Villa for Small Family - Help me choose!

[citapita]

Hi, Everyone! It’s my first post here, but I’ve been lurking for a while soaking up all the great info.

A little about us, we’re a family of four traveling to the Caribbean (let alone St. John) for the very first time. We have two little girls 3 and 2 years old who will of course be joining us on this trip. We don’t drink or snorkel, but we do love beaches of every shape and size!

Now to my question…I’m looking for the perfect villa for our stay. I’ve been doing my research, but our options are very limited due to our budget. Also, it seems like a lot of the places I love don’t allow children as young as ours, which is a bummer.

I think I’ve narrowed my search down to the following, but I’m open to suggestions as well!

Creolla
Satinwood
Moonsong

Overall, we don’t have any preference on location, although we very much value our privacy. Our budget is no more than $1700 for the week (we’re going early December, so still low season, which helps). We’d like a deck with a nice view, and can do a one bedroom if there is a pull out couch/futon as well.

Condition of the driveway isn’t a concern for us (hubby is an off-road enthusiast). No A/C is fine.

What would be your choice from my short list? Any other suggestions?

[msgcolleen]

Hi Citapita!
Welcome to the club! You and your family will love St. John and all the great beaches to play on!
There are so many villa choices and this one was the first one that came to mind:
http://www.caribehavens.com/nancys_folly.htm

Great view, great price!

Creolla's been on my short list too but hard to pass up a/c! Good luck~

[citapita]

Holy cow! I hadn't even found that website yet, so many good options. Thank you!

[petepie]

On the cruz bay side of the island, I've had my eye on Blue Aweigh as a budget-friendly option for a small family. It has access to a pool, but it looks like the pool is not directly outside the deck/door openings (good when you have toddlers). Other options you may want consider are Villa Catalina (I stayed there in 05) - it was comfortable, not fancy, but the good thing was that the pool was off to the side of the house, so again you can kind of keep the kids away from it more easily. Others I've had my eye on are Grandview (no pool). You could also look into Cruz Views condos.

Good luck with the search.

[GotToGetAway]

Some other options to consider:

http://www.bookitvi.com/simply.html

http://www.vrbo.com/47234 - ask about only the lower unit and see if the price fits your budget

I don't have any knowledge of the ones you mentioned. I did just recently travel to STJ with my 2 and 4 year old, so I've looked at tons of villa options.

Seems to me that having the hot tub flush with the deck could be a hazard with young children (ask if there's a cover for it at Creolla). Also, if you inquire about Nancy's Folly ask about the railings being child friendly/sturdy. I had previously inquired with the caretaker about it and she was going to check but never got back to me about it. Nancy's Folly did great a very positive review recently on Trip Advisor.

Good luck.

[Knolmom]

None of your options really float my boat. There are so many other places out there that are reasonable. Creolla is nice but an older house. Take a look at the houses @ privatehomesvi.com for some ideas. Also caribbeanvillas.com usually has some specials like periwinkle or jasmine, whichever one has the pool. Also Hawkbill is really nice and all of these are very convenient.

[melmd]

STJ is a wonderfil place for family vacations, we have been bringing our children since our youngest was 9 months old. I would do a search on "children or babies or kids" to get ideas of things needed or good ideas to help your vacation go smoothly. There is lots of very good info on these boards.

I would also suggest A/c at least in the bedrooms. Even in December it can get very hot and if you put light weight long jammies on your children to prevent mossi. bites they are going to be hot with no a/c.

[ShelleyZ]

We've stayed at Satinwood twice and really like it. It's a spacious, comfortable house with magnificent views. (We have three kids.) We love the location, too -- high above Coral Bay. We've gone in August and even then, because of the trade winds and ceiling fans, we never needed air conditioning.

The pool is off to the side of the house, and while it's not gaited, it wouldn't be easily accessible for your toddlers (like some houses with the pool off the deck). One nice thing about Satinwood is that it's solar powered (and has a back up generator) and doesn't rely on the power grid of the island. The composting toilets are kind of cool (very clean and modern) and you'll get used to them quickly.

Your kids are too young to use the sleeping lofts, but there are two master bedrooms (each with king beds) off the great room. I think you'd find it very manageable with the kids.

There are so many wonderful family homes on St. John. Good luck in your search. (Oh, and you should try snorkeling! It's easy and great -- right off the beach. You just walk into the water, put on the mask, and look -- a whole new world.) Enjoy!

[citapita]

Wow, you guys are fantastic! Awesome ideas.

I emailed Caribe Havens with my specific details and it doesn’t look like they have anything available that week that will meet the needs of two little ones.
I took a look at the Privatehomesvi site, and found an option that may work…what does everyone think of Tree House? Good price and it looks like it will meet the criteria.

Simply Paradise looks nice too. Cute kids room!

Thomhill, I’ll take a look at your place, too. Thanks for letting me know about it.

Glad to hear nice things about Satinwood! The privacy of that property made it a front runner initially, but I am a little concerned about the built in ladders to the loft. Shelley, do you know if the lofts are in both upstairs bedrooms? I’ve afraid my little monkeys would be very tempted to climb those ladders while Mommy and Daddy are sleeping…

[GotToGetAway]

I've looked at Tree House before because the price is so attractive. The thing I didn't like is the master bedroom is accessed via an outside door, which isn't ideal with toddlers in the house. Look at YouTube, somebody did a video tour of the house to give you a better idea of the layout.

[PA Girl]

I bookmarked this a while ago. I like the cottage style - http://justenoughstjohn.com/Just-Enough.htm

[citapita]

GottoGetAway, you're right...I just took a look at the YouTube video for Tree House and the layout wouldn't work for us at all. A shame because the price was so great!

I looked into Just Enough, but the bedroom is on a different floor than the futon in the living room, so that wouldn't work for us. Great price again, though!

I think I'm struggling with paying a bit more (Satinwood and Creolla, which are right at the top of my budget) to get exactly what we want, or compromising a bit to save money. I guess there isn't a magic solution.

On the bright side, hubby and I have managed to agree on all of the features that are must haves. The only sticking point is that he is adamantly against an owner occupied property (or really any building that houses more than one villa), which is something I'd be willing to go with in order to save cash.

[alw1977]

We did our first trip to St. John last fall with our (then) 9 month old son. Because the terrain of St. John is steep and houses are often built into a hillside, two factors are critical: 1. Are the railings sufficient for your children?, and 2. Is the pool too accessible? Our son was not quite crawling yet so the pool was fine. However, we're looking for this coming Spring/Summer and have decided we've got to find something with a pool off to the side. Satinwood looks nice to me, though I'd also be concerned about the "ladder" access to the loft. Can the ladder be removed? Otherwise, a ladder + toddler = disaster.

[citapita]

alw, I think I'm going to email the owner and ask about the ladder. Everything else about it seems great, so hopefully I get the answer I want!

[Jumbiegirl]

Cinnamon Tarn might be an option. The pool there is a splash pool and it has a cover. Children used to be allowed (we brought a 7-year old) Not sure of the price anymore.