Nice Stay
Submitted: April 6, 2013
Stayed: March 2013
We stayed and Manfred and Margie's Villa Ocean's Edge between 3/28 and 4/4. Margie met us at the airport, which was VERY helpful for us as it was the first time we've been to the St. Thomas airport. We picked up our vehicle and followed her to the Villa. Word to the wise about driving on the Island. #1 - The posted speed limit is 35 MPH. Some, not all, locals drive faster than this when they can (it is hilly and very curvy). #2 - Some, not all, locals don't know how to operate their turn signals, which can be challenging when you are turning right at a stop sign and they are coming from the left side of the road. #3 - Some, not all, locals don't know what a stop light or stop sign is for. Now, of course the same can be said for some drivers stateside, but when your now driving on the left side of the road it becomes a bit more hazardous. Be a DEFENSIVE driver. Now on to the Villa. It was clean, and everything was in functioning order. The view from the main room, pool or master bedroom is FANTASTIC! Beds are comfortable. No problem with hot water in the bathrooms. Flat screens in each room and wireless works well. Kitchen well stocked with condiments, appliances and utensils. Never any problem with people noise, however, be aware that you are in a residential area (on the poorer side) and there are lots of roosters about. You know what a rooster does at 4:00 a.m?...well multiply that times three. They are loose all over so there's nothing that Manfred or Margie can do about it. If you are a light sleeper you'll want ear plugs, if you don't want to wake up that early. The location is very convenient to Red Hook where there are these great Restaurants (Pesce, ITP, Coco Blue, Fish Tails, Duffy's Love Shack). If you want a nice beach, go to the Elysian up the road. All beaches are public. The beach at the Villa is rocky. Its o.k. for snorkeling if it isn't windy. The Villa has a charm to it, and as I said it is fully functional (just call Manfred if it isn't and they take care of it right away), but don't expect it to be sparkling new. It could use a renovation. We had a big rainstorm and several rooms leaked in water. We put down towels in those areas and had a bit of a musty smell afterwards but it went away after a couple days. As I haven't been to another VRBO here, I can't say whether the nightly rate matched the value, but it seemed o.k. Overall enjoyable stay, and the Soeffing's are very nice. Recommended, but not perfect.
Recommended for:
Adventure Seekers,
Sightseeing,
Families with Teenagers
Owner's Response: We appreciate the many nice things this visitor had to say about us and our villa; but we respectfully disagree with some of his statements. Traffic in St. Thomas can be chaotic, but if you have ever driven a car in Italy or around the “Arc de Triomphe” in Paris you will find it quite tame. Wild flocks of chicken and bands of sheep & goats (and in the case of St. John: donkeys) run freely all over the island – not just in St. Thomas but all the Caribbean Islands; and they pay little attention to the average income of the neighborhoods they roam in. Most people feel that this adds to the rural & rustic character of the region. What this visitor called “the poorer side” is actually a vibrant middle class West-Indian neighborhood with a very vigilant neighborhood watch, which makes the villa a very safe place to be (when we were living there with our family we never bothered with the automatic gate or locking the front door); but by no means does our neighborhood compare to places on St. John, where Country & Western stars and other celebrities have built 20 million dollar mansions. Part of the charm of Villa Ocean’s Edge and the reason for the spectacular views is its proximity to the ocean. The waves of the Caribbean Sea practically (but not really) lap against the foundations of the villa creating a soothing sound that just lulls you to sleep at night. However, the salt spray and the corrosive power of the salt laden air create a constant maintenance challenge. This environment can make a brand new paint job appear aged within 3 to 4 months. During a driving tropical downpour a trickle of water can come in by the sliding glass doors – especially when the wind comes from a certain direction, but that is a rare occurrence. We just completed a remodel project, which besides our master suite created a junior master suite and an enlarged guest bedroom (3 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms). Most people will agree that the villa (especially in this particular environment) is very well maintained
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