Trip Planning - Need Help

lovestj · Post by **lovestj** » Mon Apr 02, 2007 3:17 pm

We are looking at September or October for our annual St. John trip. Does anyone have any comments on which month will be better....Also, we will be taking our 19 month old with us.....Any suggestions would be great.

We are planning to stay at the Westin - a villa - Has anyone ever stayed in one before? We have always rented a villa in Chocolate Hole/Fish Bay, but thought it might be easier to do it with the little one for the first time at the resort.

Any input/suggestions are welcomed. Thanks. I can't wait to put up a countdown till the trip.

waterguy · Post by **waterguy** » Mon Apr 02, 2007 3:20 pm

End of Oct. would have less of a chance for the big blow. What ever you decide I would get travel insurance at that time of the year.

RickG · Post by **RickG** » Mon Apr 02, 2007 3:37 pm

It's been a while, but I recall a 19 month old's obsession with mobility. Easy access to the grounds, pool and beach at The Westin might improve your marital bliss. Take the little one out for that 0630 lap every morning, don'cha know?

We visit STJ most years in October. The end of the month sees most things open. Trip insurance? I'm in the minority here. Time is a bigger factor than cost. If we ever ran into heavy weather we'd either hit Jamaica or Bonaire last minute.

Cheers, RickG

Cheers, RickG

RickG · Post by **RickG** » Mon Apr 02, 2007 3:43 pm

It's been a while, but I recall a 19 month old's obsession with mobility. Easy access to the grounds, pool and beach at The Westin might improve your marital bliss. Take the little one out for that 0630 lap every morning, don'cha know?

We visit STJ most years in October. The end of the month sees most things open. Trip insurance? I'm in the minority here. Time is a bigger factor than cost. If we ever ran into heavy weather we'd either hit Jamaica or Bonaire last minute.

Cheers, RickG

Soon come

mia · Post by **mia** » Mon Apr 02, 2007 3:46 pm

I agree with waterguy & RickG....end of Oct, would be best because most restaurants and shops will be opened by then. We spent the first two weeks in Sept. on St. John last year and will be doing the same this year; we go during this time for a specific reason. However, if I had a choice, I would definitely go later in the fall....mia :)

augie · Post by **augie** » Mon Apr 02, 2007 3:48 pm

For you seasoned STJers...we'll be there from October 15-22, so will we likely see a mix of places just re-opening and some just getting ready to?

lovestj · Post by **lovestj** » Mon Apr 02, 2007 4:17 pm

It sounds like many things are closed in September/October....Is there a specific time that restaurants,etc. close?

waterguy · Post by **waterguy** » Mon Apr 02, 2007 4:26 pm

Check out this web site and you can see what was closed last year and when.

http://stjohnspice.com/stjohnrestaurants.htm

Badger5 · Post by **Badger5** » Mon Apr 02, 2007 7:30 pm

Hi lovessjt,

We have stayed in a 2BR,3Bath villa at the Westin with our three kids. Our youngest was about 3y.o. when we went. It was the perfect setup for us. The kids loved the pool, the grounds, the birds, the inflatable iceberg, smoothies by the pool etc, etc. We picked a different beach every morning, had pool time/nap in the afternoon, did dinner in Cruz Bay and then early lights out. The villa we stayed in was beautiful. We were up the hill so the views were very nice. There is a golf cart shuttle that will take you anywhere on the property you want to go. Very short waits and it was alot of fun to ride in. Also, the villa had a semi-private pool. Let me know if you have othere questions.

mountaineer girl · Post by **mountaineer girl** » Mon Apr 02, 2007 8:31 pm

Do a search to find Captain Jay's trip report.(16 rednecks ) THey stayed in a villa at the Westin, but I'm pretty sure it was an "adult only" trip so may not have any info regarding youngins'. He had good things to say about the 3-bedroom villa he stayed in. He may have went into more detail on a separate thread than the trip report - I kind of forget now (second glass of pinot and my memory is getting fuzzy). Hope this helps.

sorry that my new avatar is so big - don't know what to do about it

lovestj · Post by **lovestj** » Tue Apr 03, 2007 10:10 am

Badger5 wrote:Hi lovessjt,

We have stayed in a 2BR,3Bath villa at the Westin with our three kids. Our youngest was about 3y.o. when we went. It was the perfect setup for us. The kids loved the pool, the grounds, the birds, the inflatable iceberg, smoothies by the pool etc, etc. We picked a different beach every morning, had pool time/nap in the afternoon, did dinner in Cruz Bay and then early lights out. The villa we stayed in was beautiful. We were up the hill so the views were very nice. There is a golf cart shuttle that will take you anywhere on the property you want to go. Very short waits and it was alot of fun to ride in. Also, the villa had a semi-private pool. Let me know if you have othere questions.

Did you have any trouble with the kids and the bugs? Wasn't sure if it would be any better there or not...Thanks for the information. We still can't decide when to go...

DCphoto · Post by **DCphoto** » Tue Apr 03, 2007 10:40 am

Hi, I hope this helps. I have yet to stay at the Westin, but we did the 3 hour tour! Last year after making the trip to our villa on the bad roads, we decided to look at the Timeshares. We ended up buying a 3 bedroom pool Villa. The one we looked at is great. It had its own pool and hot tub and the decorations were very elegant with flat screen TV's. The grounds are very nice and when we looked around there were a lot kids having fun. The have tennis courts also. The main pool is very large. The beach is just ok, try and hit most of the North shore beaches during the day. Last year, I was a magnet for bug bites. We were staying in the jungle, hoping the Westin will be better, but be on the safe side and bring something for your baby. When I lived in Florida I used skin so soft, by AVON and will be bring it with me on the next trip. I think deet will be to strong for a young child. And I am hoping the Heavenly bed lives up to its reputation! Have stayed at many Westins for business travel and they were very comfortable. There was construction going on last December, hopefully they will be complete this year. Ask the hotel if it is near your Villa. Another thing we liked is, if your staying at the Villas across the street from the main resort, it is very quiet and there is security at the gate to get to the Villas. We felt very isolated at our rental villa, even though nothing happened to us on any of our vacations to St. John the thought was always in the back of minds. I think we will just sleep better at night. We are bringing 3 teens with us this next trip and I think they will love all the emenities at the Westin.

MrB · Post by **MrB** » Tue Apr 03, 2007 3:32 pm

End of Oct was great for us last year. Just about everything was open, (Fish Trap soft opened the day we left) and the weather held pretty well...it's still in the wet, but i'd say we had 25% prcipt at most, and that was brief showers. Best of all, the MOST crowded beach had 5 other copules on it, and that was in the middle of Caneel...i likes my quiet beach time. Also, this year I believe Full Moon is like Oct 26th, so maybe Miss Lucy will be happinin? Also, loads of fun parties we had to miss for Haloween, because we had to leave the morn of the 31st

Remember September.....October All Over!

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