ncgator

we were there last April for 5 days. snorkeling at norman and Baths is better than around Scrub although there is a reef near Marina Cay that you can get there via Kayak as well as the Cay itself has some neat areas and nice restaurant. The private beach on the resort that is a short car ride away is pretty but not the best for swimming as it is very shallow at low tide. The bar is well equipped and the pool a nice place to cool off.

I was a Gold when we went and was upgraded from the std room to the 1 bedroom suite. The suites are very nice and well equipped and also have larger balconies than just the rooms. the balconies are not private which is nice as no obstructions in view. we stayed on the hotel side furthest from the marina ans store, quiet and viesw better.

if you have any other questions i will try to answer

Churnman

Thanks ncgator. We've been to the Baths, Norman and Indians too. All fun, except I always had to be on the lookout so I wouldn't swim into a jelly fish. Some say those kind don't sting, but the ones we saw do. Depends on the moon when they really swarm an area it seems. Anyhow, we might check out Diamond Reef near Scrub. We aren't the type that has to be on the go everyday anyhow so I'm sure we'll enjoy the resort. I'm glad to hear they upgraded you. We're also gold, so I hope we get the same. I'll check availabilty with if we don't get the upgrade, but sounds like they are now trying to really integrate with Marriott's program.

Thomas Hudson

Anyone charter a boat to the North Drop for Marlin fishing from this resort?

kbh1234

We are heading here on Monday, and I noticed this morning that my reservation changed from "Guest room, King, Ocean View" to Guest room, King, Ocean View, Corner Room". This doesn't sound like a real upgrade, but has anyone had one of these rooms before? Is it really any different than the basic room?

BostonFlyer1624

The corner rooms are usually (90% of the time) much larger than the standard guest rooms.

marlin

Can anyone comment on the food prices here. Trip Advisor described $400-$600 for a couple per day. Is that true? Are there any off site cheaper restaurant options.

BostonFlyer1624

Food prices are expensive, but not $400-600/day...something around $75-$150/person is reasonable. Obviously if you order more "gourmet" items, you will be on the higher end of that range.

ncgator

Marina Cay is a short free ferry ride away. They will call the resort there to come and pick you up. Food selection is better and less expensive. The bar up the hill on Marina Cay has live music a few nts but ends early like most on the islands. There are restaurants on Tortola but cabs are expensive to get around in. We rented a car for one day and toured tortola and ate dinner before we turned the car in late that day. YOu can get a car right at the airport any day by taking the scrub ferry. There are also small cafe's at Trellis bay but we did not eat at any just had a few beers and drinks.

We ate 2 dinners on scrub. Seafood buffet and then one nt at the restaurant away from the main dining room. Buffet was good (and expensive). Other dinner not so good.

SIN1K

Now that I've found time to write the review, here it goes.
My wife and I stayed for seven nights on Scrub Island on points back in November. In fact we used points for the flights too, except from PR to Tortolla. So it was a pretty cheap trip overall.

Getting there:
I understand that it is much easier getting to Tortolla from PR, but that flight is not cheap. Something around 350 bucks US each for a 20 minute flight was a rip off. But, oh well..at least we got there pretty quick.

There was a taxi at the airport at Tortola to take us to the water taxi. All was fine, although I expected a more polished staff and boat given that this was a level 8 Marriott.

The boat over was relaxing and beautiful. We arrived at Sunset exhausted.
The checkin was frustrating and I was not happy with it. The staff needs to know that we have traveled many hours to get there and treat us as such. No upgrade and in general their nonchalance attitude ticked me off, but then I found out that this is the way it is in the BVIs.

Our room:
Already not happy with not getting an upgrade, our room was Ok, but I was expecting more. Still, we were happy to be there, loved the view and literally slept for two days. I know the hotel wasn't full at all and I really wish they would have at least offered me an upgrade even if it meant extra money.

Food:
Mediocre, but pretty average for the BVIs. We ate at their casual restaurant and not at their fancy restaurant. Their buffet is a rip off and you have to eat the buffet if you are there on buffet night. I did like the lobster fresh from the ocean though.

It took me a while to get used to the laid back attitude, bordering on rudeness and prices of the BVIs, but once I did, I loved it.

Activities:
On Scrub - Loved the little beach in front of the hotel. We SUP'd around, and took a kayak over to diamond reef then around Marina Cay. It was awesome.
Honeymoon beach was great too. Very private, loved the one shoe bar, but bring water shoes for the beach there. That is a must.
We hiked almost the whole island and loved doing that. Didn't partake in the spa but did use the diving facilites there: Dive BVI.
Dive BVI was fantastic. Great staff, great trips, everything. We went on two trips with them and both were awesome. Can't recommend them enough.

Off Scrub:
Marina Cay - Loved the island, the food and the drinks. Period
Jost Van Dyke - One of my favorite places in the world, right now. The pain killers are the best on the island.
Virgin Gorda - The baths were my wife's favorites. I thought it was ok, but we got some great pictures.
Tortola - Don't waste your time, in my opinion
Willy T's, the Indians, Norman Island, etc. Take a trip through Dive BVIs and enjoy these places. Just wonderful.

We are planning on going back next year with three other couples but this time renting a CAT through the moorings. Scrub was a good first time thing for the BVIs but I'm really looking forward to sailing around at our leisure.

Churnman

Thank you for taking the time to post your review. One question: were you Marriott Gold when you stayed there?

kbh1234

We just returned from 5 days on Scrub Island. As far as getting there - we flew to STT and stayed at the Westin St John the first two days, so we took the St John ferry to West End Tortola, then a taxi to the complete opposite side of the island. It took about 45 minutes and was $50, but it felt like we were getting a tour of the island and not just a ride. I think Smiths Ferry goes straight from St Thomas to Road Town (in the middle of the island) so the taxi from there would probably be about $30. Going back we took the Cape Air flight from Beef Island to SJU - I think it cost about $250 pp. It's a VERY small plane (10 people max including the pilot) and not a very comfortable ride. If we go there again we will probably opt for the ferry.

We did not get an upgrade, but I was plenty happy with our room (they look just like the pictures on the website, so no surprises). We had a "corner room" which meant we had an extra small window next to the bed - the room is not any bigger. I think only 1 out of the 10 couples we met were actually paying to stay there (the rest were using points). Everyone except the couple that was paying had the regular room, so I guess they don't upgrade to 1BR suites at all anymore. They did contact me a couple of times before our stay to see if we wanted to upgrade using points (25k I think) or cash ($140/day).

The dive shop on property is great - they offer some great excursions and have a very fun and knowledgeable staff. We took two of their group excursions - Island Hopper ($100pp) to snorkel at The Indians and The Caves, then lunch at Willy T's, then finally to Jost Van Dyke to Soggy Dollar Bar. Open bar on the boat. Very fun. We also took their excursion to Anegada ($90pp), which has probably the most beautiful beach in the BVIs. They also have an excursion to Virgin Gorda and offer private sailings (I think $700 for half-day and $1000 full day).

As for food - there is a little store next to the dive shop with basic groceries and a deli (sandwiches are about $8), they also have a pizza special on Tuesday. Tierra Tierra is the middle of the road restaurant - the food was good, but basic - burgers, salads, few entrees. Caravela (fine dining) is very good - we did the wine pairing dinner and had regular dinner one other night - we were not disappointed. The chef is very involved and friendly - he's always hanging around Caravela. There was also a pig roast on Wednesday but it got rained out, so they had it in the restaurant which took away some of the fun. Room service has a very limited menu. I think all of the menus and prices are posted on the website if you want to get a better idea.

There were a couple of little annoyances - Scrub Island is a popular place for boat people to stop for the day, so sometimes the pool would get overrun with screaming kids. When that happened we would go to North Beach (they will drive you or you can walk) - where there is a little pool, bar, and sets of beach chairs in little private alcoves. It was never crowded - one day we were the only people there.

If it rains there is NOTHING to do. We only had one day of rain until about 2pm, then it cleared up and was beautiful, but during that time I did wish we had a suite - the only thing we could do was sit on the bed and watch one of the 12 channels on TV.

There is a BS resort fee is $25 per person, per day that includes "airport transfers and more". But when we went to the airport on our last day, we got stuck paying $10 for a taxi to drive us literally across the street. So if you fly to beef island, just exit, turn left, cross the street, and the dock is right there.

Overall a great trip - very nice property with great service. The manager, Benny, was always around and seemed genuinely concerned that everyone have a good vacation. Would definitely return.

SkiAdcock

Thanks for the detailed trip report.

Cheers.

Mr. Vker

Has anyone "in the know" seen meal plans offered for reward stays? They offer many many options on paid stays.

Thank you!

SkiAdcock

Can anyone provide details on what specifically the $25 resort fee includes? There are a few things scattered throughout the thread.

Cheers.

SIN1K

the resort fee includes towels, trips to north beach, sup boards, and kayaks. Worth it I think.