One of our favorite MVCI properties…read more - - - June, 2025 Visit - - - My wonderful wife planned a relaxing trip for us to St. John's, US Virgin Islands (just east of Puerto Rico), in June, 2025; we had a great time... such a beautiful island! Our flights routed through Atlanta to St. Thomas, as there are no flights to St. John; you get to St. John via ferries from St. Thomas or St. Croix, USVI, or from the British Virgin Islands. The need to route through St. Thomas, coupled with the wonderful visit we enjoyed in 2021, led us to intentionally stay one overnight at the Marriott Frenchman's Cove, and we had a great time and enjoyed one a most beautiful sunset, from the floating mat at the beach. This trip we enjoyed: - an afternoon in the beach, complete with mai tais! - Dinner next door... Luna Mar at the Westin (there is a third Marriott property on the other side of the Westin; two hotels and Frenchman's cove is MVCI) - Morning snorkeling - Breakfast at the pool bar before checking our - Fantastic views from the beach and from our room - Great courtesy by the staff For more about the property, which one of our favorite MVCI properties, the rooms, and more, please see the 2021 review, below. - - - The property - - - Frenchman's Cove is built on a hillside, you arrive at the main desk at a the top of the hill; there are buildings at that level; the other buildings are built lower down the hill, and the property has its own beach. Each building had four or five floors and all have wonderful views. The buildings are colorfully painted, and look great, especially when you're in the water looking back at the shore. - - - The room - - - The rooms are standard MVCI / Marriott Vacation Club rooms: - 2 bedrooms, one king and two full sized beds - 2 bathrooms - Laundry - Kitchens with servings for 8 and all the utensils you need; refrigerator, dishwasher, stove, microwave and coffee machine.. with coffee available; just ask housekeeping for more - Patio table and chairs with a view - Note: if you leave the patio table unattended, you my return to find seagulls arrived and are some of your bacon while you were bringing out the rest of breakfast... :) - nice! Recommendation: bring a Bluetooth speaker for music. - - - The beach & Sunset Cove Bar & Grill - - - This trip we checked and quickly made our way to the beach; the day was sunny and nice and warm but not hot. The resort has a couple large floating mars that are anchored; several adults can lazily get some sun while socializing. We also had a snack at "the pool bar," Sunset Cove Bar & Grill... which offers a good selection of good for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacking in between. We enjoyed: - afternoon snack - hummus and carrots & celery; and very good mai tais - breakfast the next morning We enjoyed laying on the big mats floating in the water... you get a tan and stay wet while enjoying the outside. The night we were there, we enjoyed an absolutely beautiful sunset from the floating mat... so nice! The room has a kitchen, but since we stayed only one night, there was less of a need for groceries... so... in the morning, we had a breakfast at the Sunset Cove Bar & Grill - it was a wonderful breakfast of steak and eggs and OJ... with a wonderful view of the beach. - - - MarketPlace - gift shop and mini grocery store - - - The MarketPlace staff is friendly and helpful; they offer pastries, yogurt and other breakfast food, spices and other good for dinners and lunch and a variety of bottles of drinks, many from around the Caribbean. They also offer sunscreen and other items for the outside; and souvenirs - shirts, hats, more. - - - The surf, the lack of on St. Thomas and St. John - - - We have been blessed to visit the Caribbean a couple times and have noticed that there is not much surf, not many waves. On an early trip someone explained that the Caribbean is just at a position in the ocean where the tides are just not very noticeable; brief internet searches suggest the tide only varies from a few inches to a foot or so... such small changes don't lead to many waves. You'll likely see and enjoy hearing waves "lapping at the shore," but you're not likely to do much body surfing... if you have a boogie board, you'll likely be better off leaving it at home. - - - Thank you, Frenchman's Cove staff! - - - ----- ----- -----

Okay so this was an okay stay but, We had a few issues…read more One) if you are in search of good AC be warned this place sometimes is not the best with it. Ours was so bad we had to switch rooms not to mention the hot water in the shower not working. We let the host know and they said they would send someone up to look while we went to have dinner at sugar fin, which was long but we didn't mind. Once we got back they still hadn't had anyone look at it so we suffered one night and got moved to a new room the next morning. The AC goes to 65 but it will only get done to 74 if you are lucky. So be warned. Second) we got late check out for 1pm but we were bombard at 11am over and over again until 1pm. It was ridiculous! Took us twice as long to get out because we had to keep answering the door. Lastly three) me and my mother had a cabana by the spa pool and a spa treatment. These were short treatments but with them you get access to the spa amenities. I was shown the lounge room but nothing else, but my mother who went before me was shown nothing. She didn't even know that it was an option for here to use. These should be shown to everyone. The professionalism there is lacking. Overall the bars and restaurants were great, sometimes you do have to wait but you are on island time so it's not a huge dealbreaker for me at all. Everyone is very nice and friendly even when we needed help. Just keep in mind it is HOT and this may not be worth the price they make you pay.

The hotel room: -Dirty, so Dirty…read more -dressers missing handles so you cant open several of them -broken safe -front and patio doors, take a lot of effort to lock The pool: -no towels at the pool. You must go to the lobby/check-in and ask for towels. The front desk is NOWHERE near the pool. -nice bar and great bartender, but dont forget to take your credit card or cash since you can't charge anything to your room. Customer service: -they are at the mercy of the owners. So if you book through VRBO and they mess up your reservation, too bad, so sad. Our reservation was changed and canceled and multiplied, requiring us to move rooms while there. It was a terrible experience. Never will I ever stay here again.

This resort is so amazing and like a little hideaway from the daily life. The rooms are not that…read morebig But you really should not spend your time inside LoL the room were clean and bed was so comfortable small kitchen and a awesome balcony and did I mention the few so beautiful. We will definitely come again oh before I forget they have a onside restaurant so good I definitely recommend it order there brussels sprouts my husband normally doesn't like them, but he did eat these and said they're really good

What an amazing view! The food was good, drinks were great and the wait staff was friendly!read more

You want a fancy place with all the frills and updates...this is not the place for you…read more You want relaxation, amazing staff, non-crowded beach and pool, and immaculate vibes? Look NO further!!!! We had the most relaxing vacation. Exactly what us moms needed. We had room 220 (2 double beds) and a fantastic view. Never needed to rush to the beach to find a spot. Always had a spot at the pool. We sat at the bar most of the time without a problem. Every staff member we met was so nice and friendly (007 is a total gem!!!) - please do not listen to the negative reviews!!! Treat them like people - say "good morning, how are you today?" and they will treat you like family. Ocean was so nice, not crystal clear like Sapphire or Linquist but clean and so nice. Pelicans were super fun to watch. We couldn't stop raving about this place every minute to one another. I was there this Saturday when they had an issue with their water. I want to say - I have never seen a place go above and beyond to make sure the guests were taken care of. I'm sure you all were freaking out but you did so good at mitigating a terrible situation!!! My best friend and I didn't even realize something was wrong till it came to dinner time. We got to our room with a gallon of water and multiple water bottles waiting for us. Dinner was a buffet (really great spread). The only really "problem" was it was our last night and we were really hoping to get more of the bang bang shrimp tacos (which are to die for!!). Guess we will have to come back for them. Only real "complaint" - the rooster could be a little quieter...it is vacation spot dude lol but nothing a sound machine couldn't muffle. He really wasn't so bad, I could always roll over and go right back to sleep. Thank you Bolongo and St. Thomas for your warm hospitality! We will 200000% be back.

This has to be my favorite resort I have ever stayed. The rooms were perfect, the layout and design…read morewas exceptional. The staff was amazing and the pool side options and beach access was the best! The amenities, balcony views, pool bars and Luna Mar restaurant was everything we fantasized. There is even water stations to refill your water bottles through out the hotel. We will definitely be back.

Hotel staff was very friendly and helpful. Hotel appeared to be recently renovated and was very…read moreclean. Great views and access to the beach. The pools had kids and adult pools, which was a nice option. Fantastic cocktails at the Luna bar and poolside. I opted for the full breakfast upgrade and it didn't disappoint. Lots of none pork and vegetarian options. Taffron cooking at the omelet station was a joy and made one of the best omelets I've ever had in my travels. Would absolutely stay here again.

Beautiful view and pool to enjoy after seeing the tower-rum tasting and rum punch for inexpensive…read moreadmission-great surprise day

This was our first time staying at Bluebeard's Castle Resort, and we spent a total of 4 days there…read more Overall, it was an okay experience with some clear pros and cons. On the downside, service was pretty slow when it came to replenishing towels and other basic items we needed during our stay. We also requested a late checkout, but unfortunately that request couldn't be accommodated, which was disappointing. Parking was another issue there's no assigned parking, and spots were pretty slim at times, which made coming and going a bit stressful. On a positive note, the views were definitely the highlight. We had a really beautiful view of the bay and the city, especially at sunrise and in the evenings it truly made the stay feel more special. If you're staying here mainly for the views and don't mind a few inconveniences, it may be worth it. However, better service and clearer parking arrangements would really elevate the overall experience.

The place was adorable great views swimming pool was great early was great. I had a wonderful time…read moreexcept for the bedbugs in the downstairs apartment. They started biting me at the airport and my clothes now I have to fumigate my whole house cause I didn't realize they were bedbugs till I was home the next day and the clusters of bites. But other than that the place was beautiful also had no extra sheets or blankets for the pull out beds upstairs and the patio furniture needs replacing from sun damage

Stayed here during our one year wedding anniversary trip this past Sept to St Thomas USVI. My…read morehusband and I both liked the idea of having a kitchen so we could cook as let's face it things on islands are EXPENSIVE!! One thing that I really enjoyed was that Leah the owner also runs a car rental place on the island so she was able to pick us up and bring us back to the Villa where we had access to our car which is a MUST for St Thomas! The suite we had was awesome and just what we needed. There was a kitchen, small dining area, bedroom and bathroom. We also had our own porch where I would drink coffee (key right and coffee provided) with my little iguana friend every morning. The villa has 4 suites you can rent and the owners live in their section of the house with their dogs who were super cute and friendly. The views from both the suite and the pool which is for everyone to use were seriously stunning. I would definitely stay here if I went back to the island for

Not much 'value'. The rooms were nice enough. It's in a super busy location. There were 2 giant…read morecruise ships right out of the back of the property. The gal at the front desk tried to get us in our rooms (3 rooms total) early, with success on one of them. What frosted me was that I attempted to recover a food item left in a room refrigerator. Sent e-mails & tried the Hilton chat via the app as recommended. No resolution/response from either. $700/night for an ok room.

Phenomenal stay at Hampton Inn by Hilton in St. Thomas!!! Waking up to bay window sunsets over the…read moreharbor and Caribbean mountains was pure bliss. We had breakfast on the patio every morning served with fresh waffles, parfaits, fruit, bagels, muffins, and endless coffee. Spotless room, staff on point, and killer views!

This is our second night here and it has so far been an Irie vibe each time. The live music sets…read morethe tone the true island experience that is truly, really, relaxing! They have multiple businesses to purchase food, ZaRo k Pizza Kitchen serving up fresh local pizzas and your American favs as well. The name of this venue describes what it is, a garden. There is a lily fountain in the middle of this oasis of calm and buildings are intertwined to co-exist with mother nature, the way we dhould live. Parking is a bit limited so come early or find alternative parking, if you pay attention to your sorroundings you can figure it out. The bands that play here are very talented and play a wide range of music ensembles . The sound quality is clear and tones are well balanced. This is truly a garden. I highly recommend visiting here multiple nights, you will have a great time!

We actually ordered our wedding cake from Island Sweet Stuff which is located here. When my hubby…read morepicked up the cake he knew I'd love it so we went back. He was right, I loved it! It's so cute! Laid back, chill vibe. Music was excellent and CATS! We ended up eating dinner here but I'll post that in another review. The food was excellent. There was live music when we went and they sounded great! Definitely will be back when we are on the island.

Where to begin? I loved staying at this place whilst I was on St. Thomas. Be forewarned that it is…read morea hostel type environment, there is a bar/restaurant in the courtyard so it may be a bit noisy if they have a band playing (often), and there are a couple of private rooms but most beds are in dorms. Ok, lets go. The staff here is very laid back but very helpful. The long term guests often pitch in to help (shout out to Marsha!) with the check in/out procedures when the two owners (Abigail and Eric) have to be offsite. That said, the owners leave their cell phone numbers posted along with other useful numbers (taxis, airport transport, Wi-Fi passwords) on a board in the common kitchen area. They do ask that you provide an approximate arrival time so that they are around to check you in. I stayed in the male dorm with 7 other people. We did have our own bathroom for our dorm so that helped with keeping wait times down for showers. All exterior doors have computer pass code locks which is a plus in my mind. There is a full size kitchen for all to use with some freebies such as coffee and tea. The dorms have air conditioning which is a blessing in the tropics. They have a computer for use in the common area (did you know the Virgin Islands have some of the highest internet speeds in the United States?) and a book of tips and info about the island. The safari taxis stop across the street if going to the east side of the island/Red Hook, or a little down the street if going to to the west side of the island/Charlotte Amalie. The guesthouse is located in Tillet Gardens which is a little collection of shops and eateries surrounding a courtyard. Worth browsing around. They are also down the street from a modern strip mall with a supermarket, K Mart, and a full service post office. The only Walgreens Pharmacy on the Virgin Islands is located a few hundred feet down the road. Good place to stock up essentials and they have really cheap liquor also. The downsides if you can call them that are that you are a bit away from Charlotte Amalie and Red Hook so plan on a little transit time. There is a small parking lot if you have your own car but it is shared with the other businesses so parking might be tight. As I mentioned there is a restaurant in the courtyard that often has music so if your windows are open then you may have some noise into the night. They do have a supply of earplugs if you need them. Finally they are slowly changing their name to Tillet Hostel but things are taking a while due to the paperwork. So you may see them going by both names if you are attempting to find them online etc. If you like the hostel style of traveling then you will love this place.

After inquiring about hostels in the St. Thomas forum, or "spontaneous, budget accommodation" as I…read morereferred to it, someone responded by telling me that the only place that sounded even close to what I was looking for was called Rhoda's Guest House in Tillett Gardens. That wasn't exactly the answer I was looking for, but I decided to look it up anyways. I came across their Facebook page and started reading about their story and checking out the pictures. I could immediately tell that this place was uniquely awesome, so I e-mailed them for more information. I got a response right away from the property manager, Abigail, with all of the rates and availability and such. Everything sounded fantastic, so it was a go. Now, fast forward to present time as I sit on the plane back to the mainland... The name of this charming little place may be Rhoda's Guest House, but you are treated more like family than a guest. The hospitality that my friend and I received from Eric (owner) and Abigail (manager) was second to none. We've never felt more welcome at a hotel, hostel, guesthouse, or any other type of accommodation than we did at Rhoda's. As Abigail will explain during your tour of the property, nearly every square foot of the guest house has been completely renovated. All of the guest rooms and bathrooms are super clean and spacious, and there is A/C throughout the entire house. The kitchen is huge and fully equipped with refrigerator, freezer, stove, oven, microwave, and dishwasher. There is also a little outdoor patio with chairs and a grill. Perhaps the most fascinating thing about Rhoda's is its place in the rich, artistic history of Tillett Gardens and St. Thomian culture. I would love to be able to explain exactly what I mean by that, but unfortunately that part of our stay is not something that I could possibly put into words. The only way to truly experience something that unique and enchanting is to see it for yourself. That being said, I strongly encourage ALL travelers, whether you're on a budget or not, to check this place out. Aside from the fact that you're likely to pay more per day for valet parking at a resort than you will per night at Rhoda's, you're guaranteed two things: an unforgettable island experience and the friendship of anyone and everyone you meet inside the realm of Tillett Gardens and Rhoda's Guest House. Cheers!