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Long Post - St. John Advice
Long Post - St. John Advice
I’m sure the length of this post will violate some blog protocol, so I apologize in advance.
Our family (me, wife, 10 and 7 year old girls and 5 year old boy) will be staying at the Westin St. John Villas from June 9 to June 18. My wife and I have been to St. John three times but not since are oldest was born (oh the things parents will sacrifice for their children). Trip coincides with our 15th anniversary -- we did a destination wedding on St. Thomas -- so have much to celebrate this trip. Anyway, would greatly appreciate some advice on a few topics.
1. Our kids are accustomed to eating anywhere from a burger joint to white-table cloth restaurant. Do any of the moderate to expensive restaurants have kid menus for our 7 and 5 year old? Or would at least be willing to just grill them a boneless chicken breast for dinner and not charge $25 for it?
2. Is the Reef Bay trail hike with the National Park Service worth doing? Is the 3 mile hike too much for the younger two kids (neither one of which is known to be a big fan of hiking)?
3. Which outfit would you recommend renting snorkel gear from as we haven’t decided whether to drag our equipment with us given airline baggage fees? Looks like the prices from Cruz Bay Watersports, Low Key Watersports and Just Beach are comparable.
4. Does the Westin have beach towels for its guests that you can take off premises to the other beaches on the island?
5. What will a serviceable beach chair cost at a St. Thomas or St. John store? Don’t need anything fancy.
6. We are planning on a day trip to St. Thomas to, among other things, show the kids where we actually got married at Bluebeard’s Castle. Is Coral World worth a visit? Magens Bay (enjoyed this before) or Coki Beach (never visited) for an afternoon?
I know I’ve posted a lot of questions so your patience and time are most appreciated.
Have a great day.
Our family (me, wife, 10 and 7 year old girls and 5 year old boy) will be staying at the Westin St. John Villas from June 9 to June 18. My wife and I have been to St. John three times but not since are oldest was born (oh the things parents will sacrifice for their children). Trip coincides with our 15th anniversary -- we did a destination wedding on St. Thomas -- so have much to celebrate this trip. Anyway, would greatly appreciate some advice on a few topics.
1. Our kids are accustomed to eating anywhere from a burger joint to white-table cloth restaurant. Do any of the moderate to expensive restaurants have kid menus for our 7 and 5 year old? Or would at least be willing to just grill them a boneless chicken breast for dinner and not charge $25 for it?
2. Is the Reef Bay trail hike with the National Park Service worth doing? Is the 3 mile hike too much for the younger two kids (neither one of which is known to be a big fan of hiking)?
3. Which outfit would you recommend renting snorkel gear from as we haven’t decided whether to drag our equipment with us given airline baggage fees? Looks like the prices from Cruz Bay Watersports, Low Key Watersports and Just Beach are comparable.
4. Does the Westin have beach towels for its guests that you can take off premises to the other beaches on the island?
5. What will a serviceable beach chair cost at a St. Thomas or St. John store? Don’t need anything fancy.
6. We are planning on a day trip to St. Thomas to, among other things, show the kids where we actually got married at Bluebeard’s Castle. Is Coral World worth a visit? Magens Bay (enjoyed this before) or Coki Beach (never visited) for an afternoon?
I know I’ve posted a lot of questions so your patience and time are most appreciated.
Have a great day.
Great to see you join our family.
1 Most places have things on their menu's that will work. My friends kid's took turns ordering off the adult menu and spliting it most nights.
2 the reef bay hike is great if you do it with NPS I wouldn't do it with out them with young kids as the hike back up is a killer.
3 I have a problem renting a mask and snorkel putting it in my mouth not knowing who had it before fins no problem
4 I don't see why you can't take your towels from the room or beach to another one as long as you bring them back. But I haven't stay there.
5 I think the villas have beach chairs in them call and ask
6 I thought that coral world was over rated I took my oldest over most of the park was shut down. we weren't told and they charged us the full price. I would ask what is closed before I'd pay to see if it was worthit or not we went on a day with no cruise ships in port as we thought the crowds would be less
Ask as many question as you want that is why we are here
1 Most places have things on their menu's that will work. My friends kid's took turns ordering off the adult menu and spliting it most nights.
2 the reef bay hike is great if you do it with NPS I wouldn't do it with out them with young kids as the hike back up is a killer.
3 I have a problem renting a mask and snorkel putting it in my mouth not knowing who had it before fins no problem
4 I don't see why you can't take your towels from the room or beach to another one as long as you bring them back. But I haven't stay there.
5 I think the villas have beach chairs in them call and ask
6 I thought that coral world was over rated I took my oldest over most of the park was shut down. we weren't told and they charged us the full price. I would ask what is closed before I'd pay to see if it was worthit or not we went on a day with no cruise ships in port as we thought the crowds would be less
Ask as many question as you want that is why we are here
2. Reef Bay Hike -- I certainly would not do the Reef Bay Hike any other way than with the NPS. The boat ride back was definitely the way to go.
I will not be doing the Reef Bay hike again. I did not feel it was a good use of my time. However, this is based on personal preference -- I do a lot of hiking at home and have some fantastic trails and areas to hike near my home. I do not have access to a beach near my home. I, personally, will spend time at the beach in the future and will not be taking the Reef Bay hike again.
I hear other people love the Reef Bay hike and do it on every trip. So, everyone is different.
I'm trying to remember back when my kids were 5 and 7. I have a feeling they wouldn't have done so well on the Reef Bay hike at that age.
I hope my comments are helpful.
You are going to have a great time on STJ!
I will not be doing the Reef Bay hike again. I did not feel it was a good use of my time. However, this is based on personal preference -- I do a lot of hiking at home and have some fantastic trails and areas to hike near my home. I do not have access to a beach near my home. I, personally, will spend time at the beach in the future and will not be taking the Reef Bay hike again.
I hear other people love the Reef Bay hike and do it on every trip. So, everyone is different.
I'm trying to remember back when my kids were 5 and 7. I have a feeling they wouldn't have done so well on the Reef Bay hike at that age.
I hope my comments are helpful.
You are going to have a great time on STJ!
Hope you have a great trip!
I would not recommend Reef Bay for that age. There are other shorter hikes that I think would be much more appropriate and more fun too. Like the hike to Honeymoon or Soloman beaches. Or Salt Pond or I think there is one near Cinnamon Bay that isn't very long. These hikes are somewhat shorter and you always have the option of turning around. You don't really have that option with the NPS hike since they pick you up at the bottom. Also I don't know how often it happens, but if there are certain water conditions at the end, the boat could possibly not take you and you would have to hike back up which would be disastrous with young kids that don't really like hiking.
I don't think you will have any trouble at all with the food. Although the Westin can get pretty pricey, so you would probably want to eat elsewhere most nights unless you are really tired. Sometimes we would pick up food in town (Ribs, chicken) at Candies and eat by the Westin pool.
Yes, you can take the Westin towels with you.
I would not recommend Reef Bay for that age. There are other shorter hikes that I think would be much more appropriate and more fun too. Like the hike to Honeymoon or Soloman beaches. Or Salt Pond or I think there is one near Cinnamon Bay that isn't very long. These hikes are somewhat shorter and you always have the option of turning around. You don't really have that option with the NPS hike since they pick you up at the bottom. Also I don't know how often it happens, but if there are certain water conditions at the end, the boat could possibly not take you and you would have to hike back up which would be disastrous with young kids that don't really like hiking.
I don't think you will have any trouble at all with the food. Although the Westin can get pretty pricey, so you would probably want to eat elsewhere most nights unless you are really tired. Sometimes we would pick up food in town (Ribs, chicken) at Candies and eat by the Westin pool.
Yes, you can take the Westin towels with you.
"Sponges grow in the ocean...I wonder how much deeper it would be if that didn't happen."
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stjohnnewbie
- Posts: 58
- Joined: Wed Jul 28, 2010 9:37 am
Re: Long Post - St. John Advice
Yes.fullhouse wrote:4. Does the Westin have beach towels for its guests that you can take off premises to the other beaches on the island?
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EagleRayLover
- Posts: 1474
- Joined: Sat Feb 12, 2011 8:56 pm
- Location: St. John -WooHoo!!
happy anniversary! I am sure you will have fun!! I agree that you're kids will be able to get food at most places - whether they share or get a kid's meal. I think you can get the snorkel equipment rental at any of the places- they sanitize them pretty well. I would get Captain Jay or Mrs Jay's opinion about the stuff at St Thomas- send a PM if they miss this thread since they live there!!! (they are sooo sweet they'll give you a suggestion!)) I love the Reef bay Trail- but saying that- I would never do it with little ones- if they trip half way and get skinned up - you still gotta finish it and it would be a really long hike then!!! like the other folks said- go for a short one! have a great time! BTW- what day is your anniversary- mine is 6/17!! 
Leslie, Kids Night In Babysitting
I believe you can rent beach chairs at the Westin for a couple of bucks a day. I do recall that they go quick but I never asked, maybe they can be reserved. They run their towels on a sign-in, sign-out basis, so yes, take them where you will but don't lose them. Have a great trip! Ali~
STJ - I "get it"
We have stayed at the Westin.
They use a card that you give to the towel person and you ask for how ever many towels you need. They don't write down how many you use. It is based on the honor system. It will be located by the pool and their hours are 9pm until 5pm. We brought our wet towels before they closed and received new towels, so we didn't have to get new ones in the morning.
To rent beach chairs, you can get them by the tennis court building. It is the same building used for jeep rentals. I can not tell you the price for beach chair rental.
You could also rent your snorkel equipment from Cruz Bay Watersports, which is also located at the Westin. You could check out their prices from their website. I looked at Just Beach snorkel equipment and they had very nice snorkel equipment too. They took over the Hurricane Hole in Mongoose Junction. Others have said Low Key had reasonable pricing for their equipment.
The Reef Bay Hike with Guide is from 9am to 3pm, it's all downhill. May be a bit too much if it gets too hot IMO. We had kids with us and they were into the pool, snorkeling and pool.
Have a wonderful trip!
They use a card that you give to the towel person and you ask for how ever many towels you need. They don't write down how many you use. It is based on the honor system. It will be located by the pool and their hours are 9pm until 5pm. We brought our wet towels before they closed and received new towels, so we didn't have to get new ones in the morning.
To rent beach chairs, you can get them by the tennis court building. It is the same building used for jeep rentals. I can not tell you the price for beach chair rental.
You could also rent your snorkel equipment from Cruz Bay Watersports, which is also located at the Westin. You could check out their prices from their website. I looked at Just Beach snorkel equipment and they had very nice snorkel equipment too. They took over the Hurricane Hole in Mongoose Junction. Others have said Low Key had reasonable pricing for their equipment.
The Reef Bay Hike with Guide is from 9am to 3pm, it's all downhill. May be a bit too much if it gets too hot IMO. We had kids with us and they were into the pool, snorkeling and pool.
Have a wonderful trip!
Re: Long Post - St. John Advice
1. I don't remember seeing kid's menus at the restaurants (there must have been at some of them) but we had no problem ordering for our 5 yo. Most times I asked for a kid-size portion of whatever. Other times he had an appetizer and some of our meals. We eat out every night and most places were very accomodating. (I do keep my requests simple.) I know Zozo's did not have a kid's menu (an adult in our group eats like a child and asked for it.)
I seeem to remember our son's meal at La Tapa being $15-$20 but it did have seafood in it.
2. When we did the Reef Bay Trail hike, there was a broad range of ages, from 3-4 yo to high 80s. Our guide absolutely raced down the hill. She did play to the kids and the kids did enjoy it. When my mom did the hike the following year, she said the pace was too slow. (she is a hyper hiker) The boat ride back is fun, you see a different side of the island.
I probably would not do it again just because you are in teh woods and there aren't really any beautiful views. I am in the woods all the time at home, I prefer the beach.
3. I don't have any recommendations but fo rthe kids, we bought a set at Dicks for our son (like $30, less than a rental for the week) and it have worked well for him 3+ trips.
6. Last July, we did Blackbeard's and because our son is obsessed with pirates, he enjoyed it.
I seeem to remember our son's meal at La Tapa being $15-$20 but it did have seafood in it.
2. When we did the Reef Bay Trail hike, there was a broad range of ages, from 3-4 yo to high 80s. Our guide absolutely raced down the hill. She did play to the kids and the kids did enjoy it. When my mom did the hike the following year, she said the pace was too slow. (she is a hyper hiker) The boat ride back is fun, you see a different side of the island.
I probably would not do it again just because you are in teh woods and there aren't really any beautiful views. I am in the woods all the time at home, I prefer the beach.
3. I don't have any recommendations but fo rthe kids, we bought a set at Dicks for our son (like $30, less than a rental for the week) and it have worked well for him 3+ trips.
6. Last July, we did Blackbeard's and because our son is obsessed with pirates, he enjoyed it.
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Need2GetAway
- Posts: 326
- Joined: Fri Aug 20, 2010 3:52 pm
- Location: Upstate NY
We did the Reef Trail on a day when we were sunburned and didn't want to hang too long at the beach. I loved it. We did not find the trail difficult at all. (We are over 50, but in shape.) Be sure to do the petroglyphs spur. In the large building at the bottom were bats roosting - pretty cool. There were hermit crabs (cool) and a funny little deer who literally hiked with us for at least 15 minutes.
There was a NPS hike coming down the trail when we headed up and I thought it looked bad, but I hate being herded like that. We like to be alone on a trail. Also, we went pretty early to avoid the heat.
I swam at the beach at the bottom and loved it, but it's a coral sand and pretty hard on the feet until you're out a ways. Hiking back up in my wet bathing suit didn't matter one bit as it dried quickly (two piece is good for that).
DO NOT use the latrine at the bottom. I am not fussy about bathrooms at all (I shower almost day at the YMCA, lol), but that was surely the worst one I have ever even thought about.
There was a NPS hike coming down the trail when we headed up and I thought it looked bad, but I hate being herded like that. We like to be alone on a trail. Also, we went pretty early to avoid the heat.
I swam at the beach at the bottom and loved it, but it's a coral sand and pretty hard on the feet until you're out a ways. Hiking back up in my wet bathing suit didn't matter one bit as it dried quickly (two piece is good for that).
DO NOT use the latrine at the bottom. I am not fussy about bathrooms at all (I shower almost day at the YMCA, lol), but that was surely the worst one I have ever even thought about.
Long Post - St John Advice
Thank you for all the useful advice. We fly out of CMH at 6am tomorrow. Can't wait to see the runway in St. Thomas and the ferry dock in Cruz Bay. Just praying the rain stops.
Long Post - St John Advice
Well, our trip to St. John exceeded our already elevated expectations. The entire trip went about as close to perfect as one could hope. Arrived on time on June 9, rented a car from Dependable on St. Thomas (great and friendly service) and made it to the Westin by 4pm. We stayed in one of the Hillside Villas across the street and up the hill from the main resort. Fantastic unit with full kitchen, granite countertops, etc. And a balcony with a beautiful view of Great Cruz Bay to top it off. The small (roughly 20 x 20) pools that each two Hillside Villa buildings share are great for smaller kids. Westin staff was very friendly and helpful. Kids loved the main pool, the golf carts (although we made them walk as much as possible), the iguanas and the daily activities. I read the reviews of the Westin on this site and I find it hard to beleive we stayed at the same hotel as some of the people posting.
We spent two of our ten days at the main Westin pool and beach. My kids had a blast and, for the first time since we've had children, we could sit and relax without having to be in the pool with at least one of them as our five year old finally really started to swim on this trip. We hit Hawksnest, Trunk, Cinnamon and Maho at least twice each. I had forgotten just how perfect the beaches and water are on the north shore. Really wanted to go to Leinster and Waterlemon Cay but never quite did. Gives us one more reason to return soon. My oldest learned to snorkel and couldn't get enough. She got to see rays and sea turtles along with all the common fish on the reefs. Saw a lot of star fish at Maho, some within ten feet of the beach. That thrilled the younger two children. The older one, much to my surprise, actually held on of them.
We ate at most of the popular restaurants in Cruz Bay. Didn't have a bad meal, although I wasn't overly impressed with ZoZos. Perhaps just an off night for the kitchen. We loved Cactus on the Blue (went twice) and as always enjoyed Morgans Mango. Made the obligatory trip to Skinny Legs for lunch and were not disappointed.
We did make it to Bluebeard's Castle on the way to the airport. Kids really enjoyed seeing where we got married. We have a picture in our family room of us trading vows on our wedding day on the promotory overlooking Charlotte Amalie. Re-enacted it for the kids and had the oldest one take a picture to put next to the existing picture. May have been the highlight of her trip.
All in all, I would rate our trip as a "10". Can't wait to return. And again, thanks for all your helpful advice.
We spent two of our ten days at the main Westin pool and beach. My kids had a blast and, for the first time since we've had children, we could sit and relax without having to be in the pool with at least one of them as our five year old finally really started to swim on this trip. We hit Hawksnest, Trunk, Cinnamon and Maho at least twice each. I had forgotten just how perfect the beaches and water are on the north shore. Really wanted to go to Leinster and Waterlemon Cay but never quite did. Gives us one more reason to return soon. My oldest learned to snorkel and couldn't get enough. She got to see rays and sea turtles along with all the common fish on the reefs. Saw a lot of star fish at Maho, some within ten feet of the beach. That thrilled the younger two children. The older one, much to my surprise, actually held on of them.
We ate at most of the popular restaurants in Cruz Bay. Didn't have a bad meal, although I wasn't overly impressed with ZoZos. Perhaps just an off night for the kitchen. We loved Cactus on the Blue (went twice) and as always enjoyed Morgans Mango. Made the obligatory trip to Skinny Legs for lunch and were not disappointed.
We did make it to Bluebeard's Castle on the way to the airport. Kids really enjoyed seeing where we got married. We have a picture in our family room of us trading vows on our wedding day on the promotory overlooking Charlotte Amalie. Re-enacted it for the kids and had the oldest one take a picture to put next to the existing picture. May have been the highlight of her trip.
All in all, I would rate our trip as a "10". Can't wait to return. And again, thanks for all your helpful advice.
I don't mean to hijack this thread but wonder, does the return boat frequently get cancelled?djmom wrote:
I would not recommend Reef Bay for that age. There are other shorter hikes that I think would be much more appropriate and more fun too. Like the hike to Honeymoon or Soloman beaches. Or Salt Pond or I think there is one near Cinnamon Bay that isn't very long. These hikes are somewhat shorter and you always have the option of turning around. You don't really have that option with the NPS hike since they pick you up at the bottom. Also I don't know how often it happens, but if there are certain water conditions at the end, the boat could possibly not take you and you would have to hike back up which would be disastrous
I really want to do the hike, but the possibility of no boat scares me, I know they have that warning, so - does it happen often?
Patr
~~Longing to be back on St. John~~
~~Longing to be back on St. John~~