First off, the good stuff. The resort has beautiful grounds (though they are a little worn) and is very well located for travelers who want to experience both St. Thomas and St. John (just a short ferry ride away. The resort facilities have everything you want in a Caribbean resort (kayaks, catamarans, snorkel gear, etc.). The food choices are varied, which gives good options which is good since there are limited options within walking distance - though red hook is a $10 cab ride away.

Now the bad: Although the resort advertises a guaranteed check-in time of 4 PM, we were left in our sweltering mainland clothes for three hours while we waited for a room (it was always 30 minutes away from being ready). This was particularly perplexing since we were there in the shoulder season. They also nickle and dimed us by making us pay for resort and club fees for the full day (even though we couldn't really use the facilities while we waited for our room). In the end, they refunded a part of the overcharge, but our trip was 50% more expensive because of additional fees that were not initially included in our booking. In addition, because the staff member at the registration desk said something different (quoting us a per room rate) than what she wrote down (a per person rate), the bill did not match expectations. When we noted the discrepancy, the staff pointed to the hand-written document that was completed after checked in and said they would look into it. They never did, and we never heard back. Our fault for not asking to see the completed document; their fault for overcharging, promising to look into our issue, and then not doing anything.

Make sure to confirm everything that you may get charged to do. Keep in mind that room, resort fee, and any other facilities charges are all separate.

We have stayed at a number of hotels over time, and try to write objective reviews, but subjectivity does slip in. Our expectations of a Ritz Carlton are a lot higher than for a Marriot Courtyard, so a problem at the latter might be overlooked while the same problem at a Ritz won’t.
Our first room – 327 – on the Club level or the St. Thomas Ritz is a case in point. The sliding glass door to the balcony has a large stain which spoiled the view. Tiles in the bathroom were cracked, and one on the shower threshold broke and cut Gale’s foot. The drain on the roof was blocked, causing a flood coming through the hallway ceiling light.
The room we moved to – 344 – corrected all these problems, and helped us enjoy the rest of the stay.
That negative aside, everything else was wonderful. The staff throughout the complex were exceptionally helpful, especially the 11 in the club. The grounds are well kept, the buildings very clean, the food and drink in the club tasty, plentiful and well presented. The Club amenities were well worth the extra costs, and should be seriously considered.
The first room knocked the rating down, But, #327 aside, we highly recommend this resort.

My wife and I, along with our 2 boys ages 10 and 13 recently spent 6 days at this fine resort just before Thanksgiving 2012. We are both working professionals and needed to unplug.

Upon arriving at Cyril King airport, we took a group taxi (hotels do not have shuttles on St. Thomas). This was our first learning experience. We were crammed into a well-used van with a bunch of other vacationers going to other resorts. Ultimately, we spent about $65 for the 4 of us when we could have had a private service for $90. We were the last to be dropped off. I looked into a private service for our departure and found Presidential Taxi who had a decent web site with online booking discounts. Presidential Taxi is run by a sole proprietor who is a fine young man seeking to outperform his competition with quality vehicles and service. I highly recommend utilizing his services - just book ahead.
Upon arrival at the hotel, we were greeted with 5-star grace at the security booth and the treatment extended all the way through our check-in. After upgrading to an ocean-view room for a reasonable fee, we were shown to our room and were pleasantly surprised with the amenities.
Our sons quickly noticed the excellent assortment of water sports available on the beach and investigated. We had agreed to a daily resort fee which entitled us to unlimited use of non-motorized water sports and certainly got our money's worth. We used the catamarans, wind surfers, paddle boards, kayaks and snorkeling gear extensively and really enjoyed the freedom of use. The unique nature of the property being in a protected bay made it possible for us to relax while the kids spent every possible minute exploring in the water with all of the equipment. Even Beaches does not compare when it comes to water sports activity.
Many of our friends insisted we should go to St. John for a day, but we were happy to simply relax on resort for our entire stay.
We ate at every restaurant on the property and the food was consistently exceptional albeit very expensive (it's The Ritz after all), but $25 for a gourmet grilled cheese sandwich was actually pretty funny. If you can let the concern for every meal tally go you will give yourself a chance to enjoy the moment.
The concierge suggested a lunchtime snorkeling trip on the resort's 53-foot yacht, the Lady Lynsey, which we did. What a wonderful time. We sailed to St. John (we did get there after all) and snorkeled at a nice beach with some very nice coral and abundant marine life. Lunch and an open bar were included. I would do it again in a heart beat.
Overall, we had a fantastic vacation at The Ritz.

Now for the cons.
If you have stayed at The Ritz Carlton before, lower your expectations. This is a vacation resort on an Island where quality service is very difficult to find. While they do a great job hiring the right people, they have to work with what they have. Everything is a little more laid back than you would expect.
Prepare yourself to spend a lot of money on food. One of our kids was under 12 so we were able to purchase a meal plan for him ($35/day). This saved a bunch of money but the kids menu is limited and it is the same at every restaurant. Again, the food quality was commensurate with the price in most cases although $19 for a Panini at lunch opens your eyes (but darn it was good!).
There is virtually nothing to do at night except dine. I'm sure you could venture to town for something to do, but the resort has nothing going on in the evening.

In closing, I would highly recommend this property. The grounds are impeccable, the amenities are the best on the island and the service is such that if you ask for anything, you'll likely get it. We are very likely to return.

I stayed at both Wyndham Sugar Bay and the nearby Ritz-Carlton so my view of each place is colored by the other. On a scale of 0 to 100, I'd give Sugarbay 70-80, and the Ritz about 10 points higher.

Sugar Bay had a nicer ocean-side view than the Ritz (The resort-facing rooms are significantly cheaper.) More specifically, the man-made portion of the beach at the Ritz was more luxurious, and the deck chairs and surrounding architecture was nicer, but the Ritz hotel rooms were farther away from the beach and separated by a small utility road. The beach at Sugar Bay was smaller and seemed to be about 10 years out of date, though its small size is partly why the ocean-side view was prettier there.

But even though I give Sugar Bay good marks, in most every other way except the ocean-side view, the Ritz was even better. The staff at the latter were more numerous and more attentive. The overall architecture of the Ritz (think Italian villa) was of a higher quality. There was a musty smell outside my room at Sugar Bay unlike anything I smelled at the Ritz (though the inside of my Sugar Bay room was quite nice, and only slightly lower in quality than at the Ritz). The nightly list of activities at Sugar Bay (for example, a movie night, or a karaoke night) was designed to appeal to a different kind of consumer than the kind that typically chooses to stay at a Ritz. My biggest complaint about Sugar Bay was that they make you wear (and swim and shower and sleep in) a wristband like the kind you get at a nightclub, and I believe there's a $70 charge if you lose it.

However, there's the question of whether the higher quality is worth the significantly higher price. In my case, the price of my Sugar Bay room was about half of what I paid at the Ritz (though the Ritz room included a delicious breakfast and what amounted to a room service meal for two). For me, that made Sugar Bay a better bargain.

I would recommend the Ritz only if you really need to impress the person you're with (and you're willing to pay a significant amount of money in order to be around people like yourself or else to avoid having to associate with budget-conscious people like me). A final caution: the Ritz-Carlton hotels in St. Thomas is not going to have the same level of excellence as the Ritz-Carlton in New York or Chicago. So even though the scenery in St. Thomas is much nicer, you should adjust your expectations accordingly.

One last note apropos of nothing: if you're planning an oceanside wedding in Saint Thomas, I highly recommend sprinkling rose petals up and down the aisle and on the veranda. If you're lucky, an iguana or two will crawl out of the shrubbery during the ceremony and start munching away. Awesome!