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USVI Week 1: STJ 6/9 - 6/ 16
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- Joined: Mon Jun 04, 2007 12:06 pm
- Location: AZ
USVI Week 1: STJ 6/9 - 6/ 16
Hi everybody:
We just returned from two wonderful weeks in the USVI—first week STJ, second week STX. Overview: Loved, loved STJ and will definitely be back. Enjoyed STX very much and would go back someday, but somehow it didn’t seem as “magical” as STJ.
A little background: We’re a family of four, mom, dad (E), two boys ages 7 and 9. Two very good friends met us there and shared the week on STJ with us.
Saturday: Very looong travel day. There’s just no quick way to get to STJ from AZ. Two hour flight to Dallas, five hours to San Juan, ½ hour to STT, etc., you know the drill. We wanted to make the 10:00 pm ferry, and we did, but departure was delayed about 40 minutes. Caribbean villas met us with our car and we ended up getting to our villa, Dream Come True, about midnight.
Sunday: Up early. E went to Starfish Market for provisions. A bit of sticker shock at paying $12 for a gallon of oj, but, oh well. (We had brought some dry goods from home: Trader Joe’s buttermilk pancake mix, coffee, sugary cereal for the kids that I don’t let them eat at home
, TJ’s pasta shells for the kids, etc.) Had morning coffee on the verandah, a big breakfast, E snorkeled Dever’s bay. Then we went into town to take care of the paperwork for the car, bought spices at St. John Spice and went to explore the north shore beaches. Checked out Hawksnest, Cinnamon, Maho. On the way back through town stopped at Mixology. Back to villa for dinner: Grilled tenderloin filets brought from Costco at home with baked potatoes topped with olive oil and English cheddar, and grilled veggies. Yum. Kids had burgers, also brought from home.
Monday: Up early, huge breakfast before we go off to explore the Coral Bay side of the island. Centerline road over to Salt Pond beach. My little guy “rescues” hermit crabs on the walk down to the beach and returns them to the water. When we get there, only two other people are on the beach. We snorkel, climb on rocks, enjoy. By the time the beach is “crowded” with about ten people, we decide to head to Skinny Legs, where we experience our first painkillers. Back to Dream Come True and more pool time for the kids. Dinner is chicken grilled with a variety of spices from STJ spice, red potatoes microwaved till almost done, then cut up and tossed with olive oil and Cruz Bay seasoning and grilled on foil till crispy on the outside. Yum!
Tuesday: After another big breakfast, our friend dropped off E for a dive trip, then came back and we went to Trunk Bay. Didn’t make it as early as we had hoped, but still managed to get a great parking spot (last one). Stayed till time to meet E for lunch. Everyone was starving; it’s past one o’clock by this time. Tried to have lunch at a restaurant, but only one guy seemed to be waiter, bartender, cook. After almost ½ hour, the kids were getting comatose, so we bailed, picked up sandwiches and ate back at the villa. After this, we always took food with us in case lunch was delayed. Afternoon: More pool time for the kids.
Wednesday: This was our only non-beach day. Back at home, we had thought it would be cool to take family pictures on a gorgeous USVI beach. So, after an early breakfast, we arrive at Hawksnest at 7:30 with all our cameras, tripods, etc. The weather was a little cloudy, but we press on anyway and the sun came out later. Our friends were the photographers and did a great job. Can you imagine trying to get a 9- and a 7-year old to cooperate for almost 100 pictures? E set up the video to film the process and, let me tell you, it’s a crack-up to see us trying everything to get the little wiggly guy to be still. When we were done, my 9-year old wrote in the sand, “I hate photos.” It wasn’t easy, but I’m glad we did it. By the time we were finished, no one else had arrived on the beach and we were off to Chilly Billy’s for breakfast.
(Sorry to be "mysterious," but we don't like posting our kids' pics on the Internet.)
This was the big “night out” without the kids for E and me. Our friends had kindly agreed to watch the kids. We chose Zozo’s. Got there early, had dinner and then enjoyed desert upstairs for sunset. The kids were having so much fun with our friends that they were disappointed to see us back so soon, but we so enjoyed our villa, we had no desire to be out late.
Thursday: Our big trip to Virgin Gorda. Booked through Lion in da Sun. We liked it that it was just our group of six and the captain. Josh was unable to be our captain that day, so we had Jordan, who was great. By this time, we’ve discovered Deli Grotto and we take bagels and croissants so we don’t starve before lunch. Jordan said he had never seen the Baths so uncrowded.
After the Baths, we went to Cooper Island for lunch, and then snorkeled the Caves. On the way back, we asked Jordan to take us on the south side of STJ back to Cruz bay, which was really cool because we got to see the entire island this way—including Dever’s bay. This was my kids’ favorite day on STJ. Home for shish-ka-bobs made with more tenderloin brought from home, zucchini and red peppers.
Friday: Went to Jumbie Beach. Got there early to find a parking place. Snorkeled, played in the water with kids, more to-go sandwiches at Deli Grotto and back to the villa for pool time.
Dinner was pizza picked up and brought home from Roma’s. Good and easy.
Saturday: So sad, must leave. Happy we don’t have to go home yet—one more week on STX for us. Our friends return stateside, and we’re off on the seaplane to STX. But that’s another story....
Miscellaneous thoughts:
We used Christopher Taxi both ways. For the six of us, it was the same price as a regular taxi and it was nice to have something pre-arranged for our late arrival. We’d use him again.
For next time: Didn’t make it to Waterlemon—that’s a must for next time. Would like to return to the Baths, but maybe on our own to have more time there. Also, perhaps a day sail around STJ or Jost?
Villa: Dream Come True was great for our group of first-timers. Our villa wish list included pool, jacuzzi, newer villa, a/c at least in the bedrooms and walk-to beach access. We got all that with Dream Come True. We loved being close to the water and hearing the sound of the rocks rolling in and out with the tide. Caribbean Villas was fine to work with—very responsive when the water pressure was low one day. We were about five minutes from Starfish Market.
Pros:
Great view, not too buggy (the beach is rocky, not sandy, so no problem with no-see-ums). Great layout for us—two rooms on main level, one room below. Dream Come True is not luxurious, but very well-appointed and comfortable. It was kid-friendly, newer, well-maintained. Nice sized pool, nice jacuzzi. Used the grill every day. Plenty of pool-side seating. Dever’s Bay seemed very private—we saw a total of about six people on the beach during the entire week we were there. No boats come in—but saw a couple dive boats out at the mouth of the bay.
Cons:
The beds were a little hard—could use some pillowtops. Would have liked to have had wi-fi. The driveway is very steep so you need 4-wheel drive. The beach is not really a swimming beach—the water is not as calm as the north shore beaches, the entrance is rocky except at the western end of the beach and there are many sea urchins in the rocks near shore. (This was not really a negative for us, because it meant that we rarely saw people when we looked out from the villa.)
Food: As mentioned, we took a cooler with frozen meats from home. Two packages of filet tenderloins, a big package of hamburgers, three packages of turkey bacon, which my kids love for breakfast, some hot dogs, all from Costco. Put them in the rolling cooler frozen along with six bottles of frozen water. Checked the bag in AZ and didn’t mess with it again till STT. When we unzipped the cooler to get some nice cold water at the airport, the water was still frozen, along with everything else. Very easy, very worth it. We do this partially to save $$, but mostly because it's nicer for the little guys (and thus the grown-ups) not to have to be on their best behavior at the end of a tiring day.
My favorite thing I brought from home: My HydroOptix mask. I’m near-sighted and snorkeling is problematic for me. Either I wear contacts while snorkeling, (which I’ve done in the past but am not comfortable as I don’t usually wear them), or I need a prescription snorkel mask (which I’ve not been totally happy with in the past). My HydroOptix mask is WONDERFUL!! (A big THANK YOU, HONEY, to my DH for investigating and buying it for me!) It actually turns my near-sightedness into an advantage. The mask looks a little strange, but it gives me a huge field of vision and the clarity underwater as though I had on my glasses. Well worth the $$, IMHO. (Since our local dive shop didn’t carry this mask, the company sent it to us with a 30-day money-back guarantee.) Check out the website, and I’ll be happy to answer any other questions.
Our week on STJ was very special due, I think, to a combination of factors: our first time to the Caribbean, the natural beauty and uniqueness of STJ, staying in a villa that felt like “home”, spending time with and experiencing all these wonderful moments with good friends. We definitely “get” STJ.
(Sorry, this turned out much longer than I had anticipated.)
We just returned from two wonderful weeks in the USVI—first week STJ, second week STX. Overview: Loved, loved STJ and will definitely be back. Enjoyed STX very much and would go back someday, but somehow it didn’t seem as “magical” as STJ.
A little background: We’re a family of four, mom, dad (E), two boys ages 7 and 9. Two very good friends met us there and shared the week on STJ with us.
Saturday: Very looong travel day. There’s just no quick way to get to STJ from AZ. Two hour flight to Dallas, five hours to San Juan, ½ hour to STT, etc., you know the drill. We wanted to make the 10:00 pm ferry, and we did, but departure was delayed about 40 minutes. Caribbean villas met us with our car and we ended up getting to our villa, Dream Come True, about midnight.
Sunday: Up early. E went to Starfish Market for provisions. A bit of sticker shock at paying $12 for a gallon of oj, but, oh well. (We had brought some dry goods from home: Trader Joe’s buttermilk pancake mix, coffee, sugary cereal for the kids that I don’t let them eat at home
, TJ’s pasta shells for the kids, etc.) Had morning coffee on the verandah, a big breakfast, E snorkeled Dever’s bay. Then we went into town to take care of the paperwork for the car, bought spices at St. John Spice and went to explore the north shore beaches. Checked out Hawksnest, Cinnamon, Maho. On the way back through town stopped at Mixology. Back to villa for dinner: Grilled tenderloin filets brought from Costco at home with baked potatoes topped with olive oil and English cheddar, and grilled veggies. Yum. Kids had burgers, also brought from home.Monday: Up early, huge breakfast before we go off to explore the Coral Bay side of the island. Centerline road over to Salt Pond beach. My little guy “rescues” hermit crabs on the walk down to the beach and returns them to the water. When we get there, only two other people are on the beach. We snorkel, climb on rocks, enjoy. By the time the beach is “crowded” with about ten people, we decide to head to Skinny Legs, where we experience our first painkillers. Back to Dream Come True and more pool time for the kids. Dinner is chicken grilled with a variety of spices from STJ spice, red potatoes microwaved till almost done, then cut up and tossed with olive oil and Cruz Bay seasoning and grilled on foil till crispy on the outside. Yum!
Tuesday: After another big breakfast, our friend dropped off E for a dive trip, then came back and we went to Trunk Bay. Didn’t make it as early as we had hoped, but still managed to get a great parking spot (last one). Stayed till time to meet E for lunch. Everyone was starving; it’s past one o’clock by this time. Tried to have lunch at a restaurant, but only one guy seemed to be waiter, bartender, cook. After almost ½ hour, the kids were getting comatose, so we bailed, picked up sandwiches and ate back at the villa. After this, we always took food with us in case lunch was delayed. Afternoon: More pool time for the kids.
Wednesday: This was our only non-beach day. Back at home, we had thought it would be cool to take family pictures on a gorgeous USVI beach. So, after an early breakfast, we arrive at Hawksnest at 7:30 with all our cameras, tripods, etc. The weather was a little cloudy, but we press on anyway and the sun came out later. Our friends were the photographers and did a great job. Can you imagine trying to get a 9- and a 7-year old to cooperate for almost 100 pictures? E set up the video to film the process and, let me tell you, it’s a crack-up to see us trying everything to get the little wiggly guy to be still. When we were done, my 9-year old wrote in the sand, “I hate photos.” It wasn’t easy, but I’m glad we did it. By the time we were finished, no one else had arrived on the beach and we were off to Chilly Billy’s for breakfast.
(Sorry to be "mysterious," but we don't like posting our kids' pics on the Internet.)
This was the big “night out” without the kids for E and me. Our friends had kindly agreed to watch the kids. We chose Zozo’s. Got there early, had dinner and then enjoyed desert upstairs for sunset. The kids were having so much fun with our friends that they were disappointed to see us back so soon, but we so enjoyed our villa, we had no desire to be out late.
Thursday: Our big trip to Virgin Gorda. Booked through Lion in da Sun. We liked it that it was just our group of six and the captain. Josh was unable to be our captain that day, so we had Jordan, who was great. By this time, we’ve discovered Deli Grotto and we take bagels and croissants so we don’t starve before lunch. Jordan said he had never seen the Baths so uncrowded.
After the Baths, we went to Cooper Island for lunch, and then snorkeled the Caves. On the way back, we asked Jordan to take us on the south side of STJ back to Cruz bay, which was really cool because we got to see the entire island this way—including Dever’s bay. This was my kids’ favorite day on STJ. Home for shish-ka-bobs made with more tenderloin brought from home, zucchini and red peppers.
Friday: Went to Jumbie Beach. Got there early to find a parking place. Snorkeled, played in the water with kids, more to-go sandwiches at Deli Grotto and back to the villa for pool time.
Dinner was pizza picked up and brought home from Roma’s. Good and easy.
Saturday: So sad, must leave. Happy we don’t have to go home yet—one more week on STX for us. Our friends return stateside, and we’re off on the seaplane to STX. But that’s another story....
Miscellaneous thoughts:
We used Christopher Taxi both ways. For the six of us, it was the same price as a regular taxi and it was nice to have something pre-arranged for our late arrival. We’d use him again.
For next time: Didn’t make it to Waterlemon—that’s a must for next time. Would like to return to the Baths, but maybe on our own to have more time there. Also, perhaps a day sail around STJ or Jost?
Villa: Dream Come True was great for our group of first-timers. Our villa wish list included pool, jacuzzi, newer villa, a/c at least in the bedrooms and walk-to beach access. We got all that with Dream Come True. We loved being close to the water and hearing the sound of the rocks rolling in and out with the tide. Caribbean Villas was fine to work with—very responsive when the water pressure was low one day. We were about five minutes from Starfish Market.
Pros:
Great view, not too buggy (the beach is rocky, not sandy, so no problem with no-see-ums). Great layout for us—two rooms on main level, one room below. Dream Come True is not luxurious, but very well-appointed and comfortable. It was kid-friendly, newer, well-maintained. Nice sized pool, nice jacuzzi. Used the grill every day. Plenty of pool-side seating. Dever’s Bay seemed very private—we saw a total of about six people on the beach during the entire week we were there. No boats come in—but saw a couple dive boats out at the mouth of the bay.
Cons:
The beds were a little hard—could use some pillowtops. Would have liked to have had wi-fi. The driveway is very steep so you need 4-wheel drive. The beach is not really a swimming beach—the water is not as calm as the north shore beaches, the entrance is rocky except at the western end of the beach and there are many sea urchins in the rocks near shore. (This was not really a negative for us, because it meant that we rarely saw people when we looked out from the villa.)
Food: As mentioned, we took a cooler with frozen meats from home. Two packages of filet tenderloins, a big package of hamburgers, three packages of turkey bacon, which my kids love for breakfast, some hot dogs, all from Costco. Put them in the rolling cooler frozen along with six bottles of frozen water. Checked the bag in AZ and didn’t mess with it again till STT. When we unzipped the cooler to get some nice cold water at the airport, the water was still frozen, along with everything else. Very easy, very worth it. We do this partially to save $$, but mostly because it's nicer for the little guys (and thus the grown-ups) not to have to be on their best behavior at the end of a tiring day.
My favorite thing I brought from home: My HydroOptix mask. I’m near-sighted and snorkeling is problematic for me. Either I wear contacts while snorkeling, (which I’ve done in the past but am not comfortable as I don’t usually wear them), or I need a prescription snorkel mask (which I’ve not been totally happy with in the past). My HydroOptix mask is WONDERFUL!! (A big THANK YOU, HONEY, to my DH for investigating and buying it for me!) It actually turns my near-sightedness into an advantage. The mask looks a little strange, but it gives me a huge field of vision and the clarity underwater as though I had on my glasses. Well worth the $$, IMHO. (Since our local dive shop didn’t carry this mask, the company sent it to us with a 30-day money-back guarantee.) Check out the website, and I’ll be happy to answer any other questions.
Our week on STJ was very special due, I think, to a combination of factors: our first time to the Caribbean, the natural beauty and uniqueness of STJ, staying in a villa that felt like “home”, spending time with and experiencing all these wonderful moments with good friends. We definitely “get” STJ.
(Sorry, this turned out much longer than I had anticipated.)
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cypressgirl
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) STJ vacation.
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St. John Lover
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Great report. Definitely does sound like you 'get' St. John Your dinners sound yummy (especially liked the crispy potatoes finished up on the grill). But my favorite part of the whole report was the pic of all of you on Hawksnest. How precious! Great photography & well worth the time and hassle. Beautiful.
Can't wait for your STX report!
Your dinners sound yummy (especially liked the crispy potatoes finished up on the grill). But my favorite part of the whole report was the pic of all of you on Hawksnest. How precious! Great photography & well worth the time and hassle. Beautiful.Can't wait for your STX report!