GENERAL ROOM NOTES:
We read about the construction and were a little concerned, but immediately upon entering the grounds our fears were laid to rest. Colin Hunte, the owner, was very hospitable and tried to find us for two days before he ushered us into his private office to talk about his island home. It was definitely worth the time! Austin, one of the employees there. was extremely helpful as were all others working there. I miss his always HUGE friendly smile! The beach in front of the resort is "shared" with the Sandals Halcyon which is about a 5 minute walk south of Villa Beach.

My older parents stayed at the Halcyon and after they visited our room, they were even more disappointed in their resort. Our cottages would be referred to as suites in the USA. Our very large 2-person "cottage" was BRAND NEW or appeared to be. Hardwood floor in the bedroom/living room - tiled floor in the bathroom - cathedral ceilings are the norm on the second floor - large bathrooms - jacuzzi tub and a separate kitchen/dining room. Shocked to say the least at the immense size of the room. We visited two Canadian couples on one of the lower floors and were surprised at the immense size of their abode. The bedrooms were separated by a large living room and kitchen. Plenty of space to keep separate if you wanted to!

If you are looking for a large pool, noise and a bar, this is NOT the place, but for quiet - it really cannot be beat. The large balcony on our room was more than adequate for 4 people, and expansive for 2.

CAR RENTAL:
I've rented a car on every Caribbean Island - including other right hand steer / left side of the road islands, but after getting a ride from the airport by a 70 year old man whose name shouldn't escape me had me reconsider car rental. Steep, rough and twisting, the roads are better navigated by asking the helpful staff for a driver that they have on call. The older gentleman drove very cautiously, and made my wife feel safe - which wouldn't be the case with myself behind the wheel! He was so wonderful that we asked for him every time we needed a ride somewhere. He is very knowledgeable, courteous and kind. He also knows a lot of island history if you want to ask.
Bus travel is also very easy and cheap - less than $2EU - for two to travel to Castries or to the Marina - that's about $.75US! If you hire your own cab - ask the price first - a woman ripped us off - charging us $20 for a $10 ride.

DINING:
While there is no restaurant at this resort, we chose it because of the lack of this feature as we prefer to "discover" genuine local cuisine. The Rainforest Hideaway is one "must go". You'll have to take a water taxi from the dock in Marigot Bay. It is one of the most beautiful settings on the island and the food is exquisite. The fair skinned redhead head chef was a real surprise. He was so kind as to supply a number of items "compliments of the chef". It was likely one of the best meals in one of the finest environments on the island.

Dasheene Restaurant at Ladera Resort is a spectacular place for lunch. Despite the expense of the resort, the lunch we had was very reasonable and more than sufficient. I expected minimal food and high prices because of the exclusive view of the Pitons - one right, the other left of our table on the balcony. Because of the distance from Castries (about 1 hour drive) we opted to stop there on our day back to the airport when we left about 10:15am on departure day to take a leisurely cab ride back to the airport - arriving about 3pm. If you eat no other place, this one is definitely worth the trip.

Anse-la-Raye Seafood Friday - plan this one too. I's recommend a cab to get here. The seafood is spectacular - lobsters to 10lbs! A full meal (other than the lobster meal) is $10US and more than you can eat, but don't stop at the first stand - shop around and ask prices, I could've gotten a lobster for less than $10/lb. The people are ultra friendly EVERYWHERE!

Froggy Jacques was also very good - best to go in the evening as the view of the water from the elevated restaurant is gorgeous. I think the place is now called Jacgues Waterside, but the locals still call it Froggy Jacques. The service was exquisite, but then it was a Wednesday and we were the only customers all night! No idea why as the food was fantastic.

For a quick snack, the small tavern next to the resort had great hamburgers and fishburgers at very low prices - we ate lunch there often.

SCUBA

Scuba Steve's was one of the better dive operators I've ever dove with. He's a small operator, but is PADI 5-star. Extremely competent captain and dive masters. My wife had a private snorkel tour one-on-one as I dove with 5 others. Two additional personnel were dive instructors. I did a night dive. Four divers, one captain, two dive masters - very safe and very knowledgeable. We had several divers from one of the three Sandals resorts where the diving is included with the resort cost, but they chose to dive with Scuba Steve - way more bottom time!
Wall dives, reef dives and visibility of about 70 feet. Not Cozumel, but still very nice - 78deg bottom temps at 85 feet.

OVERALL:

If I come back to St. Lucia it will be to stay at Villa Beach Cottages. They really aren't cottages - I was told at one time they were, but the old cottages were razed - no sign of them - and the beautiful suites were built over them. Colin planned to have a small convenience store and an Internet cafe on a strip of new construction dividing the resort and the roadway. (I read on one of the reviews that the road was noisy, but I never heard a bit of traffic - even during the morning rush hour!) In fact the storefront was nearly completed when we left. He cherishes each of his guests - first timers or repeats and you can tell.

simply wonderful!!!

Such a nice and relaxing atmosphere, beautiful view of the ocean and a fantastic stretch of beach to walk on. Not to mentions the friendly and helpful staff!! We LOVED it!!!

I recommend this to everyone!!

We spent a week at the Villa Beach Cottages. The villas are spacious and beautifully decorated, spotlessly clean with all modern amenities (including a jacuzzi tub with a window that overlooks the ocean, if you like). There is a beautiful pool with a hot tub that has a rock wall with a waterfall into the hot tub. The ocean and beach are right there outside your door as well. The villas have fully equipped kitchens for cooking your own meals, or there are many excellent restaurants nearby. The grocery store is within walking distance. The staff is extremely friendly, curteous and helpful. They will make all bookings for you. We enjoyed our week so much that we've booked two weeks for next year.

This is an amazing place. I'm going to ditto all the comments on the staff here since they are all wonderful. Definitely try to hire Moses the driver through the VBC...he became a friend. We stayed in one of the new 2 bedroom suites (which was beautiful) and Margaret kept it immaculate...sand and all. Thank you, thank you, VBC for such a wonderful vacation. We'll see you next year.

P.S. To all the Sandals people that I overheard at the airport at departure....e.g. unhappy...there is something to be said for the smaller "resort". Also, the majority of construction is all complete (see previous comments). There is some minor building going on by the street but we couldn't hear anything but the sea waves..."No Problem".