Spending 4-5 nights for my birthday - anyone been to any of these resorts?
St John - Caneel Bay
Virgin gorda:
Biras Creek
Guana Island
Little Dix Bay
other:
Peter Island
Frenchman’s Cay (tortola)
Leaning towards Caneel since it’s a bit less expensive and easier to get to (fly to St Thomas rather than tortola). But the others are tempting… Looking for quiet, great beaches, some snorkelling and sailing, good food a +.
If you can afford Peter Island go there.
St John is a wonderful island. Caneel is nice a little dated imo.
4-5 days is sort of short. It takes you almost a full day to get there. As you will have to connect in STT or Tortola and then take a ferry or puddle jumper to most of those places.
What are you looking to do. Fine dining? Beach? Snorkel/SCUBA, Sail? Just chill? Also when you go is somewhat important in terms of weather.
George
Beach/sail (want to go to Jost Van Dyke or one of the other little islands)/snorkel/chill. Good food a big plus, but I know that’s not always possible, and is not a priority this trip.
Going mid-November.
Have you been to Peter Island recently? Some recent reviews have made it sound like it’s falling apart a bit…if that’s not the case it’s not ridiculously pricey compared to the others.
I have not been to Peter island but I have a friend who raves about it. Jost is a lot of fun but my favorite is a day trip to Norman island which is off the eastern end of St John South of Tortola. It can only be reached by boat. It has 2 amazing snorkeling spots called the Indians and the Caves. You can also Scuba dive the Indians if you want. There is a good restaurant on the beach at the end of the cove called the Bight and best of all there is a ship permanetly anchored (most would say run aground) in the bay called the Willy T that has been converted in to a restaurant and bar. A really great time, gets a little crazy at night. Jumping off the 2nd deck, great drinks and good food. Norman and Jost is most easily reached from Tortola as it is part of the BVIs so there are no immigration custom issues. You can also get there from STJ you just have to go through customs on your way in which is no big deal. Virgin Gorda would just be a longer ride in the boat, maybe an hour.
George
I have stayed at Little Dix- and really enjoyed it. Did rent some scooters and snorkeled the Baths- which really was amazing. We stayed in one of the little cottages right on the water- was beautiful.
Haven’t been to Caneel in forever, so can’t provide any useful advice, but in general St. John is pretty fabulous. Lots of great beaches, snorkeling, hiking and a cute little town. I think the Westin is another good choice for accommodations.
The Baths on Virgin Gorda makes a great day and if you dive, the wreck of the RMS Rhone (near Peter Island) is world class. Also, a favorite of mine from back when I lived in the USVI is a day trip to Sandy Cay. If the weather is calm it is outstanding for swimming, snorkeling, lounging on a deserted island, having a picnic, etc. click here for map.
St John is one of our favorite places. We try to go now at least every couple years. It’s beautiful and relaxing with fantastic beaches. Plenty of decent food options, although nothing that would garner any Michelin stars. You might want to consider renting a villa from VRBO as you could get a pretty nice one for the same price as a room at Caneel or the Westin. Also, if you are an experienced boater, you can rent a power boat for the day and head over to Jost or some of the other small islands. If not, there are plenty of day charters you can find as well.