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Battery Hill Condominiums

Battery Hill Condominiums

Frangipani Lane Of Route 105, Cruz Bay 00831 St. John
Battery Hill Condominiums
Traveller (39)
view of harbor from deck
Room & Suite (11)
pool area
Pool & Beach (5)

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About

#6 of 12 villas in Cruz Bay
4.4 of 5 bubbles
Location
4.1 of 5 bubbles
Rooms
4.2 of 5 bubbles
Value
4.1 of 5 bubbles
Cleanliness
4.3 of 5 bubbles
Service
3.7 of 5 bubbles
Sleep Quality
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Good to know
HOTEL STYLE
Mid-range
Romantic
Property amenities
Free parking
Free internet
Wifi
Non-smoking hotel
Room features
Air conditioning
Kitchenette
Refrigerator
Room types
Non-smoking rooms

Location

Frangipani Lane Of Route 105, Cruz Bay 00831 St. John
Traveller rating
  • 18
  • 16
  • 4
  • 4
  • 0
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Detailed Reviews
D4Runner wrote a review Dec 2020
5.0 of 5 bubbles
We stayed at Sea Breeze in Battery Hill. This was a great location and this unit has an excellent deck with great views of the Cruz Bay Area. So nice to enjoy morning coffee on. The kitchen is well stocked to facilitate some meals while in St John. We used the Landlubbers logistics grocery delivery to have our Starfish market order at the sea breeze upon our arrival. Highly recommended service. The living room allows for some relaxation after a day at the beach. The ac units work well and keep it comfortable in the sea breeze.
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Date of stay: December 2020Trip type: Travelled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Ronald M wrote a review Aug 2020
Staten Island
5.0 of 5 bubbles
This is our second year staying at Sea Breeze. The condo is well furnished with great views. It is one of the few with a very large deck. It's great to sit and watch the boats come in and out of the harbor. We will consider staying here again next year.
If you rent a car from St John's Car Rental you can park in their lot after 5:00 pm. I have never walked into town from Battery Hill.
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Date of stay: August 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Getaway18042 wrote a review Feb 2005
Milwaukee, WI
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Looking at the pictures, we could only hope that The Cottage would be as romantic in reality as it appeared online. Following a long, long day travelling by air from Wisconson, we arrived at our destination. At first sight, we knew we made the right decision. For two of us, this place was perfect....views of the harbor from every window, a crystral clear pool outside the door/window that no one used, and a kitchenette to brew coffee and make breakfast made it ideal.

Town was a short walk downhill. Nice if you're heading out for happy hour or dinner; the trip back is uphill but not bad if you take your time and watch the stars. Loved being able to walk into Cruz Bay. The trail to Salomon Bay and Honeymoon Bay is easy if you wear walking shoes. Rent a jeep; it's worth the $60-$70/day to see the other beaches on the island.

All restaraunts are great! Just pick your atmosphere. Get out and explore. Have a Bushwacker at the Beach Bar. Walk the Reef Bay Trail. Have a burger at Skinny Legs in Coral Bay. Enjoy St. John and the people. Of all the places we've visited in the Caribbbean, we'lll come here again.
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
BarbMcGTravel wrote a review May 2004
Washington, DC
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Stayed week of 15 May. The location was perfect. Great view and cool breeze. Never had to use AC. The condo has everything you need. Stayed in Palm Breezes. The only negative was the noise of the construction below but they can't do anything about that and if you're out at the beach during the day it's not a problem. We didn't have a bad meal. ZoZo's at Gallow's Point was wonderful, highly recommend. The Fish Trap was the only disappointment, it was overrated.
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Date of stay: May 2004
5.0 of 5 bubblesValue
4.0 of 5 bubblesRooms
4.0 of 5 bubblesCleanliness
4.0 of 5 bubblesService
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
apirateslife4me wrote a review Apr 2004
NC
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Lovely place, could not ask for more comfortable surroundings. Great view of Cruz Bay. Clean and well stocked kitchen. The pool and grounds were well-manicured and lovely. Would highly recommend this property.

P.S. Please note that there is a large condominum complex being built below Battery Hill and there is construction noise at this time.
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Destination17393 wrote a review Jan 2004
Vienna, VA
5.0 of 5 bubbles
I've stayed at Battery Hill on 2 of my 3 stays on St. John and will be returning for a 3rd stay this summer. It has a great location close to town so you can walk to dinner and not have to attempt parking in Cruz Bay. I've stayed in two different units, B1 - Panacea is the best. It is well appointed, has a wonderful porch to relax in after a day of snorkeling on the most beautiful beaches in the world. My other stay was at the Westin, which was OK, but not for me, too crowded. I will always return to Battery Hill in the future.
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Paradise20107 wrote a review Dec 2003
Alexandria, VA
5.0 of 5 bubbles
What a place. Excellent location (walk to Cruz Bay)and the property was in top notch condition. Beautiful views, night & day and a great pool & deck overlooking the harbor. Everything you can imagine was in the condo, from a blender for those all important drinks to a cigar cutter.
Highly recommend and we will probably being staying there again this year.
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Quest19811 wrote a review Oct 2004
New York, NY
4.0 of 5 bubbles
You could just sit on the veranda all day (and night) and take in the great views of the bay and the harbor. But then you'd miss the incredible beaches close by. This is really a great place.
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
IslandLuxe wrote a review Jun 2008
Denver, Colorado
+1
2.0 of 5 bubbles
Overall, our experience was good at Suite St. John. We stayed in the Sea Breeze unit for a few days in May 2008. While the units imply a luxury experience, we wouldn't put it that way. While the staff was helpful and very friendly, there were problems with our experience in terms of cleanliness and furnishings that would make us unlikely to stay there again.

As I said, the staff were great and for the most part tried hard to make things nice. Several times a week a grounds keeper swept the grounds and took care of things and the unit manger, Tommy, was always available if we needed any help.

The Sea Breeze unit has a great deck overlooking Cruz Bay. We spent many evenings and mornings there just gazing at the spectacular view of the town below.

When we were there, only some of the units were full, so we had a very peaceful and refreshing experience at the property. The pool was always kept spotless and inviting both day and night.

The pictures that you see on the Suite St. John web site make the units look wider than they are. I think this is because they put two separate pictures next to each other making the unit look wider. The living room is acceptable size, but much smaller in person.

I've read many glowing accounts of people's time there, so I'm thinking some of the issues I will bring up won't concern some visitors. Be that as it may, when we're paying the prices they charge and their claiming that it is a "luxury" experience, I thought it better I describe what we saw and see if that's your definition of luxury.

The unit was basically clean, but lacked that very clean feeling you get in a good hotel room. It's like the corners aren't clean, if you know what I mean. Like someone did a fast cleaning after the last guest left but not the real thing. You could see some crumbs here and there and spots where there shouldn't be spots, like in the bathroom. One of the main faults I would say is that the units don't get a good "spring cleaning" where all the corners are swept and mopped.

Another disappointing thing was the feeling of "second hand" or a "garage sale" feeling to some of the items in the unit. At these prices, I would think they could afford to go to a department store and buy a proper matching knife collection or a pair of kitchen scissors. The knives were just a random collection of knives from different sets, almost like someone scooped up a whole set at a garage sale. "15 Knives for $1.00" Other things like pots, plates and glasses were a lot better, but it was like no one thought about an overall complete approach to the kitchen collection. Again, not exactly our idea of luxury. More like your Uncle Ralph's fishing cabin collection.

In this same vein, the toaster, while it worked, was missing the slider to indicate darkness. Again, a visit to Target would fix this for less than $30, but someone doesn't care about that kind of thing.

I thought about safety when I saw a lamp or two with some exposed electric pieces. I was at first relieved when I saw a smoke alarm (especially since you're perched on a hill in a tinder-dry environment in a wooden structure), but I was shocked when I noticed there were no batteries in the smoke alarm at all.

Even though the unit was billed as air conditioned, that was only partially true. There were window-air-conditioning units, of vary ages, in the bedrooms, but none in the living room. I know some people don't care because they would prefer to just keep the windows open for the breeze, but know lots of folks want air conditioning throughout. So in this unit you could have cool bedrooms but the living room wouldn't get cool really.

The internet was painfully slow. There was a wireless connection, and we could barely get a streaming connection for music like iTunes. Forget about streaming video or video chat and things like that. If you want email you’re OK, but you have to wait even to see the CNN page get loaded. It's always on, but acted more like dial up speed.

The decorations are from the unit owner, so it's a mixed bag there. The only problem I have is that things like cushions and rugs have seen better days. If you are moving 4 - 6 people though your unit, every week, all year long, go ahead a visit Target, say, every 3 years or so, and just replace the rugs, cushions, lamps and things that are fraying around the edges. Again, this depends on your definition of luxury, but it would be nice if they had a checklist of highly utilized items that they would just replace on a regular schedule.

There is a convenience store (called a "gourmet store" for some reason) about a 10 minute walk down a small hill. You can get things like coffee, milk, water, cheese, beer and liquor there. If you wanted to really cook, as we did, you will need to either take a 20-minute walk to one of the real grocery stores down at the bottom of the hill (Starfish or Dolphin markets). The incline is very steep, so unless you are in good shape, I wouldn't do it on foot and definitely not try to get back up with groceries unless you want a real workout. So if you don't walk, you can either drive your rental car, or walk down and take a taxi back up for about $5.00 per person one way.

The tap water is apparently rain water collected in cisterns. I'm sure that would put some folks off. We are more particular than most, and were always wondering about things like, should we cook spaghetti in collected rain water? Never totally figured that out, but we survived. There was a faucet in the kitchen labeled, "pure" which appeared to be filtered water. Given the relaxed attitude towards cleaning, fire safety etc, I figured the water filter hadn’t been replaced on schedule and wasn't truly filtering, so I didn’t trust that the water was actually pure. We bought 2 gallon containers of water every day to make coffee, soup, etc. This made our daily walks to the store quite a workout but we actually enjoyed it.

There are cockroach traps scattered around the kitchen. We only saw one live cockroach in a whole week, so they appear to have that fairly under control. Still, I associate seeing cockroach traps in the kitchen with my $300/month college apartment and not a "luxury" condo on vacation.

If mosquitoes like you, then bring some repellent. Even inside the unit we had a hard time keeping all of them out. We got more bites inside during dinner and hanging out than out on the deck for some reason. We kept killing the ones we found inside, but somehow one or two more always got in for a feast on our feet and legs in the evening. We ended up just spraying our legs with repellent when we got home in the evening.

We were lucky to be able to see some of the other units during our visit. I would say, as disappointed as we were with the Sea Breeze kitchen etc, some of the other units looked worse. In one unit there was a handle missing from the fridge and there was some yellow "schmutz" on the outside of the fridge. We counted ourselves lucky to have gotten as much "luxury" as we did in the Sea Breeze.

I think the casual attitude towards cleanliness could be fixed if they hired a maid with some kind of a work ethic. She seemed a bit over the top relaxed. I know this is the Caribbean, but I would think they could find someone on St. John who doesn't want to be a chicken farmer and needs the money and was willing to actually scrub all the corners to keep her job.

We walked by many houses with signs of "Villa xxxx" in the front on our strolls. Many of these places looked like cheap efficiency apartments to us: tangled weeds around the grounds, in need of repairs and basic painting. We even passed one with a plastic "Heineken Beer" table and plastic chairs plopped on a run-down deck amidst the tangled woods next to the house. That looked pathetic. At least at Suite St. John grounds are kept very nice and clean and it doesn't look like an abandoned Motel 6. It appears you can go pretty far wrong renting a "villa" sight unseen on St. John.

We did visit Gallows Point just to check out the rooms. Now that place looked like someone kept up with the maintenance and cleaning! Of course, it depends on the unit as those are individually owned too. I saw some bad reviews on that as well. There are very different levels of professionalism in places that are quite close by, so it would best to match the place to your specific needs. There are some luxury condos now under construction at the bottom of Battery Hill. I hope these will spur the Suite St. John staff to new heights of cleanliness or staff changes so they can compete.

After everything, we came here for the beaches, and only partially for a "luxury" experience. We were 1000% happy with Honeymoon beach and Trunk Bay beach which made us forget all our concerns noted above. Every day we walked 10 minutes down to Cruz Bay and took a taxi for about $5.00 each person to a beach with our picnic lunch and just enjoyed every minute till 5:30 when we returned back to the condo. I had no idea beaches could be that perfect, but it's for real.

In terms of a rental car, if you're just going to the national park beaches (out as far as Cinnamon Bay), you can skip the car rental and catch taxis. We were afraid we would spend all our time waiting for taxis but they were almost always around. You will most likely need them to go to beaches and shopping. Write down the Taxi Dispatch number from the condo info book and you can call them any time to get picked up.

My only hope is that next time we can find another place in St. John that has the peaceful feeling of Suite St. John but with less of the negatives noted above.
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Date of stay: May 2008
3.0 of 5 bubblesValue
2.0 of 5 bubblesRooms
3.0 of 5 bubblesLocation
2.0 of 5 bubblesCleanliness
3.0 of 5 bubblesService
1.0 of 5 bubblesBusiness service (e.g., internet access)
Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Dreamer24426 wrote a review Apr 2006
Delaware, Ohio
5.0 of 5 bubbles
My wife, three kids and I spent a wonderful week in St. John and THOROUGHLY enjoyed staying at the Palm Breezes condo. The unit was spacious enough to handle the five of us with room to spare. The main level was open, well furnished, clean and comfortable. We cooked all our meals in the condo and the kitchen was well stocked with all the necessities. Our kids LOVED sleeping in the loft, while the master bedroom downstairs was perfect for the "old folks". The views from the balcony of St. John and Cruz Bay are stunning (see posted pics). We enjoyed the majority of our meals on the balcony trying to soak in as much as possible. The entire condo was air conditioned, but most of the week we just opened up the windows and enjoyed the constant breeze.

The entire Battery Hill complex was very clean and provides use of the pool, gas grill, beach chairs, beach toys and snorkel gear. Its location is only minutes from Cruz Bay and all it has to offer. The locals are very nice, eager to please tourists and just generally love telling about their beautiful island.

The local Battery Hill contact was attentive to any/all of our needs. We had a WONDERFUL time and will DEFINITELY stay there again.
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Date of stay: March 2006
4.0 of 5 bubblesValue
5.0 of 5 bubblesRooms
5.0 of 5 bubblesCleanliness
5.0 of 5 bubblesService
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
mikeleonard wrote a tip Sept 2018
Needham, Massachusetts8 contributions8 helpful votes
5.0 of 5 bubbles
"Tropical Breeze is the top unit in this complex and has excellent views and gentle breezes."
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Rnraven wrote a tip Jun 2016
Woluwe-St-Pierre, Belgium95 contributions62 helpful votes
4.0 of 5 bubbles
"Sea Breeze unit was great! We've also stayed at the Cottage which was adorable if you dont need a kitchen and are okay with a studio."
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Billybonggg wrote a tip Dec 2014
Myrtle Beach15 contributions12 helpful votes
4.0 of 5 bubbles
"If you can't handle the problems, pay up for a hotel-style place. This is a no-service cottage. Tip: Take the steep route down, the easier route coming back (.25 miles.)"
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MichaelP23456 wrote a tip Dec 2014
Framingham, Massachusetts10 contributions2 helpful votes
4.0 of 5 bubbles
"The condos at the top of the property offer amazing views."
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danpdoherty wrote a tip Jul 2014
Medway, Massachusetts58 contributions20 helpful votes
4.0 of 5 bubbles
"Higher floors have a better view."
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Not the right property for you?
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ALSO KNOWN AS
battery hill condominiums hotel cruz bay
LOCATION
CaribbeanU.S. Virgin IslandsSt. JohnCruz Bay
NUMBER OF ROOMS
8
Prices are provided by our partners, and reflect average nightly room rates, including taxes and fees that are fixed, known to our partners, and due at time of booking. Please see our partners for more details.
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BATTERY HILL CONDOMINIUMS (St. John/Cruz Bay) - Villa Reviews & Photos - Tripadvisor

Frequently Asked Questions about Battery Hill Condominiums
Which popular attractions are close to Battery Hill Condominiums?
Nearby attractions include Our Lady Of Mt. Carmel (0.3 km), Drink St. John (0.1 km), and St John Dinghy Rental (0.2 km).
Which room amenities are available at Battery Hill Condominiums?
Top room amenities include a kitchenette, air conditioning, and a refrigerator.
Is parking available at Battery Hill Condominiums?
Yes, free parking is available to guests.
What are some restaurants close to Battery Hill Condominiums?
Conveniently located restaurants include Our Market Smoothies, Extra Virgin Bistro, and The Lime Inn.
Are there any historical sites close to Battery Hill Condominiums?
Many travellers enjoy visiting Annaberg Sugar Plantation (7.9 km), Cinnamon Bay Nature Trail (5.1 km), and Catherineberg Ruins (2.8 km).
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