USVI-On-Line

How can I find this! I know it's in here somewhere but when I find the link Pia shared, it goes nowhere HELP!

1. Don't invite anyone who is a whiner. Don't invite anyone that you would not spend a week with 1-on-1.

2. I pick the villa and the week and people get to decide if they want to come. It's okay if no one wants to come with me.

3. You get to pick your room in the order that you pay. I've already paid the deposit, so I go first. This deals with the equal rooms problem and #1 deals with whiners.

4. One vehicle per 2 couples with at least one person from each couple on the contract for each car. Expect there to be an early group and a late group each morning. This is not a problem. I get my own vehicle. I'm in the early group and my lover is in the late group.

5. Pick a beach each day that you want to visit; 11AM is a good rendezvous time. The late group can usually make it and the early group will have done a hike and another beach already. It's okay if no one meets me at the beach.

6. Do some happy hours at the villa. It's cheap and 6-8 people is a party. Bring Twister.

7. Dinner out for 6-8 is a pain in the a$$. Do some dinners at the villa and do some date nights. Meet for drinks before and after dinner. There's always room at the Beach Bar, Quiet Mon and Motu Bar for 6-8. 2013: Banana Deck has done some large walkin groups very nicely.

8. Expect to spend a day without leaving the villa. Make sure that there is not a mid-week maid visit scheduled that day. Start the blender at 10AM, but put sunscreen on all exposed skin first.

9. Put $100 per person in a food/drink kitty for villa provisions. If someone is concerned that they won't spend that much and want differential treatment, that breaks rule #1 - they don't get to come. $800 will cover food and booze at the villa for 8 adults for a week. Dinner for 8 at Zozo's is $680 (2005).

Lessons learned:
- If someone whines at home, they will whine more on STJ.
- If someone pitches in at home they will pitch in more on STJ.
- 10 people feels much bigger than 8 people - 60% bigger: c=(n^2-n)/2
- The herd moves at the speed of the slowest beast.
- Don't be afraid to say "I'm heading out. I'll be back for sunset."
- Newbies will assume the villa is on the beach, even if you tell them otherwise and show them pictures. If they can't get over this, they stay at the Westin.
- #1 takes care of almost every possible problem.

Cheers, RickG

Thanks for re-posting this. It makes me chuckle every time. I think its great advice. We only travel with one other couple, and we have traveled together many times, so we haven't experienced many issues. However, whenever we start to think about vacationing with a bigger group, these things come to mind!

I hope that you don't mind that I now have fully adopted your rules as my own...and having led many group visits with horror stories as a result will now use as my mandatory guide !

I love Rick's rules!

I love Rick's rules - but perhaps my favorite one came courtesy of BillVT:

No matter how lost, burnt, disappointed, drunk or disillusioned you are, smile. You will fool the rest of us and and we will all have a better time for it.

Fun!

Rule #1 takes care of everything! We had a group of 10 on a catamaran in July and the rules worked great.

...at 52 Twister is not quite the game it was at 38!

Cheers, RickG

I try not to go with big groups. But my #1 rule when going with me is
This is my vacation. When I want to go somewhere your more than welcome to go but I'm not waiting on you.The Jeep leaves in 4 min.