caneel Bay trip report - 4 nights; part one

Post by martini girl »

Background: We are 2 couples in our 40's; our previous two trips to STJ had been taken with our kids (remember the 5 daughters in cornrow braids on the beach?) We decided last summer to do this trip without our kids as it was getting harder and harder to pull them out of school for a whole week and then keep our sanity as we helped get them caught up on tests and schoolwork.

We chose Caneel Bay for just 4 nights, January 23-27. During the planning stage, it was mighty difficult to think about leaving our kids for a whole week, hence the 4 nights. To lessen our guilt about going without them, we surprised them with their Christmas present which was a trip to Atlantis in December to see the Jonas Brothers in concert , but that's another trip report for the off topic forum. They were happy for weeks after Atlantis, and we were on our way.

We flew Continental out of Newark and were actually served food on the flight! Not peanuts or pretzels, but actual hot food! We were the recipients of cheeseburgers and salad on the way down, and a chicken and cheese hot pocket-type thing and a bag of chips on the way back. Who would've thought???

After being delayed an hour (we were number 27 in line for takeoff....gotta love it) we landed, grabbed our luggage and rum punch, not necessarily in that order, did the check-in thing at the Caneel lounge, very cool by the way, and happily deposited ourselves in a taxi bound for the Caneel ferry. We had about 30 minutes to kill before the 4 pm ferry, so we made a beeline for the bar at Drake's Passage for another rum punch....ummm it was like of the cup was rum, 1/8 ice, 1/8 juice. Rather potent.

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Boarded the Caneel ferry, and off we go. We were greeted at Caneel's dock with warm, lemon water washcloths, very nice. We jumped into the golf cart with our concierge representative and were taken on a brief tour of the grounds and then to our home for the next few days, #68 and #69 on Scott Beach. OMG, what a beautiful location. It was absolutely gorgeous. We were amazed at just how close to the beach we were, probably about 30 steps. We lounged on our porch to take in the view.

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It was magnificent, just like the sunset on our first night.

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We were just thrilled to be back on St John, it was so quiet, peaceful, and beautiful. Oh, and we were NOT tripping over 19 different Vera Bradly large duffle bags which typically accompany the 5 girls in braids in our party. What a difference. This was something that was definitely not gonna be too hard to get used to!

Next up: restaurant experiences, the blender-equipped drink/golf cart, turtles, and rays.
Xislandgirl
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Post by Xislandgirl »

Looking at the picture of you sitting outside your room makes me jealous....hearing about the Jonas Borthers at Atlantis does not :lol:

Can't wait to hear more!
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stjdeb
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Post by stjdeb »

Well, you are certainly off to a beautiful start! Totally jealous of the Caneel experience - I would love to experience if even just one night (the first - to make getting to island easier).
Deb
PA Girl
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Re: Caneel Bay trip report - 4 nights; part one

Post by PA Girl »

martini girl wrote:We had about 30 minutes to kill before the 4 pm ferry, so we made a beeline for the bar at Drake's Passage for another rum punch....ummm it was like of the cup was rum, 1/8 ice, 1/8 juice. Rather potent.
I remember those punches from our last Caneel visit. We sat that that bar for about an hour watching the world go by.

I am so glad you enjoyed your trip and am awaiting more tr.
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ScottB
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Location: Pepperell, Massachusetts

Post by ScottB »

Thank you for a quick STJ fix this morning. Yes, I'm jealous about that porch shot...looks awesome.....but the food on the plane??? Wow!! It's the little things that get us excited, and I'm always starving while flying. This year, I'm packing a couple subs in my snorkelbag!!

Looking forward to hearing more....
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traveler22
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Post by traveler22 »

MG-
Good to here you had a Great time. I did 4 nights on my only trip to Caneel, you can't beat walking into the airport and checking in there and not see you luggage again until it's in your room and with rum punch as a bonus. I received an extra bonus because a surgeon my wife worked for upgraded us from a tennis court rooms to a suite right on Caneel, we didn't know until we arrived.
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Gromit
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Post by Gromit »

Great start!! Can't wait for more!!
*Another fine scatterbrained production
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