RickG's group travel rules for St. John

[DonnaM]

I will have to tattoo this list on the inside of my eyelids. I have had whiners on a trip that I paid for the whole thing! Don't ask, it was my birthday.
Anyway, we always do flights on our own. On other big group trips, I pre-collected a set amount from each couple for household, taxis and dinners.

[ColumbiaSCTraveler]

Gosh. It's for these reasons (and more) that we have NEVER taken anyone else with us. Just me and my husband. We've contemplated bringing our friends (that we've known for YEEEEEAAAARRRRS), but always chicken out on inviting them. Guess we're selfish like that.....

[PA Girl]

Enjoy Maine! We broiled in Canada last week. So what does the $30 ice bill consist of??? Cheese? Fiji or Icelandic water?

[mbw1024]

Oh new things every day. More beer, lake toys, snacks....you name it!

[PA Girl]

Like it was his first trip ever to a store!

[Connie]

It's really tough to plan for 12 people. I did it twice for STT. Of course, there were problems. The first night we went out, we had a $700 bill and the only thing we had was 2 beers, while the 20 year olds had $15 dollar drinks.

Anyway, I really like the advise of putting in 100 pp to offset some expenses. I also love the idea of each person making their own flight.

We're going to Sanibel next May with 9 people. I booked the condo, but there is no way I'm booking the flights for them.

I want a vacation too!

[RickG]

RickG,

I have a question for you - maybe your answer will be included in your next GROUP TRAVEL RULES. So here goes, what is your rule or process for when or how or who choses airfare? I typically travel with a group for our St. John trips and yes, I'm a planner. . . . don't really like waiting for airfares to go down. The past couple of years we've been able to get some decent rates/flights/times from the Ohio area (March and November trips - usually around the $435 - $550 range). This year the flights started in the $600's (May timeframe) and have continued to climb. Everything I am reading on airfare says not to expect a return to the "cheap" flights. So......I was ready to book in May, we didn't, and now the same decent flights/times are going in the high $700's to $800 range.

Sorry for the long, drawn out question - I'd just like to understand your process!

And yes, we have a "WHINER" in our group, but we all know it and just ignore most of the whinning and/or make fun of him. Of course, he doesn't think he is whinning!

Thanks in advance for your words of wisdom!

It's easy, folks can meet me on St. John.

There will always be frequent flyer miles, most loved airlines, most hated airlines, etc. I just paid $200pp over Spirit to fly on AA/United because I did not want to get stranded in Ft. Lauderdale for one or more days.

I admit, I do not share a vehicle. I also pick mine up on STT and hit Cost U Less if I have time.

I admit, since I first wrote these in about 2006, we provision less each year. The reality is that I can afford to eat out more now, and so can my friends. That also means that I feel less of a need to split a villa with four couples.

I need to write a sailing version of this list. The great thing about being on the boat is that you can take the late risers with you when you are ready to go.

Cheers, RickG

[54b]

Two more cents for kklay...it costs a little more, but with groups, sometimes it makes sense to add a day up front or one in the back to vary arrival/departure dates allowing more flexibility with airfare purchases.

Two years ago we rented a villa for 9 days instead of 8, but both couples only stayed 8 nights...one couple just got there one night earlier and left a day earlier. Not ideal because you have to pay for an extra day, but that cost is sometimes very small compared to the difference it makes in airfares (particularly if the adding that day means you get to use miles instead of money to pay for flights).

Lastly, it's nice to have a "rabbit." The rabbit is the person or couple who can get to STJ first and arrive before 6pm to check into the villa, rent the car, etc. That makes a huge difference to others flying in because they can now get on later flights (that are typically cheaper). May have been mentioned earlier in this thread.

[kklay]

Thank you everyone for the great advice. I really enjoy traveling with a group of our friends. We've taken some new friends on occasion - some have worked out (and get invited back and/or included in the group), and some don't get invited back (real whiners!). For our friends, part of the fun is having the "meetings" before we go - these are get togethers where we talk about meals, what happened last trip, what we've read on the Forum, etc. In fact, we have one this coming Saturday so I know we'll discuss flights. We also rent out vehicles on St. Thomas (Amalie) and stop at Cost-U-Less to stock up on items. We are also "cooler people" and bring steaks, spaghetti sauce, breakfast meats, some lunch meat and cheeses. A few years back we got the idea of putting money in a "KITTY" for purchases - usually $100 per person and this covers food/items that are brought with us, beer/liquor/water grocery items purchased on island as well as gas for the vehicles. Sometimes we end up having to put a little extra in the "kitty", especially if our trip is 10-14 days. As far as happy hours in town, typically one person pays the bill and then we split it when we get back to the villa (either that night or the next morning at breakfast - if the following evening was a very "HAPPY" one).

Thanks again for all the information!

[54b]

For our friends, part of the fun is having the "meetings" before we go

Definitely. Before this past trip, we got together with the other family at least 3 times to discuss the trip and probably traded 1000 emails. By the time the trip came around, I had a 7 page itinerary typed out with details about everything we wanted to do, all the travel info (including BVI charter day) and a shopping list for Cost-U-Less. That may be a bit extreme, but it was understood that the itinerary was subject to change and merely a suggestion so nobody felt threatened by it And you'd be surprised at how close we ended up following it and I think that's because everyone contributed to it before the trip and it contained all the beaches, hikes, restaurants, etc. that we all really wanted to make sure we did.

And BTW, Rick may want to add that Grocery Shopping List suggestion to his list...especially at a place like Cost-U-Less, you can be overwhelmed easily and it really helps to know exactly what you need, particularly the quantities because most things come in bulk and it sucks getting to the end of the week and finding out you've run out of bread, but yet, you somehow have several vats of unused peanut butter.

[RickG]

For our friends, part of the fun is having the "meetings" before we go

Definitely. Before this past trip, we got together with the other family at least 3 times to discuss the trip and probably traded 1000 emails. By the time the trip came around, I had a 7 page itinerary typed out with details about everything we wanted to do, all the travel info (including BVI charter day) and a shopping list for Cost-U-Less. That may be a bit extreme, but it was understood that the itinerary was subject to change and merely a suggestion so nobody felt threatened by it And you'd be surprised at how close we ended up following it and I think that's because everyone contributed to it before the trip and it contained all the beaches, hikes, restaurants, etc. that we all really wanted to make sure we did.

And BTW, Rick may want to add that Grocery Shopping List suggestion to his list...especially at a place like Cost-U-Less, you can be overwhelmed easily and it really helps to know exactly what you need, particularly the quantities because most things come in bulk and it sucks getting to the end of the week and finding out you've run out of bread, but yet, you somehow have several vats of unused peanut butter.

Itinerary is hard for our friends who want to relax. The big decision is usually whether or not to schedule a boat trip. Ditto for shopping list, but I have one I use from year to year - it's very hard to reconcile everyone's tastes.

Trips with kids? Completely different matter, and that frequently drives more STT shopping to fit in all of the "required" foods. The discussion of milk alone can bring families to tears. I do remember bringing a 5 month old and all the baby food in 1997. That baby is now a strapping blond amazon who carries my luggage, goes for morning runs on island and puts hot sauce on her bone-in chicken roti.

Groups are as different as the people in them. My geeky reference to c=(n^2-n)/2 hits that point - the number of relationships/connections in a group increases exponentially with group size. One whiner creates n-1 whining experiences.

Really, no whiners is the root of the approach I take.

Cheers, RickG

Cheers, RickG

[54b]

Itinerary is hard for our friends who want to relax.

In an odd way, the itinerary actually helped us relax and it actually fell somewhat in line with your recs because it wasn't based on times, but places. So each day, we had an early morning activity like a hike, picked a late morning place like a beach and identified an early evening activity like a happy hour/restaurant. I think knowing those things helps the group relax because individuals can say, I'll skip that, but I can always catch up with the group here and won't feel like if he or she misses one agenda item, they'll be SOLo or out of the loop the rest of the trip.

And i loved your "whiner coefficient" although I abhor math about as much as a lot of people abhor itineraries

And if you want to dig even deeper, I'd say it all goes back to the simple fact that when it comes to STJ, either you "get it" or get back on a cruise ship (that was likely designed to appease whiners in the first place). People who get it know that STJ is basically the omelet of vacations. When it's all said and done, it's awesome and the trip of a lifetime, but you're going to get messy doing it and you might as well embrace the mess (whether the mess is heat, rain, mosquitos, sand, tardy restaurant service, a check engine light, a delayed flight, leaky mask, or a bird perched next to your bedroom that goes "BEEEE-YYYYOOOOUUUUU" all night long

Rick, perhaps you or someone else can make a list on how to truly spot a whiner or how to spot someone who would be or wouldn't be right for STJ. I think it's harder than people think. I have plenty of friends that seem perfect for STJ (outgoing, inclusive, positive, active, etc.) and yet, when it comes to vacations, they go for the all-inclusive, barely lift a finger resort and would be the people that say "I need a vacation from my vacation" after staying on STJ.

Groups are definitely unique, just the like the people in them. But so is STJ. Gotta love it.

[brenda]

People who get it know that STJ is basically the omelet of vacations. When it's all said and done, it's awesome and the trip of a lifetime, but you're going to get messy doing it and you might as well embrace the mess (whether the mess is heat, rain, mosquitos, sand, tardy restaurant service, a check engine light, a delayed flight, leaky mask, or a bird perched next to your bedroom that goes "BEEEE-YYYYOOOOUUUUU" all night long

54B, this quote is the best and texted this to the newbie that I am taking in November. I'm hoping that she is low maintenance! I took another newbie last year and she was the best! Not all folks are as fortunate to frequent STJ like we are and are just happy to be there .

[54b]

People who get it know that STJ is basically the omelet of vacations. When it's all said and done, it's awesome and the trip of a lifetime, but you're going to get messy doing it and you might as well embrace the mess (whether the mess is heat, rain, mosquitos, sand, tardy restaurant service, a check engine light, a delayed flight, leaky mask, or a bird perched next to your bedroom that goes "BEEEE-YYYYOOOOUUUUU" all night long

54B, this quote is the best and texted this to the newbie that I am taking in November. I'm hoping that she is low maintenance! I took another newbie last year and she was the best! Not all folks are as fortunate to frequent STJ like we are and are just happy to be there .

Nice, Brenda, love to know how your newbie friend responded to the text. I'm sure she was like, "um, do you want me to go on this trip or not?"

Vacationing on STJ is so hard to describe to the uninitiated. They always look at me like I just described a trip to the endodontist as being "the best root canal ever."

[suzanna945]

I LOVE this list. I have been to the island 6 times and will be there in a couple of days for my 7th trip. This list is entirely accurate and should be heeded to ensure a stress-free time by all!

I would, however, add a Women's Hair Addendum (perhaps it belongs under the Whining Clause): "Please be aware that during your St. John vacation, the last time your hair will look non-frizzy is when you land at Cyril King Airport, up until about the moment they give you the keys to your rental jeep. It will not look good again until you are back on the mainland. Don't even bother trying."

(It only took me until the 3rd visit to accept this as fact.)