The Process or preparation

[BillVT]

Okay, time to get ready. When you live in the great white north and you have a two week visit to STJ beginning at the end of March, you start preparing early. At least I do. It seems to make the days go by faster and makes the porpoising of the temperatures and the emergence and disappearance of the snow cover less maddening. I thought that I would be more blase' about it when I retired but the excitement of preparing for another visit to St. John just doesn't subside.

So next Tuesday I begin tanning about every other day until we leave. That is about 10 sessions and it will give me a good base to work off of without that horrible first day in the sun, ow I must have missed that spot, sunburn. I know this is not the best thing to do and I had eschewed the idea for years. Not only was it not healthy, but dammit, it was un-manly! Finally the women in my life prevailed and the northern white boy gets his base on as much for its' benefits as for a beginning of the countdown. While I don't use it, the odor of coconut tanning solution really kicks it in.

I will soon start dragging out The Stuff. Check the snorkel gear and make sure it is all where it is supposed to be; so when final packing does start, its' absence does not cause a panicked whole house search. We did use it this summer when we checked the hull of the boat. That's another story. Does stuff still fit? This retirement may have added a pound or so since I am not running around telling people to do stuff that they were already in the midst of doing. (They're probably all very glad I retired.) So we will check for overt snugness. We will also inspect for drool & dribble marks, Candi bbq stains or any other slovenly marks that might identify me for who I truly am. If any thing fails to pass muster, now is the time to order anew.

Now we come to the checked baggage/carry-on thing. On our first trip 16 years ago we carried two huge duffel bags plus carry-ons. And maybe a cooler. In the ensuing years we've gotten down to just carry-ons and a personal bag, going as far as lopping a couple inches off the end of our flippers to fit in/on our carry-ons. With some of the airlines now charging baggage fees and the ensuing amount of huge carry-ons trying to be stuffed into overhead binds, we have settled on one checked bag and a personal bag. No more stressing about will there be room in the overhead bins for our carry-ons. We can now find our seats and sit smugly while some poor husband tries to fit a trunk sized carry-on in the overhead with someone in his party offering shrill encouragement and hope it doesn't fall on our heads in the process.

So what's your Process? When we were raising our children and those difficult moments would emerge, a close and experienced friend would explain that it was all part of the process. The word process soon took on a negative connotation. In this case, process is all good. It is all part of one of my favorite times of the year. So what is your process for heading to the rock?

[GotToGetAway]

I have an Excel spreadsheet with columns for each traveler in our family. After we've booked our next trip I go and start revising it and add or delete as things come to mind. I list out specific items (i.e. pink capris, black flip flops, phone chargers, car insurance card, etc). Then I print out the list when complete and tick off each item as it goes in the bag.
This reminds me... I better inspect my list, revise, print, and start packing!!!!

[PA Girl]

I have an Excel spreadsheet with columns for each traveler in our family.

My lost twin! Except mine is a Word document with tables for each family member and a "house" column for items such as corkscrew, bottle openers, coozies, water bottles, cards, etc.

6 weeks out - clothing check. Order or buy anything needed.

4 weeks out - suitcases go onto the spare bedroom bed. Existing and new clothing and summer shoes go into bags for later evaluation and purging. Snorkel gear and other extras also get piled here.

1 week out -
do travel docs - every traveller gets a packet with copies of plane ticket info, contact info for STJ (villa #, rental agency #, etc) to put in their luggage
put out bathroom/health& beauty bags - replace any needed travel size items
prep for cat sitter
make dinner reservations
confirm car rental

Weekend Prior - do final evaluation of clothing and gear, cross pack

[Lovermont]

Funny stuff Bill!
On the plane trip home in December, I created a packing list on my iPhone for the next trip - a year in advance! I figured it was best to assess the chronic overpacking right there and then. Plus, I have a girls' trip planned to Culebra in May, so I'm sure that my STJ packing list can be used for that trip too.
Do you ship anything in advance? That's part of our routine now that wasn't when we first started going. Of course, one of the reasons for shipping a box to STJ is that we always gift a quart of Real Vermont Maple Syrup to our very gracious hosts.
I hope you two have a great trip; enjoy your nearly month long pre-trip too!

[loverotties]

I couldn't help but smile BillVT when I read your post . I usually pack a couple days b4 we leave mostly because I would change my mind about what to bring if I did it too early . This past weekend I was at costco & they were giving out samples of their brand laundry detergent . I thought oh goody I can use these samples in STJ . I made a space in one of our closets for our STJ stuff for our trip in May We do want to buy another camera for this trip so shopping is always a must b4 a vacation . Not sure why but most of the clothes I pack for vac is always new clothes .

[Caw954s]

This is a funny thread...I love it. I also have a spare bedroom where I set out the carry on suitcases about 3 months(?) before we left and as I bought items for traveling, I would put them in the suitcases or our backpacks. Then I'd get serious about what clothes to take about a week before we left. Because of the advice from this forum I brought very few clothes, a bathing suit, a couple of t-shirts and shorts, a rash guard shirt to swim in, and one nice shirt. Seriously, I wore my bathing suit and rash guard shirt and shorts every day. I did find that the quick dry rash guard shorts were MUCH more comfortable than running type shorts. My keens were all I needed for shoes. Washer and dryer in the villa was the key to re-wearing clothes...so, next time I'm bringing even less clothes, but more coffee.

[Agent99]

I used to pack early but then realized that I'd forgotten what I'd packed then ended up duplicating some things I didn't need at the last minute.

I prep by reading this board around the holidays. It helps me catch up on island news and other's trip reports and helps me believe that vaca really does soon come. Thank God the world did not end on Dec 21 like it was supposed to. I don't think trip insurance would have helped!

I cannot believe the way we used to pack when the kids were really little. #2 son's first trip was at 4 months old. We had a big stroller, the pack and play/ portable crib, car seat, 2 weeks worth of diapers, bottles, pacies etc and that was just him. Thank heavens they did not charge by the bag in those days or we never would have done it. I can't believe we had the energy!

[hoosierdaddy]

Bill, We will be on Island at the end of March also. I have my carry on half packed. Snorkel bag checked and snuggly inside. Tanning started last week.


Can't wait!

[loria]

ok....this post is making me feel like a complete slacker .... i used to mess around with menus-- freezing with reckless abandon....making sure we had ust the right cheeses, meats, crakcers, pesto, etc, etc, then if we were travliing with the kids (as we are this trip) it was make sure the suits still fit, snorkel gear fits...that there was clothes for every possible iteration of weather , including a blizzard, since with global wamrning, hey- you never know--
but i have become progressively either more harried in other areas...and the kids are older....so...i am usually packing at 11 the night before we leave....and make it to bed for an hour before we have to hit the airport.
i am hoping to change that this go round....maybe we'll see you there-- i will be the one in the parka with two left foot flippers. browsing thru STJ spice for something to wear.

[PaminMaine]

I think the process is half the fun !! I tend to start really watching and reading the board around the beginning of fall when the weather turns cold and that lovely white stuff starts to fall AND I start a ticker, so that I can tease myself with a countdown !

A month (?) or so out I place the suitcases in the spare bedroom. Start reading feet, fins and 4wheel drive. This year I added St John off the beaten track. I begin to collect what I might wear and see if I can squeeze into last years bathing suit! Not so lucky this year.. darnit. It's a wee bit too tight. I start a 1 month tanning package to get some color on my super white sun deprived skin.

I start to plan food for the carry on Polar Bear at this time too. I like to print out the local This Week magazine entertainment section to see if we want to attend anything while we are there. I was hoping to hear the Love City Pan Dragons this year. All of this goes into the folder with the airfare info, etc.

2 weeks or so... I start to get giddy. I feel like a kid at Christmas. I recheck the suitcase. I have gotten so much better at packing. I am going to eliminate more this year. 5 pair underwear, 3-4 shirts, 3 shorts, 2-3 bathing suits ,cover ups and Keens.. thats it! Now I can squish all my snorkel gear into my carry on.

1 week before trip...................time to get the hubby motivated to pack!!!

[54b]

Bill, I'm with ya...definitely a STJ Prepper too...maybe we can get a reality show going.

Sort of similar to Lovermont, I have a journal from previous trips that I wrote notes in during my past three vacations to STJ, most of it written on the plane rides home...I usually go back and skim that and get good reminders of all those odd things you always wish you remembered to bring: Baby powder, ziplock bags, koozies, cortizone cream, name of the bug spray we like best, neat sheet, dryer sheets, etc.

Also like others have said, I use the guest bedroom to lay it all out before stuffing it in the duffle...I'd love to be a carry-on only crew, but we always need that one checked bag and I've actually weighed it at the post office on the way to the airport to make sure it's under 50 pounds.

Lastly, and this will sound sacrilegious to the "no plans" fans, but I actually make a mock itinerary of what I might do as far as activities for each day...one day may be as simple as getting up early, grabbing sandwiches from DG, going to Gibney all day, eating an early dinner at Beach Bar and back to the villa for cocktails and hot tubbing....or it may be more involved like hiking Ram Head in the morning, snorkeling at Lameshur, lunch at Skinny's, followed by an afternoon at Francis.

Will we actually follow the itinerary, not hardly likely, but in mapping out all the activities I want to do, it helps me remember what I'll need to bring to get the most enjoyment out of them....example, I have a pair of shorts i like to wear for hiking because I don't like hiking in a swim suit or bermuda shorts...so I don't forget to put those in.

Some people would call that obsessive and overdoing it, but I am definitely one of those ones that subscribes to the preparation for the trip is half the fun philosophy.

Good stuff, Bill...thanks for the original post.

[mindehankins]

He He! How fun, hearing that other people have a "process! I love the planning part!

I don't use a list. About a month before the trip, I put our suitcases in the spare bedroom (a theme, here!) and start adding things as I think of them. Much of our stuff is stored in the suitcases between trips, so it's zip lock bags, OFF lantern pads, bug spray, and that sort of thing that get added. This trip, I'll be bringing some new scalp sun screen that my daughter found after our trip in January. Hopefully, I won't need to wear the silly buff!

Two or three weeks before, I'll start making extra portions of the few prepared meals I'm going to bring frozen, and I marinate my meats and freeze my cooler contents. I make a grocery list and save it on my phone for arrival. I take photos of all my IDs and make sure I have all our paperwork/reservations together. I'll schedule just a few tanning appointments so I don't sunburn.

10 days before leaving, I start watching the Spice Cam obsessively, to assess the risk for a mosquito outbreak and because I'm dying with anticipation!

A couple of days ahead of leaving, I'll put up the sign to remember the cooler.

Just a couple of weeks now, until the guest room becomes St. John staging area

[sherban]

You guys are funny, can anyone say "OCD"?

[mindehankins]

Yes - Obsessed with Coming Down - to St. John

[Agent99]

Yes - Obsessed with Coming Down - to St. John

Perfect!!!