Westin St John Master Thread - Part 3 [Dec. 2017 and forward]

[melclark1]

Has anyone used Verizon successfully since the storms? The Verizon Map shows coverage for StJ and StT, I have a AT&T go-phone I can activate if I need to, but would rather not.

Hi Gina! We used Verizon when we were there in January. There were many parts of the island where we were on the “extended” network which allows everything at no additional charge, but there were still parts where we were roaming and parts that had no service at all. It wasn’t an issue for us in those areas because we really didn’t need our phones anyway. Hope that helps.

 

[GrayFal]

My friends have checked into what should have been my week 7 Saturday one bedroom two bath unit in building 33.

Instead they were put into the 31 Building unit 3118 2BR. They said it is beautiful and I am pleased they were upgraded to a larger unit

 

[SandyPGravel]

Hi Gina! We used Verizon when we were there in January. There were many parts of the island where we were on the “extended” network which allows everything at no additional charge, but there were still parts where we were roaming and parts that had no service at all. It wasn’t an issue for us in those areas because we really didn’t need our phones anyway. Hope that helps.

Thanx! As long as it works around the Westin so the charter company can call us if needed I'll be happy.

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[farsighted99]

Oooh Oooh. Just got space at the Westin St John through Vistana for March 14th for a week. Never stayed at St. John (only visited for the day when I was on a cruise way back when). Had almost given up but then checked today. It's a studio villa (sounds a bit oxymoron), but it's just my husband and I, so it will fine. I imagine these units are way back and high up, but just always wanted to go stay at St. John. Was dismayed when I found out about the hurricane damage and that the place had closed. Had been checking frequently since it reopened, but nothing was ever available. Our "home" is Nanea in Maui, but can't go there all the time. I imagine they will try to sell us one of these; do you get any bonus points to attend the pitch? Also, booked the direct Westin Ferry. Is it true you can use it for free to go back and forth to St. Thomas while you are there? It's a bit pricey, but looks fabulous and easy.

 

[cubigbird]

It's hard to book WSJ during high season. Even my Sunset Bay phase ownership books solid at midnight EST.

 

[DavidnRobin]

There are studios in VGV, CV and SB phases.


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[SandyPGravel]

Oooh Oooh. Just got space at the Westin St John through Vistana for March 14th for a week. Never stayed at St. John (only visited for the day when I was on a cruise way back when). Had almost given up but then checked today. It's a studio villa (sounds a bit oxymoron), but it's just my husband and I, so it will fine. I imagine these units are way back and high up, but just always wanted to go stay at St. John. Was dismayed when I found out about the hurricane damage and that the place had closed. Had been checking frequently since it reopened, but nothing was ever available. Our "home" is Nanea in Maui, but can't go there all the time. I imagine they will try to sell us one of these; do you get any bonus points to attend the pitch? Also, booked the direct Westin Ferry. Is it true you can use it for free to go back and forth to St. Thomas while you are there? It's a bit pricey, but looks fabulous and easy.

Congrats on scoring a week on St John. You could be put in the main resort or be up on the hill, just depends on where there is space. We stayed 12 nights in a studio one year, wasn't cramped. (We were in the VGV section on the hill) We personally prefer to be on the hill, parking proximity, atmosphere etc. I've never used the Westin ferry, I've always choked on the price. If you are only on St John for a week I can't imagine wasting time going over to St Thomas, way too much to do on St John. I picked up a book, Off The Beaten Path, by George Singer, before our first trip. Amazon usually has it. Great book exploring the beaches, trails and history.

Have fun, we will be on island this Friday

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[GrayFal]

Sandy, let us know where you end up. My friends went from my one bedroom building 33 to a two bedroom building 31.

 

[farsighted99]

Congrats on scoring a week on St John. You could be put in the main resort or be up on the hill, just depends on where there is space. We stayed 12 nights in a studio one year, wasn't cramped. (We were in the VGV section on the hill) We personally prefer to be on the hill, parking proximity, atmosphere etc. I've never used the Westin ferry, I've always choked on the price. If you are only on St John for a week I can't imagine wasting time going over to St Thomas, way too much to do on St John. I picked up a book, Off The Beaten Path, by George Singer, before our first trip. Amazon usually has it. Great book exploring the beaches, trails and history.

Have fun, we will be on island this Friday

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Looked again today on Vistana, nothing except a couple of 3-bedroom units. Looks like the place is mostly sold out, even at Westin.com. Speaking of which, when I grabbed that 7 night stay from Vistana, Westin showed studio villas at $1030 a night. Seriously... not sure how I ever got this, someone must of cancelled.

Regarding the ferry, I think I read that it takes forever to get from the airport to the Red Hook Ferry and you have to stand in line. Then to get on the ferry. Then get another taxi. We are coming in from a 7 hour flight; last thing I want to do is spend hours getting to the hotel. $120 RT sounds awful, but I dunno. If I'm getting a steal for the hotel (I paid $1500 maintenance fees for my 2019 week for Maui)... I can probably swing the ferry if it saves me hours and aggravation. And it brings you right to the hotel. And no dragging bags.

And I wouldn't mind one trip to St. Thomas for a bit of shopping. Used to be good. I remember buying a pair of prescription glasses there on the cheap last time.

Yeah I know, high season. But still. $1030 a night? https://www.flickr.com/gp/26238795@N04/y2J1G8. I don't get it. #ScratchesHead

And thanks for the book tip.

 

[DannyTS]

we are planning on going next year late November - early December, i see it is low season (with the exception of Virgin Grand Villas) so we will not burn a lot of StarOptions.

Would a 1 or 2 bdr be hard to get during that period? How is the weather normally going to be? I am more concerned for the rain rather than temperatures, i see it may rain 15 days a month during both November and December.

 

[SandyPGravel]

Sandy, let us know where you end up. My friends went from my one bedroom building 33 to a two bedroom building 31.

Will do. We're supposed to be in 3210 and that building is supposed to be open. I hope to be in our unit it's right next to the pool. I would hate to have to walk 50 feet to get to the pool.

 

[canesfan]

About a month ago I was looking for last minute availability for my kids Spring Break that is the first week of March. I was surprised to see a decent amount of availability at WSJ. They must of been holding back some inventory thinking it might not be ready then released it.


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[echino]

I am trying to understand how reservation windows work for owners of resale voluntary sections at Westin St. John. For example, an owner of a floating week at Bay Vista wants to reserve something else. When does the reservation widow open to reserve a week at a different type of unit in the same section, Bay Vista? Own: 2 bedroom. Want to reserve: 2 bedroom loft, same StarOption Value, same season, same section. When does the window open? 12m/10m/8m/never?

What about a different season / different unit type / more or less than 7 nights, but in the same section? 12m/10m/8m/never?

What about a different section within St. John? For example, own Bay Vista, but want to reserve Sunset Bay? When does that reservation window open? 12m/10m/8m/never?

 

[carpie99]

I am trying to understand how reservation windows work for owners of resale voluntary sections at Westin St. John. For example, an owner of a floating week at Bay Vista wants to reserve something else. When does the reservation widow open to reserve a week at a different type of unit in the same section, Bay Vista? Own: 2 bedroom. Want to reserve: 2 bedroom loft, same StarOption Value, same season, same section. When does the window open? 12m/10m/8m/never?

What about a different season / different unit type / more or less than 7 nights, but in the same section? 12m/10m/8m/never?

What about a different section within St. John? For example, own Bay Vista, but want to reserve Sunset Bay? When does that reservation window open? 12m/10m/8m/never?

If you are a voluntary resale owner in Bay Vista you can only ever book your size unit in season you own at the 12 month window.

IMO - these are the absolute worst weeks to own due to their lack of flexability. It is either use it or rent it.

 

[echino]

Can a voluntary resale owner in Bay Vista ever book a unit in a different season? For example, a Platinum week owner wants to book a week in a Gold season. No way? Aren't there "Home Options" allowing this?

 

[carpie99]

Can a voluntary resale owner in Bay Vista ever book a unit in a different season? For example, a Platinum week owner wants to book a week in a Gold season. No way? Aren't there "Home Options" allowing this?

No home options in Bay Vista ... I believe that both Coral Vista and Sunset Bay both have home options but I am not clear what the resale ramifications are for other seasons and/or sizes.

 

[echino]

So, there are Home Options at Sunset Bay and Coral Vista, but NO Home Options at Bay Vista?

 

[DavidnRobin]

So, there are Home Options at Sunset Bay and Coral Vista, but NO Home Options at Bay Vista?

Correct.

VGV: fixed weeks that can float within season - deeded - Mandatory

BV: float weeks within season with some fixed - deeded - Voluntary

CV and SB: HomeResort Options - Voluntary

Can a BV resale be reserved for another season? I do not think so - only within season. Likely tough at <8 months out since that is open to VSN reservations.



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[carpie99]

Correct.

VGV: fixed weeks that can float within season - deeded - Mandatory

BV: float weeks within season with some fixed - deeded - Voluntary

CV and SB: HomeResort Options - Voluntary

Can a BV resale be reserved for another season? I do not think so - only within season. Likely tough at <8 months out since that is open to VSN reservations.

This makes CV and SB so much of a resale advantage over BV ... at least with home resort options you can book different size rooms/durations - anybody know if there are resale restrictions of home options in season?

 

[farsighted99]

So I was surprised to see my reservation for WSJ in the Westin.com site. However, it says I have to pay $40/night resort charge. Then there is some $5/day charge for "Estimated government taxes and fees" on top of that. When I booked through Vistana, it said $25/night resort charge. So what's the story? Don't want to be charged $40 when it's $25. And why another tax? In Maui we had to pay resort charge too ($25/night)... but I thought that was it.

 

[Henry M.]

I haven’t had to pay a resort charge at the Maui Vistana resorts when staying with a timeshare reservation. (WKORV or WKORV-N. I don’t think Nanea has one either).

 

[controller1]

I haven’t had to pay a resort charge at the Maui Vistana resorts when staying with a timeshare reservation. (WKORV or WKORV-N. I don’t think Nanea has one either).

You won't pay a resort fee at those resorts even if you make the reservation as a hotel reservation. However, a hotel reservation does incur a parking fee of $15/day for self parking or $20/day for valet parking. There is no charge for self parking for a timeshare reservation.

 

[DavidnRobin]

So I was surprised to see my reservation for WSJ in the Westin.com site. However, it says I have to pay $40/night resort charge. Then there is some $5/day charge for "Estimated government taxes and fees" on top of that. When I booked through Vistana, it said $25/night resort charge. So what's the story? Don't want to be charged $40 when it's $25. And why another tax? In Maui we had to pay resort charge too ($25/night)... but I thought that was it.

Back to WSJ...
Correct $40 Resort (for Hotel Reservation) and USVI Bullsh*t Environmental Fee.

You are not in Maui...


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[farsighted99]

Actually, went back and looked at my Nanea folio from last May and actually there was no resort fee charged. However, after we left Nanea we drove to the Fairmont Kea Lani (love this place) and stayed for 4 nights and that's where we paid the resort fee. Noticed they raised their fee this year to $40 too. Sounds like it's contagious. $40 is pretty outrageous. So why does Vistana show it as $25? We booked a Studio Villa from the the timeshare company, not Westin.

Okay, so on my confirmation from Vistana: it says:

"Effective May 1, 2017, the USVI government will assess a $25 per night, per villa Usage Fee to vacation ownership guests. This fee is based on the villa being occupied and will be added to the guest folio at check-out."

so what to make of this? They just haven't updated it and we get a surprise when we check out?

And what is this "vacation ownership guests"? I haven't stayed at any other resort except my home resort. I "own" mine, but am I an ownership guest at another Vistana resort?

----------------------

Okay, so I read something else on the confirmation:

"Click here to review important resort information, including any resort conditions that may affect your stay, as well as complete terms and conditions that apply to this reservation."

I read this:

Environmental/Infrastructure Impact Fee
The USVI government assesses a US$25 per-night, per villa Environmental/Infrastructure Impact Fee to vacation ownership Guests, as implemented in 2016. This fee is based on the villa being occupied and will be added to the Guest folio at check-out.

So is this $25 plus $40 per day ??? That IS a bunch of bullshit!

 

[NNerland]

Has anyone visited St John recently and had trouble getting Night Credits, as promised by Marriott, and points for spend on property.
I personally am growing so tired of the BS trying to follow up on points. It is an absolute joke how disorganized things are and how long things take to credit to accounts. Literally EVERY stay this year has had an issue - platinum amenity credit, night credit, earn credit. Shouldn't be surprised, but what an absolute joke to loyal customers.

I called back Westin St John today and they said we see your number, it will automatically happen. It has been 7 weeks. Curious if anyone has gotten any points. I got my nights manually added, which was a joke as they denied and then actually read my email and awarded the 10 nights for my ownership stay.