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Trip Report - Looooong!
Trip Report - Looooong!
Just got back and will do my best to remember the details of our trip. Background: 3 women in our 50's from New England. My 3rd trip - GF P's 2nd; GF J's first. We stayed at Starlit Escape in Coral Bay. This is the second time we have stayed there, we really like the house, location and the owners are terrific to work with. We mailed a package that they stored for us. We traveled Feb 23rd- Mar 2nd.
We arrived on STT by 9 am. We took the red eye from BOS to SJU after a sleeping layover we got to STT early. We rented from Dependable and I would def use them again. Picked us up with our jeep, took us to the office to sign paperwork and off we went. We started our trip by going to Magen's Bay. We had breakfast on the deck overlooking the water. We bought noodles to use all week in the gift shop and did we use them! After a swim and some tanning we headed for the car barge. We got some basics at Starfish and headed to Coral Bay. We had dinner at the house after unpacking and then relaxing (code for drinking) by the pool. We went to bed early after a long day of travel.
Sunday we went to Miss Lucy's for the Jazz Brunch. We got there early, selected a table and headed to the beach to find sea glass thanks to a tip from the forum.. Got some great pieces even 2 turquoise pieces. Back to our table for brunch and music. The food was pretty good. J had the Pina Colada pancakes - it was a big serving and she shared - they were good! P and I had the burger, it was huge and delicious. We then went to Skinny's for our first of many shopping trips. I love this place for souvenirs. Then back to the house to relax by the pool. My ADD soon kicked in and off we went to Cruz Bay to check it out and go to St John Spice for some neccesities. Back to the house for dinner and chilling by the pool. The rooster outside the house made it essential to go to bed early! No problem because we are all morning people.
Monday we were up early. We packed lunch, noodles, chairs and snorkel equipment and headed to Lameshur for the day. We set up all the way to the right facing the water. It was a great spot, plenty of sun and shade and a path through the woods to our jeep. The snorkeling was decent out by the rocks. By 1 or so we had enough sun and headed back. We stopped at Aqua Bistro for drinks and apps (great onion rings) then back to the house. We stopped often at Love City Mini Mart, it was on the way to the house and we really like this store. Dinner was at the house again. P and I don't mind cooking and J didn't mind helping so we ate at the house most nights.
Tuesday we went to Jost for the day on the ferry after getting pastries at Deli Grotto. We took a taxi to White Bay and made arrangements to be picked up at 1:15 to spend time in Great Harbour. We set up in front of Soggy Dollar and let the fun begin! We had lunch at Soggy's and then walked down the beach to the other "bars" and spread our money amongst the locals. I wish we had stayed there for the day, Great Harbour was a bit of a disappointment after all the fun at White Bay. The ferry was actually late getting in and then we got tied up in Tortola waiting for dock space. We didn't get back to Cruz Bay until 5. Headed to Starfish to get provisions for a couple of days and back to Coral Bay for dinner and relaxing at the house. Pink Corner was open so we stopped for an ice cream - very good, but the hours seemed very erratic.
Wednesday we went to Waterlemon Cay to snorkel. We went early, hiked the trail and swam over. The current wasn't too bad. The snorkeling was good. We saw a ray and a turtle. The only disappointment was the lack of starfish. When we got back to the house we decided to head to Shipwreck Landing for lunch and then back to Skinny's. After some shopping and exchanging we went to the ice cream shop next to Donkey Diner for our daily cone. They are a sister shop to Mumbo Jumbo at Skinny's and have some nice "tings". Back to the house to relax and have dinner.
Thursday we went to Francis Bay after breakfast at Donkey Diner. I know a lot of people rave about the food but the french toast was terrible. It tasted like they hadn't soaked the bread. We were the 3rd car at Francis - got a great parking spot and set up for the morning. After a few hours of sunning, noodling and swimming it was too hot to be in the sun and too buggy to be in the shade so we headed up the Northshore Road, stopping at the overlooks for photos and at Hawksnest to chill for a minute and use the facilities. Once in Cruz Bay we made our last trip to St John Spice, got an ice cream and headed to Starfish one more time. Again, back to the house to relax by the pool (wink, wink). Dinner at the house on the grill.
Friday we weren't very motivated, but didn't want to "waste" our last full day. We decided to head out East End Road and see where we ended up. We stopped for lots of photos and finally stopped at the beach just past Vie's Campground. We just hung out in our chairs enjoying the view and weather. We watched a pair of dolphins play for a while. It was time for our final stop at Skinny's, our final ice cream and our final trip up the dirt "road" to the house. After hanging by the pool, we had dinner and started the packing process. Another early night to accommodate our early morning wake up by the rooster next door!
Saturday we left early to gas up the jeep. We went to Sam & Jacks for bagels for breakfast and to get a sandwich to take with us for travel. Very good food - would def recommend them. Then it was time to line up for the ferry to turn in jeep and do a lot of waiting in line at the airport!
In summary - We used Dependable Car Rental - good rate - the jeep had a few dings so I didn't worry too much about making more. Flying out on Friday night gave us an extra day on island without paying for an extra night's lodging or car rental. Jazz brunch at Miss Lucy's VERY pleasant. Food prices were high but not too bad since we were splitting by 3 and expected them to be high. Sam & Jack's was good and had a nice patio to enjoy our bagels. Starlit Escape is a great rental in Coral Bay. Rates are good and we got a return visitor discount which was very nice, they also charge by the person so you can have the whole house at a decent rate. It has lots of areas to relax, 3 verandas, the pool area and the "happy hour tower". The kitchen was well equipped - even had some nice/sharp knives. The pool gets nice sun during the day and is very refreshing without being cold. They now have Wi-Fi. The only negative would be the "road" leading to the house. I didn't mind but J thought it was a bit much! Love City Mini Mart is the place to go for whatever you need. Once again, St John did not disappoint and I only have 51 weeks to plan for the next trip. I am a teacher so I travel the same week every year. Thanks to everyone for the suggestions and answers to my questions.
We arrived on STT by 9 am. We took the red eye from BOS to SJU after a sleeping layover we got to STT early. We rented from Dependable and I would def use them again. Picked us up with our jeep, took us to the office to sign paperwork and off we went. We started our trip by going to Magen's Bay. We had breakfast on the deck overlooking the water. We bought noodles to use all week in the gift shop and did we use them! After a swim and some tanning we headed for the car barge. We got some basics at Starfish and headed to Coral Bay. We had dinner at the house after unpacking and then relaxing (code for drinking) by the pool. We went to bed early after a long day of travel.
Sunday we went to Miss Lucy's for the Jazz Brunch. We got there early, selected a table and headed to the beach to find sea glass thanks to a tip from the forum.. Got some great pieces even 2 turquoise pieces. Back to our table for brunch and music. The food was pretty good. J had the Pina Colada pancakes - it was a big serving and she shared - they were good! P and I had the burger, it was huge and delicious. We then went to Skinny's for our first of many shopping trips. I love this place for souvenirs. Then back to the house to relax by the pool. My ADD soon kicked in and off we went to Cruz Bay to check it out and go to St John Spice for some neccesities. Back to the house for dinner and chilling by the pool. The rooster outside the house made it essential to go to bed early! No problem because we are all morning people.
Monday we were up early. We packed lunch, noodles, chairs and snorkel equipment and headed to Lameshur for the day. We set up all the way to the right facing the water. It was a great spot, plenty of sun and shade and a path through the woods to our jeep. The snorkeling was decent out by the rocks. By 1 or so we had enough sun and headed back. We stopped at Aqua Bistro for drinks and apps (great onion rings) then back to the house. We stopped often at Love City Mini Mart, it was on the way to the house and we really like this store. Dinner was at the house again. P and I don't mind cooking and J didn't mind helping so we ate at the house most nights.
Tuesday we went to Jost for the day on the ferry after getting pastries at Deli Grotto. We took a taxi to White Bay and made arrangements to be picked up at 1:15 to spend time in Great Harbour. We set up in front of Soggy Dollar and let the fun begin! We had lunch at Soggy's and then walked down the beach to the other "bars" and spread our money amongst the locals. I wish we had stayed there for the day, Great Harbour was a bit of a disappointment after all the fun at White Bay. The ferry was actually late getting in and then we got tied up in Tortola waiting for dock space. We didn't get back to Cruz Bay until 5. Headed to Starfish to get provisions for a couple of days and back to Coral Bay for dinner and relaxing at the house. Pink Corner was open so we stopped for an ice cream - very good, but the hours seemed very erratic.
Wednesday we went to Waterlemon Cay to snorkel. We went early, hiked the trail and swam over. The current wasn't too bad. The snorkeling was good. We saw a ray and a turtle. The only disappointment was the lack of starfish. When we got back to the house we decided to head to Shipwreck Landing for lunch and then back to Skinny's. After some shopping and exchanging we went to the ice cream shop next to Donkey Diner for our daily cone. They are a sister shop to Mumbo Jumbo at Skinny's and have some nice "tings". Back to the house to relax and have dinner.
Thursday we went to Francis Bay after breakfast at Donkey Diner. I know a lot of people rave about the food but the french toast was terrible. It tasted like they hadn't soaked the bread. We were the 3rd car at Francis - got a great parking spot and set up for the morning. After a few hours of sunning, noodling and swimming it was too hot to be in the sun and too buggy to be in the shade so we headed up the Northshore Road, stopping at the overlooks for photos and at Hawksnest to chill for a minute and use the facilities. Once in Cruz Bay we made our last trip to St John Spice, got an ice cream and headed to Starfish one more time. Again, back to the house to relax by the pool (wink, wink). Dinner at the house on the grill.
Friday we weren't very motivated, but didn't want to "waste" our last full day. We decided to head out East End Road and see where we ended up. We stopped for lots of photos and finally stopped at the beach just past Vie's Campground. We just hung out in our chairs enjoying the view and weather. We watched a pair of dolphins play for a while. It was time for our final stop at Skinny's, our final ice cream and our final trip up the dirt "road" to the house. After hanging by the pool, we had dinner and started the packing process. Another early night to accommodate our early morning wake up by the rooster next door!
Saturday we left early to gas up the jeep. We went to Sam & Jacks for bagels for breakfast and to get a sandwich to take with us for travel. Very good food - would def recommend them. Then it was time to line up for the ferry to turn in jeep and do a lot of waiting in line at the airport!
In summary - We used Dependable Car Rental - good rate - the jeep had a few dings so I didn't worry too much about making more. Flying out on Friday night gave us an extra day on island without paying for an extra night's lodging or car rental. Jazz brunch at Miss Lucy's VERY pleasant. Food prices were high but not too bad since we were splitting by 3 and expected them to be high. Sam & Jack's was good and had a nice patio to enjoy our bagels. Starlit Escape is a great rental in Coral Bay. Rates are good and we got a return visitor discount which was very nice, they also charge by the person so you can have the whole house at a decent rate. It has lots of areas to relax, 3 verandas, the pool area and the "happy hour tower". The kitchen was well equipped - even had some nice/sharp knives. The pool gets nice sun during the day and is very refreshing without being cold. They now have Wi-Fi. The only negative would be the "road" leading to the house. I didn't mind but J thought it was a bit much! Love City Mini Mart is the place to go for whatever you need. Once again, St John did not disappoint and I only have 51 weeks to plan for the next trip. I am a teacher so I travel the same week every year. Thanks to everyone for the suggestions and answers to my questions.
Re: Trip Report - Looooong!
Great report, have added Miss Lucy's Jazz brunch to our Sunday schedule.
Re: Trip Report - Looooong!
Well I know where I'm going on my first Sunday on Island! 
You said you got to Miss Lucy's early for the brunch. What time was "early"? I've been to her Full Moon party and now would like to do the brunch. Thanks for sharing your week.
You said you got to Miss Lucy's early for the brunch. What time was "early"? I've been to her Full Moon party and now would like to do the brunch. Thanks for sharing your week.
Friends, they go away then they re-appear...I believe there is Magic here.
Re: Trip Report - Looooong!
Loved your trip report Samoka! You ladies like your libations and your ice cream...Have you tried a BBC? It's a drink we had at the beach bar that was like an ice cream with a punch 
Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for sharing!
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chicagoans
- Posts: 1586
- Joined: Thu Jan 18, 2007 2:51 pm
- Location: IL
Re: Trip Report - Looooong!
It sounds like a great trip! My group barely overlapped yours (our walk of woe was on 2/24.)
Starlit Escape was where we stayed on our first trip - we had a group of 10 (6 adults, 4 kids) and it worked out great for us. I tried to find the house again to show the friends who came with us this year, but I took a wrong turn somewhere. Ended up on a couple really crazy stretches, which the kids loved. My friends' daughter really wanted to go back and do that road again but we never got back there. She had to be satisfied with the road to Little Lameshur, which my son declared "not crazy at all" -- wishing that it was more so.
We did end up showing our friends Starlit Escape from the overlook on Centerline. You can see the Happy Hour Tower from there, which brought back fun memories.
Starlit Escape was where we stayed on our first trip - we had a group of 10 (6 adults, 4 kids) and it worked out great for us. I tried to find the house again to show the friends who came with us this year, but I took a wrong turn somewhere. Ended up on a couple really crazy stretches, which the kids loved. My friends' daughter really wanted to go back and do that road again but we never got back there. She had to be satisfied with the road to Little Lameshur, which my son declared "not crazy at all" -- wishing that it was more so.
We did end up showing our friends Starlit Escape from the overlook on Centerline. You can see the Happy Hour Tower from there, which brought back fun memories.
Re: Trip Report - Looooong!
enjoyed your report
we had issues with bugs at Francis too.
sounded like a great trip
we had issues with bugs at Francis too.
sounded like a great trip
Re: Trip Report - Looooong!
We got there at 9. We were the first ones there and got the best table. By 9:30 it was pretty full. EnjoyNancie-Pa wrote:Well I know where I'm going on my first Sunday on Island!
You said you got to Miss Lucy's early for the brunch. What time was "early"? I've been to her Full Moon party and now would like to do the brunch. Thanks for sharing your week.
Re: Trip Report - Looooong!
Nice report. We were there most of the same days - I wonder if we saw you some where.
10 trips under our belts and we still haven't been to Miss Lucy's. One day...
10 trips under our belts and we still haven't been to Miss Lucy's. One day...
Come see us!
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hoosierdaddy
- Posts: 920
- Joined: Tue Jan 20, 2009 11:53 am
- Location: Indiana
Re: Trip Report - Looooong!
Great Trip report. Thanks for helping me get through the final weeks of waiting.
On your Jost day you said you had trouble in Tortola. Is that where you went through customs? When we took the ferry in 2011 we had customs in Great Harbor.
On your Jost day you said you had trouble in Tortola. Is that where you went through customs? When we took the ferry in 2011 we had customs in Great Harbor.
Re: Trip Report - Looooong!
Thanks for the great trip report...two of my favorite words together are trip report and long!
Re: Trip Report - Looooong!
On the way over we went through customs on Jost on the way back coral bay. We stopped in Tortola to drop off and pick up passengers.hoosierdaddy wrote:Great Trip report. Thanks for helping me get through the final weeks of waiting.
On your Jost day you said you had trouble in Tortola. Is that where you went through customs? When we took the ferry in 2011 we had customs in Great Harbor.
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ColumbiaSCTraveler
- Posts: 528
- Joined: Mon Apr 18, 2011 9:33 pm
- Location: Columbia, SC
Re: Trip Report - Looooong!
A trip report!!! YAY!!!!!! Thanks so much for sharing!
Miss Lucy's has always been on my "short list," but we still haven't made it happen. Maybe this year is the year!
Y'alls girls trip sounds great. I may have to plan one of those...
Miss Lucy's has always been on my "short list," but we still haven't made it happen. Maybe this year is the year!
Y'alls girls trip sounds great. I may have to plan one of those...
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Bonny in CA
- Posts: 239
- Joined: Thu Aug 25, 2011 4:30 pm
- Location: SF Bay Area
Re: Trip Report - Looooong!
Hi Samoka! Great trip report!
We are planning our fall trip right now, and Starlit Escape is on our shortlist of villas. I was wondering if there's a jacuzzi? Some of their photos seem to show one, but it is not listed in their amenities. Also, is their a tv in the master bedroom? Hubby has to watch tv in bed at night! Thanks in advance for any info!
We are planning our fall trip right now, and Starlit Escape is on our shortlist of villas. I was wondering if there's a jacuzzi? Some of their photos seem to show one, but it is not listed in their amenities. Also, is their a tv in the master bedroom? Hubby has to watch tv in bed at night! Thanks in advance for any info!
Re: Trip Report - Looooong!
No jacuzzi just a nice pool and no tv in bedroom. Flatscreen in living room. My hubby was the same. We really like the privacy at Starlit Escape.Bonny in CA wrote:Hi Samoka! Great trip report!
We are planning our fall trip right now, and Starlit Escape is on our shortlist of villas. I was wondering if there's a jacuzzi? Some of their photos seem to show one, but it is not listed in their amenities. Also, is their a tv in the master bedroom? Hubby has to watch tv in bed at night! Thanks in advance for any info!
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Bonny in CA
- Posts: 239
- Joined: Thu Aug 25, 2011 4:30 pm
- Location: SF Bay Area
