USVI-On-Line

We are putting together our winter 2010 trip. The cast of characters so far includes:

PA Girl, PA Husband and PA son (4 yrs old at time of travel)
B and L - our long-time friends and former roomate (B)and 4th time STJ visitors
R and K - L's son and future DIL. Both are graduating and this trip is their present from B and L.

and possibly M and J - BIL and twin sister to L, would be their 2nd STJ trip.

We are looking for at least 4 bedrooms and would consider 5 as M and J's adult daughter may joins us.

I can't even begin to describe the housing requirements of this group. And no, seperate places won't work.

We were looking at Hakuna Matata on line last night.

Has anyone stayed there or know anything about it? It looks like a good choice for our group.

Hi PA Girl,
I've not stayed at Hakuna but did get the change to tour it back in May. It's truely amazing. The views, pool and spa setting are wonderful. All bedrooms have thier own bathrooms, all have outdoor showers. Most of the place is air conditioned and the pool is heated. Kitchen to die for! It does have a lot of stairs, so you'll get your excerise! Have fun

Thanks Red!

Is the pool/spa area reached by stairs? Another way to ask maybe is it on a different, lower level than the main living area?

Hakuna Matata is gorgeous, but maximum 8 guests. If you invite the last couple you'll have nine.

You're familiar with the road to it, right? It's pretty far down the John Head Road, which is a bear, in my opinion.

The pool is on a lower level than the main living area. This is a readable floor plan for the house:

http://www.islandhideaways.com/photos.p ... cnt=17&r=1

That floor plan is easier to read than Catered To's, thanks.

My hope is our son won't be included in the head count. He will sleep in our bedroom, in his travel bed. I am waiting to hear back from the rental agency on this item.

So the road is pretty bad, I will note that.

A rough road doesn't scare us but it will annoy me. We live in a rural area so a long bumpy/rolly jeep ride isn't a charming novelty.

My list of possibilities exceeds 20 villas, maybe even 30.

The possibly-maybe couple (with the daughter) have until the weekend to decide if they are coming along and how many bedrooms they need. Their answer will set the wheels in motion.

PAGirl,
Bumpy is not the way to describe John Head Road. This thing has 2 1/2 foot ruts in it. Four wheel drive only. No guarantee it won't scuff up and damage your wheels on your shiny new Jeep rental either.

Road was to the point of impassable 3 months ago. Road was graded and some fill was added to make it actually half decent again.....but....the huge rains last month may have doomed the repairs.

Strange thing is that some of the Catherinberg homeownders prefer the road to stay like this so people won't use it as a cut through from Centerline Road to Northshore Road.

Forgetting the road, Catherineberg is, in my opionion, the prettiest location on the island. We are all view snobs and have our favorites, but, for me, Cberg is it.

benchill wrote:PAGirl,
Strange thing is that some of the Catherinberg homeownders prefer the road to stay like this so people won't use it as a cut through from Centerline Road to Northshore Road.

Oh, I can believe this.

Friends of ours have a house on Block Island. One day we were driving to the beach and saw one of the neighbors removing a section of brand new asphalt with a pick and a crow bar, that is how passionate they were about keeping the road unpaved and undesirable.

I fear the day the ever pave the road to our rental house in Maine. I will cry my eyes out! just as my mother cried about 75 years ago when they added electricity!

mbw1024 wrote:I fear the day the ever pave the road to our rental house in Maine. I will cry my eyes out! just as my mother cried about 75 years ago when they added electricity!

My husband still hasn't gotten over Caneel putting AC in the rooms He claims they "ruined it."

PA Girl - If Fish Bay isn't too far out for your group, you might want to consider adding Sol Inclination to your list. We stayed there two weeks ago and loved it.

Our first trip on island was to Hakuna Matata (SO's daughter's wedding was held there as well as the reception and we stayed at the villa the whole week). I can tell you it spoiled us as far as villas go.

We absolutely LOVED the views and I think I spent more time on the verandah than anywhere in the house. The main room that has a/c was never used till the night of the wedding. We literally spent ALL of our time outside looking at those gorgeous/unobstructed views of the water and the BVIs.

The road freaked us out originally (keep in mind we are flatlanders), but we were not warned about it. Every year, we take a trip down it just for memories and to show others that didn't go with us what it was like. Just don't bring a full drink with you and don't be in a rush.

The villa was absolutely fabulous and I would stay there again. Since then, we have found Argonauta which we fell in love with. The views are different and maybe not as good but mainly unobstructed. The pool is smaller, but it's closer to town, yet you don't geel like you are near town. Last year we rated Argo better just because it was easier to get to. HK is more luxurious though. You cannot beat that view of Cinnamon Bay.

The group is gathering on Saturday and I am taking a map and we are going to narrow our search based on location and maximum acceptable driving time from Cruz Bay.

We got to the beach everyday and eat out nearly every night so the less challenging the access, the better.

I like the "just don't bring a full drink" warning!

We were on STJ in March and they had just finished grading John Head Road. It was great then but I'm sure with all the rain that they've had it's been washed out quite a bit. The road is a pain but I still love Catherineberg. Some of my favorite houses are up there. If Hakuna Matata was in my budget I'd definitely stay there.