I've never stayed there and have been unable to find any reviews. For what it's worth, I think its been recently rennovated. If you do select this property, rent through Carefree Getaways instead of Great Caribbean Getaways. Carefree has a much better reputation for service and were always nice when I've spoken with them. Do ask careful questions so you'll be satisfied with your choice. It is an older home, so I would have thought someone had rented it. maybe you'll get a better answer than mine.

Hi cliffnchristi.... I can't offer info on this house, but having just spent our first 'extended' stay (2 weeks) on STJ in June I would offer this...if you enjoy the Cruz Bay night life, restaurants, shopping, etc. and just walking around town...you should strongly consider staying someplace that is within walking distance because although we rented a car for two weeks (which you really must do to get to all the fabulous beaches on the island) you don't want to try to drive and park in Cruz Bay in the evening...actually, I didn't want to drive on the island at night anywhere just because driving those hills and curves was enough of a challenge in broad daylight! I loved getting up really early and walking to town, grabbing some coffee at "Everyting"...wish I were there right now ... anyway, places like Gallows Point, Lavender Hill, there are several villas/condos on Enighed Road, etc... I am sure others on this message board have much more insight to accomodations, but that's my thought.... OH..BTW..we hope to be there again next June too... maybe we can meet up! Have fun planning your trip... it's what gets us through the year just looking forward to the next time we get to STJ!

I've heard of Great Caribbean getaways, and I think they usually handle villas in Coral Bay. It's the quiet/far side of the island.
When I was there, the gas station was closed because they couldn't get any Domino gas.
Carefree Getaways are nothing special when it comes to property management. A properly managed property will mean that you never need to speak to the company, which isn't my experience on STJ in June. Don't go out of your way to use them if you stay at this property.
I agree with Cindy regarding the advantage to staying in Cruz Bay. The only problem with staying in town is the noise and lack of privacy. There is construcion going on directly next to Lavinder Hill right now, and it looks like they're going to be there working for awhile (big condo complex going up). I've stayed at Gallow's point twice and loved it. Look for a discount deal, since it's rather expensive these days! You can rent a car for 1/2 the stay and save $70 a day on jeep rentals.
Most rental villas are on the South side of the island and only 5 mins. from town and 15-20 mins to the North shore beaches.

Mike - What property did you get from Carefree Getaways that caused a problem? Did they fail to resolve it? I always figure the quality of property manager shows best in how they handle problems, or fail to do so. I've read about the problems with Great Caribbean Getaways, but this is the first I've heard about problems with Carefree.

I rented a villa named French Cap.
Check out the topic - Carefree Getaways - Not so carefree
It was pretty poorly maintained.

Thanks Mike. I was in Costa Rica when you posted that so I missed it.

Hi CliffnChristi,

For what it's worth, we rented from Great Caribbean Getaways year before last (about 16 months ago), and they were just fine to deal with. (We've not rented from Carefree, so have no comparison to them.) When we rented from GCG, we stayed in the Merryhaven home, high atop Bordeaux Mtn. and found it stunning with fantastic views, even if it was windy as all heck. So, this was a while back and only one experience, but like I say we didn't have any bad feelings about their service to us.

FWIW, Just to balance some of our other friend's perspectives on where to stay, at this point I think I'd much prefer NOT staying in Cruz Bay, though you certainly get nice proximity to restaurants and shops. But for my wife and me, we prefer a bit more quiet and tranquility, and don't necessarily want a dinner in town every night. So to each our own... Anyway, I wanted to voice the perspective that staying out of town is also great, it's just a matter of matching what you want with where you want to be.

Sigh. March seems a long time ago, and I'm really pining for STJ now!!!

Thanks, Dave!
We actually ended up renting the villa from Carefree. Mike's comments have kinda got me freaked out, though. Although I feel bad that he had a bad experience, I hope his experience is an isolated case and that we won't be disappointed.

I just figure "heck, we're in St. John, how bad could it be?" Can't wait for next June.

Bad experiences happen, though Mike seemed to have a whole bunch. I rented a house in Cathrineberg and had no phone for 3 weeks. Everytime I needed something from the rental agency, I had to go into Cruz Bay and use my cell phone to call them long distance! (Had I tried that at the villa, I would have had all those problems discussed below about BVI service.) This list of bad things that have happened in houses I've rented here and elsewhere is pretty long. But when you have a week and you need a break, it is very upsetting. Hope you have a great time and get to completely enjoy St John!

we just treturned from St. John and Meritage and it was nothing short of PARADISE. we have been to many islands and stayed in wonderful places- this was by far our best experience. The house itself is wonderful- the pictures you have seen speak for themselves. The place is very eclectic in the decorating- which is what we wanted. The decks are are wonderful. The bedrooms are located on three different levels- which give you a lot of privacy. The common area is not huge but more thas ample- there is no AC in that room- but 2 large ceiling fans. We did go at a very hot time- but definately had no problems with the heat beacause everything else was so magical. The pool itself is also not huge, but we had no problem with our party of 8 enjoying ourselves in it.
A few suggestions- the roads to all of these places are narrow and windy- a few nights when we wanted to go out and party a little hardy, we parked our cars at the WEstin and took a taxi into Cruz BaY( $3 per person) Parking in town is also tough- so this helped. Our favorite place to eat was Rum Line- the food is out of this world ( $20- &25 an entree). We also took a day boat trip with Ocean Runner- small boat with our own captain (Dustin). We snorkeled at the most beautiful spot we have ever seen and then had lunch at Willy T,s- a big old boat anchored at Norman's Island. It was a trip we will nevbr forget-( it ran us about $600 including gas- and you must pay per person at customs). Be sure to bring your passports.
In closing- I am sure there are fancier- larger places than Meritage- but this is exactly what we wanted- and we will be back...

I had a hard time deciding which rental company to go with so I let my travel agent decide. She books a lot of trips to STT & STJ. (also has done a ton of weddings) She always goes through Villas Caribe or Creative Leisure and has found that if they dont carry a house, it usually means there are some sort of problems with it or it gets a lot of complaints.

I really wanted a home I found on Island Hideaways, (I also found it on many other websites but not either of the ones I listed) but my TA was hesitant to book through one of these companies she has not worked with so I started researching myself. I called companies and would ask if there were any known problems/complaints to this particular villa. I said I wanted a guarantee of no problems. One company said they would research and e-mail. Guess what my e-mail said 10 min later?? We do not reccomend you rent this villa from us b/c of the following complaints of displeased renters... A leaking pool, several power outage problems, and no working A/C (which is an amenity listed). Could you imagine paying $9000 for 7 nights of no power? (that was the cost of this home)

I found it VERY helpful to call several companies that list the home you want and ASK QUESTIONS!!! I would hate for you to have a miserable trip. When I told my TA the info I found out it was hard for her not to say I told you!!!

Thank you so much for this report. I kept thinking in my mind "what if we get there and this place is a dump?" Thanks for putting my mind at ease. Can't wait to get there. June seems so far away!

Hi, I am the property manager for Meritage Great House and Meritage Cottage. I just came across these comments and wanted to address some of them:

First of all, thank you to "50th Birthday Family" for your kind comments about Meritage. We always love to hear them!

As for the comment from "april9" dated 8/9/05: Meritage rents for $5300 during holidays, which is the highest rate ever offered for this house. She wrote that it rents for $9000...I wish! We have in the past had a leak in the pool (it happens!) and yes, Island-wide power outages are not uncommon, but usually do not last very long (a few minutes to a couple of hours, usually). The power has never gone out for 7 days (except for after a hurricane...), nor has the A/C ever been broken for 7 days. My point is: perhaps she or the rental company she mentioned had Meritage confused with another house.

We are always quick to respond to any problems that occur at Meritage (as most rental managers are). We cannot guarantee that you will not have any problems during your vacation (no one can!), but we can guarantee that we will do our best to resolve any problems that do occur in a timely and efficient manner.

Hi Kendall!
Thanks for your comments about Meritage. I think you are the person Moe told me will be meeting us at the ferry dock and taking us to the villa!!!! Look forward to meeting you in a couple months. Can't wait to get there!

my bride and i stayed on tamarid near meritage twice fall 2004, in villas sundance and moonsong, you'll pass both on way to meritage they are just past first hairpin curve on tamarind. views are fantastic and if you'll try dinig on deck early in your stay (stop by starfish or simple feast for food and spirits), you'll probably spend most evenings doing the same. it's magical watching sunset, then st thomas light up and finally the stars aglow overhead.if winds out of south/southwest ther will be more surf at hart bay that you'll hear in the still of the evening.

get kendall to show you the path down to hart bay, little tricky but worth the walk if you snorkle.

have fun.

papabou

Thanks for the info, papabou! Sounds awesome. We'll be sure to take your advice on the dining outdoors and the walk down to Hart Bay! Can't wait for June!

Christie, just returned from the V.I yesterday....miss it already!!! Me and my bestfriend went, her first time and my second. Stayed on the water in boats and snorkeled every chance we got. Just responding to let you know that no matter where you are in the USVI you will be happy!!! Praise to Bolongo Bay Beach resort!!!! We love and will return again and again!!!

Have a great time wish I was going back tomorrow!!!

Janae

Interesting...we've been renting villas in St. John for 17+ years and have gone through several of the very good on-island villa rental companies (never a problem with any of them) and I've never even heard of Creative Leisure or Villas Caribe! Perhaps your TA gets some kind of add'l 'kick-back' from them?

Ok, I did an online search specifically for them and neither of them are on-island villa management or rental companies but rather Caribbean-wide wholesalers. Which means that any villas booked through them are actually managed by different management companies on St. John, who will end up greeting you and being your on-island contacts while you're there.

Also, neither of their lists of St. John villas are very exhaustive (to say the least). The truth is that if they don't carry a house, it doesn't indicate any problems or complaints with the villa but rather that the villa owners don't want to have to pay both a 20% commission to their on-island management companies and a 20% commission to the wholesalers as well! (Which in reality usually translates into a higher rental rate for anyone who books through these sites). If you do a quick search, you'll notice that often the rental rates on these 2 sites are higher for the exact same villa than if you book them directly through their on-island management companies. Same villas just different costs!!!

Hi cliffnchristi,
We'll be staying at Meritage for the first time at the end of August and will be most anxious to hear about your experience. Hope you'll post it. By the way, this will be the third time we've used Carefree Getways and we've always been more than pleased. You didn't say when in June you'd be there, so I hope you have, are having or had a great time! St. John is truly paradise; we've tried other places, but go back again and again.