After our drive from the airport in our safari cab, we arrived at the beautiful Ritz-Carlton hotel. With 180 rooms and suites and only what appears to be a stone’s throw away from St. John, The Ritz-Carlton hotel is truly a piece of paradise on St. Thomas. Situated on a 30-acre secluded estate along Great Bay on the eastern tip of St. Thomas, the resort is perfect for couples and families and has something for everyone. This picture is of the plate of chocolates that are made to look like coral and is one of the hotel’s ways to welcome guests. The attention to detail that you see on the plate is the same throughout the resort.
When we entered the lobby to check in, we were greeted with a welcome glass of rum punch with the rum added if you wanted it. It was hot out and I was super thirsty and well, as you can see from the picture — I probably drank it a little too quickly. You can see that there is a courtyard area with the main building. Luckily, I didn’t have to walk to my room with my bags as I was escorted via golf cart to my room. The hotel isn’t laid out in one building, but rather over several buildings. Therefore, you will see the golf carts running people around all throughout the day and evening as well as a few people walking the many paths along the resort. My room is in the Dahlia building and as they are laid out in alphabetical order, during the day and with an escort it was fairly easy to find. I quickly unpacked and changed and headed out to grab a quick bite. With four restaurants on the property, I found Sails to be the closest and easiest to get to from my room.
Sails is an American Beachside Dining restaurant next to the beach and the pool. I think I forgot where I was for a moment as it was so pretty. I love seeing this view and now that I have it, I think every hotel I stay in should be by the sea. No matter where I am, I always think that a hotel by the sea provides the best views. This picture is from the main building looking down toward the pool area with Sails to the right. “Enjoy the cool sea breezes, sip a freshly made cocktail and dine on casual beach fare including a delicious selection of seaside salads, burgers and tempting light bites.” I didn’t have a lot of time before needing to head out again and so I asked for my vegetable wrap to go and chatted with the server, Melanie, for a bit. If you’re traveling somewhere new and want to know where to go or what to do, ask a local. Melanie is from the Northwest US and moved to St. Thomas almost a year ago. She loves living on St. Thomas and can’t think of anything she misses except maybe for Target (St. Thomas has a Kmart, but we all know that’s just not the same!). Having been to St. Thomas and more specifically Magen’s Bay, I wanted to know which beach Melanie thought was the best. She said that her favorite was Lindquist Beach, a beach known to locals and great for swimming, sunbathing, and snorkeling. Located between Wyndham Sugar Bay Beach Club and the Sapphire Beach Resort, the latter is just on the other side of the Ritz-Carlton property. That was a great tip and I was so appreciative that she shared it with me. Unfortunately, on this trip I won’t get a chance to explore Lindquist Beach, but I’ll be back in April and I most certainly will check it out then.
I’m running around trying to do and see everything that I can so I’ll write more soon, I promise!
Looks gorgeous!!!