St John: New Beginnings & New Special Discounts (4th Couple Stay Free!) at Great Expectations

Enjoy our July newsletter:

New Beginnings 

Steve Simonsen captured these amazing photos as baby turtles emerged to see their new surroundings for the first time on a Virgin Islands beach

I can count 16 baby turtles (which coincidentally is the same number of beds as at Great Expectations). What an amazing event! Just as amazing is planning a vacation, especially to St John, with a large group (of people, not turtles). It can - but, does not have to be - daunting! We found a blog thread recently which you might find fun, relevant, and reassuring, if you have ever traveled with a large group. RickG, a regular visitor to St John and a USVI-on-Line contributor to their forum, posted his 'Group Travel Rules for St John'. As interesting are the comments by other experienced travelers who added to Rick's list.RickG's 'How to Plan a Vacation to St John with a Large Group': 1. Don't invite a whiner. Don't invite anyone that you would not spend a week with 1-on-1. 2. I pick the villa and the week and people get to decide if they want to come. It's OK if no one wants to come with me. 3. You get to pick your room in the order that you pay. I've already paid the deposit, so I go first. This deals with the equal room problem and #1 deals with whiners (Note - @ Great Expectations all 4 Main Villa Master bedrooms are 'equal'). 4. One vehicle per two couples. Expect there to be an early group and a late group each morning. This is not a problem I get my own vehicle and my lover is in the late group. 5. Pick a beach each day you want to visit. 11 AM is a good rendezvous hour.  The late group can usually make it and the early group will have done a hike and another beach already. It is OK if no one else shows up (you do not have to be joined at the hip all week!). 6. Do some happy hours at the villa. It's cheap and 6 -8 + people is a party. 7. Do some dinners at the villa (you can even have them catered for no more than the cost of a meal at one of St John's nicer restaurants) and do some date nights. Dinner out for 6 - 8 + people is a pain in the a$$. Meet for drinks before and after dinner.

8. Expect to spend a day without leaving the villa. Start the blender at 10 AM, put sunscreen on all exposed skin first. 9. Put $100 in the food kitty for initial food/drink provisioning. If someone is concerned that they won't spend that much and want differential treatment, that breaks rule #1 - they don't get to come. $800 will cover food and booze for a week.Some of RickG's lessons learned: -If someone whines at home, they will whine on St John (STJ). -If someone pitches in at home they will pitch in more on STJ. -The herd moves at the speed of the slowest beast. -Don't be afraid to say "I'm heading out. I'll be back for sunset." -Newbies will assume the villa is on the beach, even if you tell them otherwise and show them pictures. If they can't get over this, they stay at the Westin. -#1 takes care of almost every possible problem.

Some additional 'rules' added by others were: 1.  Let everyone book their own airline tickets. 2. Some people assign the days to have a different person responsible for each dinner (or planning the activities for the day). 3. Don't feel as though you have to be joined at the hip. It is OK to go off on your own to explore STJ.

The most important common thread was the 'no whiners' aboard. We know that it can be hard to do the planning for a large group but, we also know how much fun it can be to vacation with a group of friends.

This is why Great Expectations has just added a new discount to our family of 'specials' (Bride & Groom Stay Free!, Grandparents Stay Free! Active Military Stay Free!). The new special is specifically for groups of couples traveling together. See our website for details:

                             4th Couple Stays Free! when accompanied by 3 or more couples

We hope that this will make the planning for your St John vacation a bit sweeter (and more affordable) for all.

July St John news flashes & fun St John clips:

• St John's 2013 Carnival was a great success again this year. This year's Festival Parade was colorful as usual. The winners, by category, were detailed in the St John Tradewinds and captured in this video by Virgin Islands Source.
• Delta and Jet Blue are expanding service to the US Virgin Islands. This winter Delta will have more direct flights to St Thomas including a daily flight from JFK to St Thomas. In addition both Cape Air and Seaborne Airlines are expanding their service from Puerto Rico to St Thomas.

• Speaking of airlines, News of St John recently had a great posting about 'Finding the Best Airfare to St Thomas' we thought would be of interest.

• Fodor's Travel Guide published its 'Top Reasons to Go to St John' including: beach hopping, hiking Reef Bay, Snorkeling at Trunk Bay, Relaxing at a Villa (we like this one the best and have a great villa to recommend!), and exploring Cruz Bay.
• Popular Cruz Bay restaurant ZoZo's will serve its last meal at Gallows Point this coming Saturday. Fret not though it is not closing but, rather, as of November it is just changing its vantage point for fabulous sunsets and panoramic views of Pillsbury Sound to the enchanting Sugar Mill Restaurant at Caneel Bay. We are now all waiting to see what will take its place at Gallows Point.
• Ever season the restaurant scene changes on St John and this year is no different. The successful Sun Dog Cafe owners are branching out and will open the Virgin Fire Bar & Grill Restaurant this fall in the Mongoose Junction space that housed the former LaPlancha del Mar restaurant. The owners promise to feature foods that are grown or inspired locally, hence the name.

• Great Expectations has a few openings during 2013 (summer and fall) and we are offering them at great savings so take a look our last minute specials. If winter time is your preference to be on St John, do not dilly-dally since our calendar is already filling up for next winter (and spring).Contact us today to secure your week on St John.

Best,

Kristin & Chuck 

owners of Great Expectations

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Get it on tonight! Beach Jam 2013 on St John...It is Carnival Baby!

The complete St John Carnival schedule for 2013...if you cannot make the Beach Jam hopefully you can make it to one of the other fun events over the course of the next several weeks. It is a great time to be on St John!

St John Carnival 2013 Schedule of Events - This Year's Theme is "Come and Explore the Culture Scene for Festival 2013"

If you have questions or want more information about any of these events you should contact the Festival Hotline at 340 690-3692 or 340 690-1725

These are just for you if you love the colors - and views - of St John

Hot off the press the January newsletter from Great Expectations:

Artist Sloop Jones captures the beauty of the St John sunrise
on his 'canvas'

Photographer Steve Simonsen uses a camera to as his 'canvas'
to capture the sunset's colors
 

Both Sloop Jones and Steve Simonsen are passionate about their respective crafts about the beauty and colors of St John. Sloop is an artist who captures the colors of St John on anything 'wearable and useable' whether T-Shirts, dresses, hats, rugs, wall hangings, or banners and signs. Rather than a paint brush, Steve Simonsen uses a camera to create his art. Steve often takes to the skies (in an airplane or helicopter), water (diving or boat), or the beach or hills of St John to capture his pictures. His fabulous photography can be seen on the covers of travel magazines, walls of cruise ships, or art galleries around the world.

Both Sloop and Steve offer workshops aimed at giving you a peek into their worlds and helping you capture the magic that is St John:

Sloop Jones Workshops: Every Tuesday morning from January - April, 2013. Classes are limited to 6 people to ensure that everyone gets a good deal of Sloop's attention.

Steve Simonsen Workshops: Scheduled sporadically (it is the islands 'mon) are workshops on Underwater Photography, Snorkel, Tropical Light, and Beyond the Basics. Steve looks for groups of 6 people for his workshops. This weekend I am attending the Beyond the Basics Workshop with the hopes of being able to capture in a lens the beauty I see through my eyes.

OK, assume that you have worked all morning at one of these workshops, what better way of relaxing than spending the afternoon in our new pool:

Watch the clouds float over St John from our new pool

January St John news flashes & fun St John clips:

• Once again St John makes several 'Best of' lists. Travel + Leisure launched its first annual 'Beach Beach on Earth' survey and after much debate identified the top 30 best and several Virgin Islands beaches made the list including St John's Trunk Bay in the 'Best for Wildlife Watching'. The Toronto 'The Star' newspaper/blog declared that St John is THE Caribbean island to explore.

• The latest issue of St John Magazine is now available and the reviews are terrific (maybe the best yet!). Each year, MaLinda Nelson outdoes herself to produce an issue that is fresher, bolder, more interesting, and more beautiful than the year before. The 2013 issue is just that! Steve Simonsen's fabulous photography captures St John's magical beauty and Amy Roberts captures, in words, the turmoil in our plantation years. Come to St John to buy one yourself or, if you must order on-line contact MaLinda directly. 

• News of St John (a wonderful blog) had a great posting about how to prolong the 'St John buzz'. We have great musicians on the island and always have lots of live music options available. Several of the groups have put out their own CD's so you can hear St John even when not here. Here are just a few: Inner Visions (for Reggae), Victor Provost has perfected steel drums & pans, and Marty Beech who you can hear at Caneel Bay's Turtle Bay where he sings songs of Frank Sinatra. Best to come to St John to hear these folks in person!
   
• Carnival season has begun in the Virgin Islands. St Croix ends the 'old year' and starts the 'new year' with its Festival. This year's activities were, as usual, spectacular. The next Festival will be on St Thomas during the month of April. St John rounds out the activities for the Virgin Islands with its Festival activities (our favorite) which are scheduled during the last couple of weeks of June and culminate with food fairs, parades, and music during the first week of July.
   
• Rumored for years but it finally happened: Maho Bay Campgrounds was sold! Just as the clock struck twelve on the old year, the deal was sealed so says the island's rumor mill. No one knows for sure who the buyer of the spectacular site is for a steal of a price ($13.9 million), but we can all hope that it is someone who appreciates the beauty of St John who believes in preservation. The Campgrounds is open until May 15 after which they plan the biggest 'garage sale' in the history of St John. If you are interested in a propane burner, tent, table, or other camping gear contact the Stanley Selegut, the owner of Maho Bay Campgrounds, directly.

• Beau Geste, the Guest House of Great Expectations, is currently available for 10% off from Saturday, February 16 - Sunday, February 24 (President's week). Beau Geste has 3 bedrooms, including a connecting bedroom, swimming pool and hot tub, and, of course, fabulous Caribbean views. Contact us today to get out of the cold!

  Enjoy the holidays and we hope we see you at Great Expectations or Beau Gestein the new year!

Best,

 

Chuck & Kristin

owners of Great Expectations

P.S. While Great Expectations is already booked most of this winter, we have a five night opening in March (check out our March Madness Special), 5 night opening in April, and then no  availability until May. We are already taking reservations for 2014, so contact us soon  for your choice dates.

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Since St John has such fabulous photographers we just had to post more St John Festival photos

You just cannot get too much of a good thing when great colors, costumes, and photographers are involved so here are a few more pictures from last week's St John Festival parade.

One of the island's best photographer is Steve Simonsen who once again captured the beauty of the parade.  Here is one of his photos:

The smile says it all and the Virginislandstv.tv captured this one perfectly:

Best Island Fete captured this ferocious lion:

Did you capture any great photos? If you missed this year's Festival why not plan to attend next year!  

The next Festival in our 'hood will be the BVI Festival which starts next week and runs for the next month.  Always a party in the Caribbean.

More St John Festival Parade pictures

St John Moko Jumbies having fun (photo courtesy of Y Rogers)

Yelena Rogers took some amazing photos of this year's St John Festival Parade and has shared them on her Facebook Page.  It sure is worth checking them out... 

The Costumes were spectacular (photo courtesy of Y Rogers)

What is not to like? Fun, despite the ocassional rain!

St John Festival closes with a bang!

St John a little island and usually way laid back but we come alive during St John Festival season and especially during the finale of the Festival which coincides with July 4th!

The parade this year was peppered with rain but that did not dampen the spirits of those attending or dancing as can be seen by Steve Simonsen's fabulous photo:

And, once again, the Westin Troupe had a great time despite the rain:

Westin Troupe (photo credit Ronnie Lockhart)

The very young even got into the action (photo courtesy of VirginIslands.tv)

With the fireworks the month long celebration came to an end.

Tropical Focus Photography's Bob Schlesinger captured this amazing shot over Cruz Bay

 And, now on to planning for St John Festival 2013!

St John Festival banner (photo courtesy of Cruz Bay Realty)

Who could resist the Johnny cakes, pates, & other finger-licking good foods of St John Festival's Food Fair?

St John Tradewinds reports...

Written by Jaime Elliott

Most people tried a bit of many fabulous dishes (photos courtesy of St John Tradewinds)

Heart pumping good food

Gwendolyn Harley, the 2012 Food Fair honoree, appears with her award winning dolls

Hundreds of people, including Lieutenant Governor Greg Francis and his wife Cheryl, braved the summer heat and packed the Cruz Bay waterfront on Sunday afternoon, June 24, for annual the St. John Festival Food Fair and Coronation. Tents loaded with local delicacies including everything from conch in butter sauce and dove pork to stew mutton and seafood kalallo lined the waterfront street which was closed to traffic for the day.

People of all ages stood in line angling for homemade ginger beer, passionfruit juice and mauby to keep cool while waiting for their meals from the island’s very best cooks who had prepared their best dishes for the annual event. The crowd gathered under sunny skies in Frank Powell Park for the festivities which included musical selections by Love City Pan Dragons and Wrection Band as well as the St. John Festival Royalty Coronation and recognition of this year’s Food Fair honoree Gwendolyn Harley....Today Gwen’s Dolls, as well as a series of island animals like iguanas and donkeys she created, are highly collectible pieces which have won awards across the U.S. and British Virgin Islands.    read complete story and see more photos...

Also, check out the News of St John blog posting and more pictures about the Food Fair.  Fun photo collage. 

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If you missed this year's St John Festival Food Fair, promise yourself to be there next year. Start planning your St John trip now!  The entire month of June is a treat but the last week is especially packed with activities with the not-to-be-missed parade (and fireworks) on July 4.

St John Festival goes glam with Queen Selection Show

St John Tradewinds reports:

Created on Friday, 22 June 2012 Written by Jaime Elliott

St John Tradewinds photo of 2012 St John Festival Queen Contestants

Five of these lovely young ladies, above, will take to the stage on Saturday night, June 23, at Winston Wells ball field for the St. John Festival Queen Selection Show, starting at 8 p.m. Contestant #6, at far left, dropped out of the competition due to personal reasons. (L to R, excluding far left) Contestant #5 – Shanell Thomas, Contestants #2 – Clarissa Doyling, Contestant #4 – Khadijah Athanase, Contestant #3 – Shelsea Jean and Contestant  #1 – Sheniqua Davis

Get ready to for a night full of glamour and glitz when the St. John Festival Queen contestants take to the stage for the Queen Selection Show on Saturday night, June 23, at Winston Wells ball field starting at 8 p.m.  The night will feature music by Cool Session Brass Band, dancers and more as five beautiful young ladies will strut their stuff in swimwear, active wear, ball gowns and show off their model walks and talent.

Eighteen-year-old Sheniqua Davis, Contestant Number 1, graduated from GHS in 2011 and just completed her first year at the University of the Virgin Islands where she is pursuing a degree in accounting.  “I’ve loved math ever since the second grade,” she said.  Davis was inspired to join the competition in order to push herself, she explained.  “I wanted to get out of my comfort zone,” said Davis. “I am an athlete and played a lot of basketball, so I wanted to try something different.”  The best part of the experience for Davis has been getting to know her fellow contestants, she added.  “It’s been a lot of fun,” Davis said. “The best part is learning new stuff and being around the other contestants.”  Davis has been working hard and practicing every day with her chaperones Ywardia Wesselhoff and Tasheda Kelch, she explained.  “I’m really excited for the show,” said contestant number one. “I’m trying not to get nervous.”

St. John Queen Contestant Number Two is Clarissa Doyling, a 17-year-old who just graduated from Ivanna Eudora Kean High School. Doyling plans to attend Florida State University in the fall where she will work towards a degree in meteorology.  “I have always been fascinated with weather ever since I was a little girl,” said Doyling. “I have always wanted to be a meteorologist and I’m excited to follow my dream.”  Doyling threw her hat in the St. John Festival Queen ring in order to inspire others, she explained.  “I joined the competition because I wanted to be a role model for other girls in my school and my community,” said Doyling.  Contestant number two had some advice for future Festival Queens dreaming of running for the title.  “Keep your head up and stay in school,” she said. “Respect yourself, because if you don’t, no one else will. And always be yourself.”  Working daily with chaperones Tamika Santos, Kevin Swanston and Christopher Rivera, Doyling is excited to take to the stage on June 23.  “I’m a little nervous, but more excited,” she said. “The best part of this whole experience has been learning the dances and getting to know the other girls.”

Recent Charlotte Amalie High School graduate Shelsea Jean is Contestant Number Three. The 18-year-old is looking forward to heading off to Clark Atlanta University where she plans to study early childhood education with a goal of opening a day care center one day.

Jean grew up watching Festival Princess and Festival Queen selection shows and dreamed of being on stage herself one day, she explained.  “I’ve been watching the shows for years and I’ve watched all the contestants and seen how confident they are,” said Jean. “I loved the gowns and the dances and thought, ‘I want to do that someday.’”  Jean is most looking forward to two segments of the Festival Queen Selection Show, she added.  “I’m excited for the International Wear segment and the Talent segment,” Jean said.  The best part about the experience of running for Festival Queen for Jean has been practicing with her chaperones Loren Abramson, Shatik Stevens and LeeAnn Oquendo, according to contestant number three.  “Through all of the hard work and all of the practice, you really learn a lot about yourself,” she said.

Khadijah Athanase, who just graduated from Ivanna Eudora Kean High School, is Contestant Number Four in the St. John Festival Queen Selection Show.  Athanase is looking forward to attending Savannah State University in Georgia in the fall where she plans to study psychology.  “I want to be a social worker one day and come home here to help my community,” said Athanase. Contestant number four has been enjoying dance practice, she added. “The best part is the great exercise you get,” said Athanase. “It’s a lot of work running for queen, but it’s a lot of fun too. It all pays off in the end.”  Athanase had a few words of wisdom for future queen contestants. “Go for it,” she said. “This experience will help you in the future.” Athanase has been working hard with her chaperone Nya Edward Marsh, who is also her aunt.  Read more...

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Tomorrow (Sunday, June 24) is the very popular Food Fair!  Save up your appetite it will be worth it!

St John Carnival Schedule cries music, music, music!