We're finally here! Creolla Villa
Jul. 1st, 2009 09:35 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
dreamsharkWe're here in St. John and have fallen deliriously in love with this incredibly beautiful little villa. I've wanted to stay here for years, but was a little nervous that I couldn't find any reviews of the place. Even people who live on nearby peaks in Coral Bay haven't heard of it (ask the guy in the Cocolobo parking lot who took our picture for us this afternoon). This is pretty amazing considering that the grounds include an ENTIRE MOUNTAIN PEAK! It's at the very tippy top of Ajax Peak Road, so I'd guess it's on Ajax Peak. However, one of the online listings describes it as Mamey Peak, so who knows? But it really is all by itself on the top of SOMETHING with the most incredible view of Coral Bay, and a pretty decent view of the sunset over St. Thomas as well.
The villa itself is small and simple, but light and airy and clean. It's not a new villa, but I mean that in the nicest possible way. I'm a fan of more mature architecture myself. In the case of St. John, I suspect that "mature" means 20 years old or so. Considering the multi-million dollar piece of property it is sitting on, I'm pretty sure if it were being built today it would have four bathrooms, a pool and central air, and rent for $5,000/week instead of the $1150 we are paying. Creolla was built in the day when nobody really thought of putting A/C in a mountaintop aerie, and it really doesn't seem to need it. The house is designed with an open ceiling so the ceiling fans circulate the air all over the house. The trade winds waft in one screen door and out the other, and it really does seem to be 5 degrees cooler at this altitude. There are no visible neighbors except for one villa on a lower peak of the same mountain that could probably see us from the widow's walk on the roof. If they had binoculars they might be able to tell if we were wearing clothes or not. Other than that, it's totally private.
The only thing I'd change is to add a few more electric outlets for all the personal electronics I need to charge up every night. However, they do have broadband wireless throughout, so I really can't complain if I have to charge my camera battery in an outlet under the dresser.
Google "Creolla Villa USVI" to see the online listings with pictures. There are several listings out there as the villa has moved from one island management service to another over the years. However, the pictures really don't do it justice. Maybe I'll manage to get some tomorrow that are worth posting.
Trip Report
The villa itself is small and simple, but light and airy and clean. It's not a new villa, but I mean that in the nicest possible way. I'm a fan of more mature architecture myself. In the case of St. John, I suspect that "mature" means 20 years old or so. Considering the multi-million dollar piece of property it is sitting on, I'm pretty sure if it were being built today it would have four bathrooms, a pool and central air, and rent for $5,000/week instead of the $1150 we are paying. Creolla was built in the day when nobody really thought of putting A/C in a mountaintop aerie, and it really doesn't seem to need it. The house is designed with an open ceiling so the ceiling fans circulate the air all over the house. The trade winds waft in one screen door and out the other, and it really does seem to be 5 degrees cooler at this altitude. There are no visible neighbors except for one villa on a lower peak of the same mountain that could probably see us from the widow's walk on the roof. If they had binoculars they might be able to tell if we were wearing clothes or not. Other than that, it's totally private.
The only thing I'd change is to add a few more electric outlets for all the personal electronics I need to charge up every night. However, they do have broadband wireless throughout, so I really can't complain if I have to charge my camera battery in an outlet under the dresser.
Google "Creolla Villa USVI" to see the online listings with pictures. There are several listings out there as the villa has moved from one island management service to another over the years. However, the pictures really don't do it justice. Maybe I'll manage to get some tomorrow that are worth posting.
Trip Report
