USVI-On-Line

Hello all,

I am planning a honeymoon for early December this year on St. John. This will be our first visit and we have at this point narrowed our search down to 2 but are torn. Our wishlist is a place with seclusion and awesome views with a great outdoor living space. Our final 2 are:

Jungle Stone - located in Catherineburg area. Views looking amazing and villa seems to be more carribean style indoors. We are concerned about location since we plan to go out for dinner every night etc. Also have heard bugs can be bad up there.

Kaleidoscope on Ditleff Point. Views look good, villa is a bit more european style and from the pictures it doesn't appear you can open the villa up to get that indoor out feel. Seems a bit closer to town.

Any opinions thoughts are greatly appreciated. Plane tickets are booked and both places are still open right now..

Thanks much,

Tom

Wow! Very few people would be able either of those options as a honeymoon villa...it's a win win either way

Did you do a forum search? Another poster did a review of Kaleidoscope...I'll see if I can find it.

Found the Kaleidoscope thread:
http://www.virgin-islands-on-line.com/v ... leidoscope

Jungle Stone is closer to the north shore beaches and has always been on my list for when I come into some money

The views at Jungle Stone would be considered by most to be the best on the island.

You can't go wrong either way.

Thanks, we have been saving for years for a once in the lifetime vacation like this. It's tough picking between these two great places. One has a better view but there just aren't many reviews out there on Island Stone to sink our teeth into like their are for Kaleidoscope. Prices are equal as well. Almost feel its time to flip a coin..

Both look fantastic.

I am going to be of little to no help probably but my thoughts are both have a great view but if you plan on heading to town on a regular basis at night, I would pick Kaleidoscope.

Are you considering Island Stones or Jungle Stone? They are both Catherineberg villas and you said Jungle Stone in your first post and Island Stones in your second. Both are really nice but I would give the edge to Jungle Stone for decor.

The one thing to know about Jungle Stone is that the road to it is difficult. You will definitely want a four wheel drive vehicle. The road is unpaved, rocky, narrow in places, and unlit, and there are some switchbacks. I have stayed in Catherineberg three times and the views are out of this world, but the drive can get a little old. I am not sure of exactly where in Catherineberg Island Stones is, but I have driven by the gate to Jungle Stone and it is quite a ways down the John Head Road--probably 75% of the way down from Centerline. Plan on it taking a minimum of 10 minutes to get down from the top of the road to the house. It's not a drive I would want to attempt after a drink or two.

One big plus is that the John Head Road connects to the North Shore Road, and it will dump you out right near Trunk and Cinnamon Bays. Getting up the John Head from the North Shore Road is tricky because of the angle of where the roads meet, but you can do it if there are not any other cars coming.

Jungle Stone sorry for confusion.

Do you get good sunrise/sunset views from up in Catherinberg? Some reviews I saw say you don't get much sun at all and the bugs can be horrible.

to echo what some others have said, both look amazing but neither are close to town. The island is small but the car ride from Cruz Bay to Coral Bay is at least 30 minutes, to give you a gauge. Ditleff Point is our absolute favorite place on the island (before they built houses there it was even better), and its a bit closer to town so I would give that one the edge. Plus you can walk down to the rubble beach on the West side of the point for some amazing snorkeling & absolute privacy. 10 yrs ago we swam with an eagle ray there that must have been 10 feet across. If had $10m to burn and I would buy a slice of that point in a second.

then again, looking at Jungle stone - screw getting to town! The view there is beyond comparison. You'll spend some time in the car to town and to the beach, but you could spend all day in the pool just looking at the view. wow.

Congratulations on your upcoming nuptials! We stayed at Kaleidoscope in 2010. We wrote a long review here with lots of pics but they have somehow since vanished from the post (I really need to take the time to fix that!). My vote would be for Kaleidoscope on Ditleff. It was perfect in every way and we can't wait to get back someday. For something as special as a honeymoon I'd go with Kaleidoscope. It is very convenient to town!

Here are the photos from the travel review:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/32838690@N07/

You can search my name here for the post on our trip that year.

When you stayed was there a lot of foot traffic from people going down to Ditleff beach? Read some threads on other places that the locals still consider this point public access and walk their dogs and go for jogs daily down the access road. Did have have good vistas for both sunrises and sets? I see their is a home right next door on the other side of the road as well, any privacy issues there?

Thanks for the great pics. Almost convinced....

Which one do you LIKE? Which one makes you feel good looking at the photos? Pick that one. They are both amazing villas. Both will have small issues that will turn out not to be a big deal because you love the villa so much.
That being said, I would take whichever one has the best outdoor shower because that is the one thing I can't get in PA!
Best wishes!

It all boils down to the drive for us right now. We watched the jeep cam of John Head Road and since we plan on going out and about daily to sightsee and go for our meals I just don't know if 4 trips a day (even 2) up and down this road are going to be stress-free like a vacation should. A few times may be fun but have a feeling after awhile it gets old.

boshardt wrote:When you stayed was there a lot of foot traffic from people going down to Ditleff beach? Read some threads on other places that the locals still consider this point public access and walk their dogs and go for jogs daily down the access road. Did have have good vistas for both sunrises and sets? I see their is a home right next door on the other side of the road as well, any privacy issues there?

Thanks for the great pics. Almost convinced....

I definitely would not worry about locals. Just to make you more aware of the situation at Ditleff, the majority of locals and regular visitors do believe that access should not be restricted. It's been a hot and controversial topic for many years now, but all beaches are public up to the tree line. There's a gate up with an access code required for entry...but I imagine that many locals know the code

Regardless, there is hardly anyone ever there.

boshardt wrote:Jungle Stone sorry for confusion.

Do you get good sunrise/sunset views from up in Catherinberg? Some reviews I saw say you don't get much sun at all and the bugs can be horrible.

You cannot see the sun setting from Catherineberg. You will see the colors in the sky though, and it is beautiful. Here's a picture to give you an idea:



As far as bugs, Catherineberg is very lush and so yes, we did have some critters in the house: small lizards (good because they eat the other bugs!), the occasional palmetto bug etc. But, to be honest I have rented all over the island and every house has had a critter or two at some point. It's part of being in the tropics.