Marriott Frenchman's Reef, St. Thomas

During our recent week in St. Thomas, our home away from home was an ocean view room at the Marriott Frenchman’s Reef. The comfortable, beautifully decorated room included a balcony with an amazing view of the coast and a refrigerator where we could store Diet Cokes and beer purchased in town.

The beach could be reached by stairs or a combination of stairs and elevators. While not always there in the morning, in the afternoon several large iguanas would greet us along the staircase going to or from the beach.

Because we traveled during hurricane season, the gorgeous stretch of white sand beach was never crowded. The first three days, it was generally deserted, but near the end of the week, vacationers began arriving for the long Labor Day weekend despite a hurricane watch.

On Wednesday evening, there was a Manager’s Reception, which turned out to be a casual version of a cruise Captain’s Cocktail Party. The managers all went out of their ways to come chat with us personally, and it was a pleasant affair overall.

On Thursday, we planned to take a ferry to the nearby island of Virgin Gorda, but a hurricane warning snuffed our plans. While the day included occasional rain, it was still mostly sunny, but the waves got much larger, making the snorkel visibility cloudy.

There’s a pool with hot tubs on Morning Star Beach and also up by the main Frenchman's Reef building. Everywhere we looked, there were beautiful views.

As I mentioned previously, prices for meals and beverages at a deluxe resort are frequently costly, but all the food we had here was excellent. Whether $15 at Coco Joe’s Cafe on the beach or $16 at Captain Cafe in the main building, the hamburgers would definitely fulfill Jimmy Buffett’s dream.



On Friday, we had stormier skies, so we signed up for a ninety minute tour of time shares at Marriott Frenchman’s Cove next door. The units are truly gorgeous, and of course we liked the location, but while we wanted to see what they looked like, our primary objective was to cash in their offer of $100 resort credit, which we used for dinner at Window’s On the Harbour, one of the ocean view dining rooms. Even the salesman understood we were only there for the freebie, and he didn’t even bother trying to bring in a closer or apply much pressure at the end. Before you accept such an offer, however, bear in mind that the time share offers can sound very tempting, and you might end up spending $30,000 or more on the spur of the moment in exchange for a $100 gift. If the odds didn't favor them closing a lot of deals, they couldn't make these offers.

When we arrived at Windows On the Harbour for dinner around seven, we were disappointed to learn they had a buffet on Friday evenings, with a tab of $55 per person. Most of the other diners were dressed casually like people eating at a cruise buffet on a sea day or at Las Vegas fast food. We were disappointed to say the least.

However, we asked the waitress, and she said there was a limited a la carte menu. While the other diners grazed on large portions of what was undoubtedly a tasty buffet, Julie savored Filet Mignon and I had delicious Pan Seared Red Snapper.

The next morning, we took a taxi to the airport. It cost a total of $22 for the two of us, made up in some combination of per person plus baggage cost, so you can see that the Marriott is convenient to the airport. During our flight, we could luxuriate in great memories of our hurricane season escape in St. Thomas. If you’ve wanted to take advantage of those great fall rates but feared storms, give me a call at 310-546-9618 to figure out how to limit your risk while maximizing your travel dollars. Better service leads to better trips.

St. Thomas, August 30 to September 5, 2009

When Julie suggested we visit warm Caribbean waters, because, after all, we would be in the Eastern Time Zone already dropping Amy off at UConn, I have to say I dragged my feet a bit. We had just returned from a terrific vacation in Northern Europe, and at the risk of damaging my reputation as a travel agent who will go to the ends of the earth to keep my Peeps informed (yes, I have a big following of pastel colored marshmallow animals), I must confess that I didn’t think I was ready for another vacation yet.

Once again, Julie was right. We enjoyed a terrific trip, and it made the transition of dropping my baby across the country more tolerable. It reminded us that we could enjoy the couples life, and this would just be a return to Xanadu (no, Olivia Newton-John was not there, and in fact I never saw that movie and have no idea if this reference makes any sense at all).

We also discovered a tie-in to our Northern Europe cruise from Copenhagen, Denmark. It turned out that 150 years after Columbus explored the New World, Denmark laid claim to St. Thomas and what became the other US Virgin Islands. They built sugar plantations, importing slaves from Africa to do the dirty work. As despicable as slavery is to us from our more enlightened perspective today, it had been prevalent throughout world history, and the Danes used St. Thomas as a slave trading port, too. In 1848, just a few years ahead of the United States, Denmark abolished slavery. Rather than adapt to the changing economic reality, most of the Danish plantation owners abandoned their holdings, and the island fell into economic decay.

In 1917, the United States bought St. Thomas, St. John and St. Croix for $25 million. According to the local magazine I read this in, that would have been about $300 per acre, which would have been pretty steep at the time. The US wanted it for defensive purposes in World War I, to protect the Panama Canal and Caribbean from German incursion.

We flew from the patriotic stronghold of Boston in the morning and arrived in St. Thomas that afternoon despite a two hour layover in San Juan. We rented a car for the first day so we could buy some essentials (Diet Coke, chips, bran muffins, beer and Cruzan Estate Light Rum). Before getting groceries, however, we took a drive around the island.

As my son Jay pointed out, for some reason cars on islands travel on the left side of the road. Presumably because the U.S. Virgin Islands, of which St. Thomas is a major part, are American, however, the cars are set up like American cars, with left hand drive. It’s always a little disorienting driving on the wrong side of the road, and getting into the car through the same door as we would back home means we don’t have a cue when we get behind the wheel to keep left. Nonetheless, I had no trouble negotiating the winding roads, which at least were wider than the streets in my neighborhood back home.

We drove up to Drake’s Seat, a scenic spot where it’s said Sir Francis Drake would watch the coming and going of ships in the turquoise water far below in the late 1500s. Drake, who was knighted by Queen Elizabeth I of England as a world exploring hero and considered a pirate by his victims, was apparently only interested in protecting his booty (or grabbing some more) rather than developing prime real estate, or perhaps St. Thomas would have been part of the British Virgin Islands. Not that the island was deserted when Columbus, Drake or the Danes arrived. Carib and Arowak natives, however, did not fare well upon arrival of the Europeans, who brought disease and forced labor. Then again, military strength and social Darwinism have always resulted in survival of the fittest.

Notwithstanding the ethical dilemmas of history from a remarkably different time and culture, we drove to a site overlooking Magen’s Bay Beach which is dubbed one of the 10 Most Beautiful Beaches in the World by several sources. Unfortunately, with such fame comes crowds. We drove down to take a closer look, and while it is certainly lovely, we decided we wouldn’t keep the car an extra day to return here on this trip.

On we went to the Marriott Frenchman‘s Reef, where we would stay for the next six nights in a fantastic ocean view room. Julie had been unsure about this hotel based on what she had read in guest reviews at some web sites. I always say the reviews say as much about the people as the properties reviewed, and the conditions constantly change. I’ll grant that the elevator could use some primping, and the hallway leading to our room smelled a bit musty from beach goers dripping seawater on the carpet, but otherwise, this is a terrific property. If you’re a person who enjoys great views, you’d love it, because there are many wonderful, comfortable places to take in panoramic views.

Lest there be any mistake, I sell the best land vacations as well as cruises. Call me at 866-554-5553 to book your next great vacation.