posted 01-07-2005 06:45               

Thanks soooo much for your help. I am taking our (then 18mo) and both sets of in-laws, so I would really like it to be great and memorable experience for everyone!

posted 01-07-2005 17:41               

you can take the Westin ferry for $55 per person. They take your luggage at the baggage claim (and the next time you see it, it's in your villa), put you on a bus to the dock, on a ferry and get you to the resort. In addition, once you've paid for the trip (which I think is about $15 more than doing it all yourself), you can go back and forth to St. Thomas anytime you want during the week. I'll go golfing twice and I imagine we'll do some shopping one of those days.

posted 01-07-2005 17:50               

We are going in May. I know we probably CAN'T go wrong there, but I had heard, as mentioned, that some units were more recently renovated.

I also heard read from another person looking to rent his week that most 3 bedrooms have partitions, but not solid walls (only units starting with 44) between the upstairs bedrooms....can anyone confirm?

I am lining up airfare now and looking forward to it....

Getting there...Westin offers a pickup service(~$70 per person) they meeet you at the st thomas airport and shuttle you back to the resort via ferry...supposed to be very nice and pretty hassle free, so we will use that service.

Thanks, again for your thoughts.

posted 01-08-2005 10:44               

So...about the partition...if its true for the 2 bedrooms, lends credibility to the 3 bedrooms story. Not a deal breaker, but if there are some rooms with a real wall, then I would sure make an effort to get one. Maybe I'll try to find time to call Westin and find out if no one here knows...

posted 01-09-2005 09:02               

quote:

---

Originally posted by Fletcher921:
The two bedrooms have a set of three slider doors that separate them. They are similiar to big closet doors. Noises will travel between the rooms...

---

I think Fletcher was referring to the 2 upstairs bedrooms in the 3 bedroom unit. The bedrooms in the 2 bedroom units are not next to each other.

posted 01-09-2005 13:58            

I would also mention that while the Westin Ferry sounds convenient, in practice, it can be very painfully inconvenient. It runs on a schedule, like all ferries, so if your flights arrive late or are out of sync with the ferry schedule, you will spend a long time at the airport, waiting for your boat. A very long time. And there is no "private Westin Lounge" at the airport to wait in. You just sort of are hanging out waiting, with no amenities, etc.

So be forewarned, if you are traveling with children from long distances..... sometimes the Ferry from Red Hook is a much better option. Esp. if you are renting a car the whole time anyway.

posted 01-10-2005 21:03               

Shelley -- thanks for the insight. that's the hassle we are hoping to avoid!

posted 01-11-2005 08:59               

Thanks.

posted 01-11-2005 15:38            

From the internet I see that the car ferry schedule info is as follows:

CAR FERRY: RED HOOK -- ST. JOHN
Red Hook, St. Thomas to Cruz Bay, St. John
20 minute ride - Check in 15 minutes prior to departure.
Round trip: $40.00
Leaving Red Hook

BOYSON (name of the ferry): Every hour on the half hour from 6:30 am to 6:30 pm
-- Sunday: 8:30, 9:30, 10:30, 11:30 AM; 12:30, 2:30, 5:00, 6:00 pm
REPUBLIC BARGE (name of the ferry): Every two hours from 7:00 am to 7:00 pm

Leaving Cruz Bay

BOYSON: 6:00, 7:00, 8:30 am, then every hour on the half hour until 5:30; 6:00 pm
REPUBLIC BARGE: 6:15, 8:00 am, then every two hours to 4:00pm; 6:15 pm; 8:00pm (Sat. Only)

posted 01-11-2005 15:41            

------------------
Shelley

posted 01-11-2005 17:06               

Hmmmm, since we are on the topic...Anyone have thoughts on the car situation and/or grocery shopping.

We will have 5 adults and a child in car seat....so a car may be impractical. I often find on islands that a four wheel drive is the best option, but they never have any that seat 5-6 comfortably and forget about that many people WITH luggage.

Even the minivans tend to be "mini-er". Oh well, I should probably do some research before I spit oput all these questions...but if anyone has quick suggestions without going to any trouble that would be appreciated...

I just ordered a book St John book so that should rpovide some bcakground for me, but its so great to hear from people who have been already!

Stevens397...are you renting a car for your Feb trip?

posted 01-11-2005 18:25               

As I said before, we'll have a newborn with us and we've read a lot about the cost of food. We've decided to pre-order some staples like juice, mild, etc, but will send a large box down to the Westin (FedEx, I guess) with diapers (of course) and non-perishable food items - all stuff we won't have to take home. Unfortunately, the units don't have DVD players, but I guess we'll find an old VHS or two. The mailing address for packages is on the resort website. HANG ON- just found it:

YOUR NAME
Westin St. John Resort
Great Cruz Bay
St. John, USVI 00831

Give them your date of arrival.

posted 01-16-2005 17:34            

I will be surprised if you can request a specific unit since they are deeded units. That is, I own a specific three bedroom unit for a specific week.

1) Only the new three bedroom units have a solid wall between the two upstairs bedrooms. They begin with a 44. The older units have a HUGE room which is separated by an accordion style door. It provides dressing privacy, but you can hear noise. It is still really great. The master bedroom is located on the lower level.

2) There is both a grocery store and a video rental store located about five minutes from the Westin. The prices at the grocery store are higher on St. John than on St. Thomas. If you rent a car on St. Thomas, stop at the grocery store there before you take the car ferry to St. John.

3) The Westin ferry is very nice if the timing is right. Once our flight did not jive with the ferry so we were taxied to the ferry dock and had to wait 90 minutes for the ferry. It wasn't bad because we had lunch at the restaurant located near the dock.

4) We normally rent a car on St. Thomas and take the car ferry from Red Hook to St. John. However, that can be tricky. There are always cars waiting for the ferry which means you might have to wait for the next ferry if they are full. We only had that problem once when returning from St. John to St. Thomas. Also, it is not just a car ferry. . . . tankers and tractor trailers will be on the ferry with you. The round trip fee works well as long as you return on the ferry owned by the same company which you used upon your arrival. There are two or three car ferry companies which we discovered the hard way.

I am sure you will enjoy your trip. Pam