Welcome to Drake's View, St. John, US Virgin Islands.
Drake's View has the same vista named by the magazine Caribbean Travel as 'the best view in the Caribbean'; a spectacular view of the British Virgin Islands and the East Shore of St. John. The villa has been voted 'Top Vacation Rental' for two years in a row now.
Drake's View is a four bedroom, 4.5 bath villa with a heated swimming pool, and hot tub that sleeps up to 8 people. Five tiled decks and a large tiled front porch provide ample outdoor lounging areas. One bedroom is in a separate cottage.
The traditional architecture of the house entrance with yellow stucco, red roof, and simple columns contrasts with a dramatic facade of glass along the east wall. No matter where you look in the house or cottage, you have a fantastic vista of Coral Bay, Drake's Passage, and the British Virgin Islands.
On a clear day, you can see the Baths at Virgin Gorda. Rainbows, mangrove cuckoos, kestrels and red tailed hawks are common sights. Drake's View has the ambiance of a home rather than a rental. The large great room is furnished with Indonesian, American antiques, and comfortable, plantation style furniture. The villa is filled with local art and a large reef painting and mobile by Robert Tharsing.
The well equipped kitchen is very spacious and includes one of two dining areas. Three bedrooms have king sized beds and one has a king, convertible to twins. Each bedroom has air conditioning, private bath and Swedish TempurPedic mattresses.
One to four couples or a large family will have ample room for privacy, different activities,and for relaxation at Drake's View.
Drake's View is centrally located, on Bordeaux Mtn., the highest point on St. John. The roads leading to Drake's View are all paved. It is surrounded by lush local vegetation and a large, terraced tropical garden with lime, coconut and mango trees. It is a six minute drive to the Northshore Beaches; three minutes to the Reef Bay Trail; ten minutes to Coral Bay; and fifteen minutes the Cruz Bay. From the front door, you can hike the Bordeaux Mountain Trail to Lameshur Beach in one hour.
St. John has fabulous snorkeling, diving, and hiking. The snorkeling is among the best in the Caribbean. Since 2/3 of the island is National Park, many beaches have amenities but no developments mar the expanse of sand and palms. From St. John, it is easy to take day trips to visit other islands such as the popular yachting destinations of Tortola, Jost Van Dyke, Virgin Gorda, Peter, and Norman Islands.
The Park Service also offers snorkeling tours, hikes, birding tours, sails, archaeological digs, and lectures. Numerous park trails lead to stone ruins of old sugar mills and plantations, petroglyphs, and even waterfalls if rainfall is plentiful.
St. John is reached from St. Thomas via a twenty min. ferry ride.