We just returned from eight days at Emerald Beach after a stay on St. John. The rooms have been upgraded with flat screen TV, fresh paint and new furniture since our last review in 2006. The staff at the front desk, restaurant and even the housekeepers and ground keepers, was friendly and helpful. You cannot beat waking up right on that beautiful Beach. We saw one of the most amazing sunsets our first evening there.The West Indian Buffet on Friday night was exceptional and the beach bar offered great hamburgers and to die for bushwackers along with perhaps the world's best bartender, Kraige. We have travelled extensively and believe this hotel is a great find for a relaxing and special bargain in St. Thomas.

My friend did a LOT of research about where to stay in St. Thomas on vacation. We heard that the Marriot and some of the other higher end hotels were the best places to stay, but the prices of the hotels would mean we'd have to restrict some of the activities we did while on vacation. She finally decided on Best Western and I'm so glad we stayed there. The reviews online were just so-so, but we were absolutely delighted with our stay there.

For starters, all the rooms are beach front and the view is FANTASTIC. The rooms are clean- a little dated maybe- but comfortable and all have nice patios to sit on to enjoy as well as a mini fridge. Everyone who works there was extremely nice and friendly as well. The beach bar alone was worth staying there- we loved it! They made killer drinks, and the atmosphere was both relaxed and playful. Lots of locals make it their hang-out and we met many of them and got some great restaurant and bar suggestions from them. The only real negative is that it is RIGHT by the airport so you can hear the planes take off sometimes, but it never really bothered us much and would not deter us from staying there again in the future.

The great price allowed us to have it all- beach front, convenience, and the extra change in our pockets to do all the excursions we wanted to.

l cannot understand all the reviews how great the hotel was the room very outdated was dirty noisey phone broken and wires hanging out of wall the tv was also broken . The best thing was a free drink at the bar. l can say the food at the restaurant wasnt to bad. The girl working the front desk was not all there l think she works 24 hours a day there.If you want to be close to the airport its perfect they fly right over the hotel. Took a taxi from airport to hotel 16 dollars for 1 mile . If you look over to the hill on top you will see a oil or gas tank nice site to look at from the beach.

On the plus side:
easy walk from the airport-- 5 minutes downhill
nice beach facing away from runway and planes are infrequent-- noise not a problem
superbly friendly staff
beautiful beach and marked swimming area

Otherwise:
room worn-- doors scuffed, balcony door lock broken, pillows flat
restaurant food fair

If you are looking for a convenient place to spend the night near the airport this will probably fit the bill well. If you can walk through any large airport then you can walk form the airport to this hotel- really. You can see the hotel as you land.