USVI-On-Line

You were all so very helpful when I was planning our first trip to STJ last year (loved it!)- I'm hoping there's some STX experts in the house! Our friends have decided that our next destination should be St. Croix at the end of November this year. I'm not sure how big the group will be this time so I'm not focused on type and size of the accommodations yet - it looks like there are lots of choices. A few general questions to get me going -

Getting there - we fly out of Boston (would prefer to fly out of Portland ME but it's usually not worth the extra time and money to get to where we want to be!). Do we fly to STT and take a ferry to STX? Or fly directly there on AA - looks like one stop in SJU with not too bad a connection. Pros/Cons?

Bugs - it looks like there are more places to stay on the beach in STX than there were in STJ. We were very happy to be up on the side of a hill in STJ, not only for the views but for the reduced bug problem. We'd love to have beach and pool in STX but worry about the bugs. I haven't found any mention of them on the boards but I just started looking. Are they as bad as we experienced on the beaches in STJ?

Location - we will have a car, looking for beach, views, restaurants within 20 minutes, no crowds (unless we go looking for them!). Are there certain areas you would recommend I scout?

Thanks in advance for any help.
Pam

We had a wonderful trip to STX a few years ago. You must fly to STX, not STT. We stayed at Carambola. It is a nice resort, if you are looking for resorts. Secluded but easy drive in and out, not like STJ roads. Found some neat places all over the island to eat. Off the Wall was our favorite lunch place. Tutoo Bene was a good Italian meal.

We have been to STX over 20 times and like to stay out in the East End the best. It is close to town and restaurants. If you can get a rental off Miss Bea Rd (Pull Point) the views are awesome and villas are priced better than Shoys. If you stay out by the Divi it is further from town but close to their casino. It is the windy side of the island.

You should def fly into STX usually connect thru Miami or SJU. We do like Tutte Bene for italian food and we use to go to the Galleon on every trip for good steak or chateau briand.

Be careful where you go....do not go to desserted beaches. We usually visited the beaches at the Buccaneer, Divi and the Tamarind. We like to be where there are facilities.

Thanks for the info.

I'm assuming the comment about deserted beaches is a warning about crime. Are you talking about petty theft or is there a more dangerous element in STX that I should take into consideration?

I spent a week in St Croix last May at Chenay Bay. It was great. The east end of the island is really nice.

It refers to crime and personal safety. Be careful when you go downtown especially at night. Even if you have a rental car you may want to cab it to restaurants so you don't have to worry about parking and walking on back streets in the dark and becoming a victim of crime. Last time we were there was a few years ago and we pretty much stayed away from downtown for dinner and stayed out toward the east end and went to places that had safe well lit parking.

Thanks for the safety tip.

You may find this trip report helpful:
http://www.virgin-islands-on-line.com/f ... ght=margyz

Margy Z and STX lady are two forum members who seem to visit STX fairly often.

Thanks, I enjoyed Margy's trip report. Maybe one of them will chime in with the bug report.

Hi - I've been offline with a DSL modem problem - just got it fixed tonight!. We're making our fourth trip to STX in April. We are again staying at Island Time which is right on its own little slice of beach across from the St. Croix Yacht Club on the east end. Island Time is set back a bit from its beach and has a stretch of lawn down to the water. Last year I also stayed at D'Estasi which was total beachfront. I can give you some other recommendations if you want to PM me here or on TA – saw your post but, sorry, haven’t caught up on the forums yet. Dial-up really sucks – lol.

Connections to STX on AA: We like to connect through Miami. San Juan has been the land of lost luggage for us and I am not too fond of American Eagle. There also seem to be more delays through SJU.

Villas: We love Vacation St. Croix because they are on island. Marti Gotts runs a tight ship making sure that the owners keep things in great shape; the villas she managed are well-equipped and she takes good care of her guests. VSTX also has an on-staff concierge for provisioning, services like chefs, in-villa massages, and recommending and booking excursions.

Areas: If you want beachfront, there will be more properties on the East End, both north and south shore. Shoy’s is a beautiful area and I love the beach there but the views from the villas there are kind of far away as they are in Buccaneer Estates. I haven’t seen too many beachfront villas in Green Cay (Pull Point). The ones I’ve seen are set back but maybe I’ve missed some. Solitude, Cotton Valley Shores, Romney Point, and Grapetree (south shore, right near the Divi Carina Bay resort) have a number of beachfront properties. If you would like to be mid-island, Judith’s Fancy has a few beachfront villas – Blue Iguana is a very nice villa - ; however, there is a lot of wave action in that area so if you are looking to snorkel then stick to the east end. If you are looking for north shore, more to the west of mid-island (out near Cane Bay) there are some beautiful villas but none true beachfront.

Rental cars: Budget screwed us over on our first trip so we moved on to a local company. We use Centerline. Also hear that Judi of Croix is very good, as well.

Bugs: If you arrive about a week after a heavy rain you are going to have 'squitos. If you are on the beach very early morning or at dusk you are going to have no-see-ums. If you are in a villa where they are not keeping up on the exterminating you are going to have some visitors. We have been very lucky. We did not have any bug issues at Island Time or D'Estasi nor did we have issues our fist trip where we stayed up at Villa Madeleine (hillside). We did have good winds going last April and didn’t have any issues even on the beaches. I don’t want to be stoned for this on this board but I have to say that I have never experienced the no-see-um bites on STX that I have on STJ and have always stayed hillside on STJ. I’m not sure what that statement is really worth, though, lots of factors come into play in determining whether or not you are going to have bugs. There is a restaurant on the east end of STX where they always seem to have a ‘squito problem – Cheeseburgers. Don’t know why but the ‘squitos always seem to find this place.

Crime: Haven’t had any issues. Just like anywhere else, including home, we are very careful with our belongings and we are aware of our surroundings. Our first trip to STX we were in C’Sted for the day and were going to park in a public lot that had been recommended to us. We saw a group of young men lounging around at the side of the lot and decided to get out of there and try to find a spot on the street. Later we found out that these guys were there because they run a hand car wash and detail service out of that lot and that they have been doing so for years but we assumed they were up to no good. Now we park there whenever we are in C’Sted – lol.

Happy planning!!

Wow - thanks so much Margy.

Been away from the Forum for awhile, but I saw this topic and had to add a couple things. For great beach sandwiches, try Schooner Bay market - just East of Christiansted. They have a good bakery too! And those guys in the parking lot, have them wash your car (cheap) and they will also watch your car for you. Another cool thing about STX are the 'regular' roads. There are even places out on the S.East shore where you can go 'pedal to the metal' and wind it up to 60 mph!! Jenrale

Thanks Bert. Would you elaborate on the Hotel on the Cay? What you liked/didn't like?

pegoode wrote:Thanks Bert. Would you elaborate on the Hotel on the Cay? What you liked/didn't like?

I liked it because it was isolated. I didn't like it because it was isolated. It does need some TLC, at least it did a few years ago. We changed rooms 3 times to find one that everything worked in it. The views are wonderful, it has a great deck for sitting out at sunset with a drink and watching the lights of the harbour and Cristiansted. But you do have to depend on the water taxi to get you into town and back. Plus, if you rent a car, they have no place for you to park it. You have to take your chances on the street or risk a ticket in a private lot.

Besides, we are villa people. HOC has more of a Hotel/Motel feel to it. There are some who swear by it, I heard from a lot of folks on another chat board who stay there and would not stay anywhere else. It just wasn't our cup of tea.

You can, however, go over to HOC and eat at the resturant there, and they have a Bar-B-Q once a week on the beach that is pretty nice. If you have time, go and check it out. The staff is very friendly and accommodating.

Do you have any other specific questions about HOC? Be glad to answer them, or try to answer them.

-Bert