USVI-On-Line

I'm so glad I found this forum! My husband and I are celebrating our 10th anniversary in June 2010. We are debating doing a family vacation with our kids (who will be 6 and 2.5 next summer) or just going by ourselves. If we brought the kids, my sister or mom, or both, would join us.

First..is STJ for us? My husband is a busy body who always has to be doing something. He has very little tolerance for laying on a beach. I do enjoy beaches. We both love sailing, snorkeling and hiking. I'm interested in really excellent snorkeling sites. We might even get certified for diving if it would improve the trip. We're not into the nightlife thing too much, but would enjoy a bit of bar-hopping. We would probably do a charter to BVI as well.

I'd love to get a few villa reccomendations! If we went by ourselves, villa requirements would be:

Must have: A/C in bedrooms, pool, shaded outdoor terrace, awesome views..preferably with sunsets.

Like to have: Privacy, quiet, good location, outdoor shower, hot tub, screened porch or great room, a touch of luxury, smaller home so it wouldn't feel empty, excellent rental company.

Budget is anwhere from $1500-2500ish/week.

Thanks for the help!

brookeinmn wrote:
First..is STJ for us? My husband is a busy body who always has to be doing something. He has very little tolerance for laying on a beach. I do enjoy beaches. We both love sailing, snorkeling and hiking. I'm interested in really excellent snorkeling sites. We might even get certified for diving if it would improve the trip.

It sounds like it could very much be for you. The snorkeling is excellent on STJ. So much so, that my wife and I, who have been certified divers for a long time (and used to plan our trips centered around diving opportunities) can stay there very easily without missing scuba.

Last trip we actually did dive a couple of days, but on the next one we probably won't be able to, and we'll both be totally fine with that.

There are a number of hiking trails,kayaking is an option, so your husband shouldn't find himself bored. And if you like to read a book or just lay out on a beach, you won't have any trouble finding one (or more) that is just right for you.

I'll leave the villa advice to some of the folks on here that are much more in tune to that than I am.

I think you will love St. John also...FYI-we have taken our kids for last 5-6 years (have been 7 times I think or maybe more). They are now 8 and 11 and love St. John as much as they did when they were younger.

Do know though that some villa pools are going to be more kid friendly than others. Some are VERY deep with no shallow end. And some are "infinity" pools on the edge of a "cliff". I am sure you would be supervising them, but both of those situations might add more stress to your vacation.

And if you bring the kids-some villas have bedrooms with outdoor access only. It was just something we never thought about asking when renting until we found this forum. You obviously aren't going to want that with kids your age.

Either way, have fun!

One other thing. Some villas do not allow children at all. If children are welcome some villas are age restricted for kids. i.e. over 8 years or over 12 years. You will also be limited if you want your bedroom and the children's bedroom in the same building with interior excess between the bedrooms.

I'd suggest deciding on your budget, dates and must have list and then contact several on-island agencies so see what fits your needs. After you have a list come back to the forum and maybe we can help at that point.

St. John is a wonderful family destination. I encourage you to try it.

Thanks for the great advice!! Excellent points all around. I will keep perusing the villas and bookmarking the ones that fit the criteria.

We're still leaning towards a trip just for the two of us. It would give us a chance to check out the island and decide what would work best for a future family vacation.

Definitely don't need to be certified. Our certified friends never bother to scuba there anymore, they say the snorkeling is just as good without the hassel.

Another option to consider if it's just the two of you is something like Estate Lindholm or Cruz Views if you don't want to go the villa route.

First of all, if your husband is antsy and doesn't like sitting on a beach, then I would not take a 2.5 year old. (I wouldn't take a 2.5 year old anyway, but that's just me.) If you want to hike, snorkel, do a BVI charter, sail, hop from one beach to another, etc., it's a lot easier without very small children. We started taking ours when they were able to keep up with us, and gramda and grandpa got to spend quality time with the grandkids.

If it's just going to be the 2 of you, you should have a nice assortment of villas that meet your requiremets. I'd do what Diana2 suggested, and list your "must haves" and contact the villa companies and come up with a list. Then we can say yeah or nah. Happy planning.

Check out www.vrbo.com/251116 We have this villa booked for June. They have a great special going on right now.....250. a night until Nov. 24 and 300. a night after that. That is well under your 2500 max,and it includes the 8% tax. I've heard from Pia, our resident realtor, it's an awesome villa with amazing views, easy road, close to beaches, 10 min. from Coral Bay, and 15-20 to Cruz Bay. It's a 4 bedroom, but the special is only for 2 to 4 people. It has ac in the bedrooms, a wall of glass sliders in the great room that opens up to a lanai, pool, nicely furnished with a really pretty kitchen. The main house has 2 inside bedroons on the main floor, so I think it would give you the homey feeling you want. Another villa that is under your price cap that looks beautiful and has amazing views is Cocoanut Breeze. I haven't seen it and don't know anything about it, but Dest. St. John is a good company to work with and it looks like a very stylish house with ac and a pool. I know there are tons more, but I just thought I'd throw a couple out there so you can see what you can get for the $$$. Casa Bueno was built in 2006 (I think) and I'm not sure about Cocoanut Breeze, but it looks new. It might have been remodeled.

Does location and roads matter? Some first timers want easy roads with no steep driveways or bumpy roads. If that's not a problem for you, it opens up a lot more possibilities.