An amazing time

Guest: KatnClay (Atlanta, Ga)
Date of Stay: 07/26/08 Review Submitted: 08/14/08

We stayed at the Meritage Great house for 8 days and had a wonderful time. We are in love with St. John. Every morning we cooked breakfast and then set out for the beach. We would either go out for dinner or grill out on the deck. The view from the house is beautiful! We found the house to be very cozy and comfortable and took full advantage of the pool and hot tub. The owners were very nice and we would recommend this place to friends. We might try to come back next summer with friends.

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, sightseeing, adventure seekers, girls getaway, age 55+, families with teenagers.

Meritage @ Chocolate Hold

Guest: Erin (Savannah, Georgia)
Date of Stay: 11/19/11 Review Submitted: 11/28/11

When we arrived on St. John we were greeted by Sinbad the property manager. What a great guy! He took us to the house, gave us a tour, and introduced us to our first Rum Punch of the trip! The house was exactly what we were asking for. The views from all floors were great. The pool and spa were clean and had great views. I would absolutley recommend this house to everyone. The location was a short drive to Cruz Bay where we went frequently. It is a short hike down to Hart Bay for the adventure-seeking types. Overall we were very impressed with this house and would return again!

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, sightseeing, adventure seekers, girls getaway, age 55+, families with young children, families with teenagers.

Beautiful Home and Location

Guest: Katrina & Carroll (Christiansburg, VA)
Date of Stay: 10/01/11 Review Submitted: 10/17/11

My husband and I just returned from an amazing weeklong stay at The Meritage Great House. It is a beautiful home in a perfect location. It was wonderful working with the owner Christopher. He was most friendly and helpful. Sinbad, who manages the home was great as well! He promptly met us at the ferry dock and led us to the home. He shared a delicious tropical drinks with us, gave us the grand tour and told us to call if we had any problems. The views from this home are awesome! We loved the twinkling lights of St. Thomas at night. Also loved the stone and shell shower with a window in the master bath!! Having a pool to cool off in anytime was great too! This home is in such a perfect, central location! Very close to downtown and the North Shore beaches (which are spectacular by the way!!!). The Meritage Great House is in a nice quiet neighborhood. The landscaping (which the owner has obviously put a lot of work into) is beautiful, lush and tropical. I would not hesitate to recommend this home to anyone. Definitely rent a jeep! We rented our jeep (a brand new 2011 wrangler) from Discount Car Rental on St. Thomas (you should too). They were great: friendly, fast, best price, allow you to take the car on the barge to St. John, and remove the top if you chose to. Best of all, if you have mechanical troubles, no worries, they will send a mechanic to St. John. All in all, a perfect week in paradise!!

Owner response:Thank you Katrina & Carroll for your kind remarks about our villa, Meritage. It is nice to hear back from guest and know that they appreciate all the work and effort necessary to keep up a property in such condition. We hope you will return again soon! Chris & Esther Rosbrook

Recommended for:

Wonderful house, wonderful location

Guest: Mary L. (Boston, MA)
Date of Stay: 04/17/11 Review Submitted: 05/01/11

Our group was 2 families which included 4 kids, ages 4-11. The house was clean and comfortable, with fantastic views from the wonderful balconies The pool was a godsend at the end of the day- the kids would have lived in it if they could! This was a great house for a family with kids, and would be also great for a group of adults- having a separate bathroom with each bedroom was awesome. We can't wait to come back and stay here again.

Recommended for:Girls getaway, age 55+, families with young children, families with teenagers.

Meritage Review May 9th, 2009

Guest: KSS (New York)
Date of Stay: 05/09/09 Review Submitted: 06/12/09

Dear Meritage, Thank you for letting us stay at your home the week of May 9th. We really enjoyed our stay on the island, the view from Meritage's balconies, the convenience to town, the nature, and wonderful beaches. We loved the iguana tree next to your home and the visiting Pearl-Eyed Thrashers. It was lovely to have the option to cool off in the dipping-pool overlooking the beautiful view. Thanks again; hope you have a great summer..... Kim & Scott

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, sightseeing, adventure seekers, girls getaway, age 55+, families with young children, families with teenagers.

Honeymoon Paradise!

Guest: Joni & John (Patterson, Louisiana)
Date of Stay: 04/04/09 Review Submitted: 05/17/09

This magnificent house was more than we expected for our honeymoon stay. The many different views from the decks, swimming pool area, living room, bedroom left us in awe of St. John and our stay at the Meritage House. It was truly a blessing and would recommend it to any vacationer whether couples, families or honeymooners. We can't express how much we enjoyed our stay.

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, sightseeing, pet owners, girls getaway, age 55+, families with young children, families with teenagers.

Meritage House - a great place to stay

Guest: NHSunlover (NH)
Date of Stay: 01/24/09 Review Submitted: 03/09/09

What a wonderful place to stay! This is our second trip to St. John and we were returning to celebrate our 15th wedding anniversary. The house is very large and more importantly the decks are spacious. We really enjoyed sitting on the various decks and enjoying the sun and views. We timed our trip right because the owner had just finished redoing various things around the house. The rooms are tastefully decorated and the paint job is unbelievable some of the ceilings are painted to look like the sky and the living room walls look like there are shutters on the windows but it is really paint. I was impressed! There is construction going on across the harbor but it didn't really bother us as we were up early anyway and it was only a small portion of the 180 degree view from the deck. The house is located just a short drive from Cruz Bay and not too far from the North Shore Beaches. The location was great! We really liked that we could walk down to a beach from the house. We also hiked around the hill across Hart Bay for a wonderful 360 degree view. The pool was nice and sunny and the hot tub was extremely private. Gus was very helpful and we appreciate his restaurant recommendations. We were there by ourselves but it would be an easy place to stay with four couples as there are 4 master bedrooms from which to choose. There were also many different sitting areas on the various decks so there was ample space to read or chat. We really enjoyed the Meritage House - it was well taken care of and a pleasure to stay at.

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, sightseeing, adventure seekers, girls getaway, age 55+, families with teenagers.

Our "home sweet home" in the island

Guest: Doc'swife (NY)
Date of Stay: 10/27/07 Review Submitted: 09/18/08

We are about to return to Meritage for the fourth time -- our sixth trip to St John. Why? We love it there. It gives us everything we need in a vacation. If you have been to the island, it goes without saying, just look at any photo. But why Meritage? You arrive in Cruz Bay and are greeted by Gus(property manager) who will get you situated at the house,orient you to the house and island,(where to eat,buy food,help you with car rental(if you haven't done that before arrival)and help you to schedule anything else you may want during your stay). Within minutes you arrive. The house is beautifully decorated and laid out just as it should be. The rooms all have private entrances on different levels or directions , which is great when you need your down time. They have all the amenities and AC...which is important really only for sleeping after days at all the different beaches . There are multiple comfortable seating areas to gather and gaze out at the ocean. This is just a great place to go to reconnect with friends and family but still have spots to read and rest. It is easy to find food and beverage for great vacationing. There are many fine restaurants (ask Gus) all easy to get to but you can also just pick up supplies for your own barbecue,or take out from Joe's BBQ. My favorite is: Returning to the house after a day in the sun and salt. and easing back into the pool(wash off that salt please!) to get rid of the heat that felt so good all day. The spectacular sunsets with the islands in silhouette. Or maybe the hike down to Hart Bay to look for seashells. Making Key lime pie from the tree outside the back door (the ripe ones are on the ground).Taking an all day boat ride,snorkeling and beach bar hopping (ask Gus). Getting a massage in your own room (ask Gus) No he doesn't do THAT! but he can help you arrange it. Watching the iguanas in the tree tops below. This property has everything for a memorable, relaxing vacation: necessities, well thought out amenities, and aesthetics. Everyone that has joined us there wants to go back including those returning with us in November. If you want the home sweet home feeling in the islands, this is it. Thank you, Thank you!

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, tourists without a car, sightseeing, adventure seekers, girls getaway, age 55+, families with young children, families with teenagers.

Our favorite Caribbean Getaway!!

Guest: D'Mayor (Upstate NY)
Date of Stay: 09/07/07 Review Submitted: 09/16/08

I have stayed at Meritage Great House and the cottage six times already. I think we have become some of the annual guests staying at either property. We love the quite atmosphere offered by the location. The house is surrounded by exotic tropical plants and flowers. We were always glad that there were laundry facilities available to us and the house is very well equipped. The pool and jaccuzi are a welcome haven after a day at the beach, where we love to soak and sip our fun island “foo-foo” drinks while we watch the sunsets over the ocean. There is a large deck on the upper level with outside dinning table and BBQ. My husband loves being a BBQ chef when we go on vacation, so we spent many relaxing evenings dinning under the stars and watching the passing cruise ship pass by all lit up on their way to explore new islands. There is plenty of room to spread out for a large group so you will not feel crowded at all. The sunsets are breathtaking and every night is a different painting in the sky!!

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, tourists without a car, sightseeing, adventure seekers, girls getaway, age 55+, families with young children, families with teenagers.