Recommend Oct 2017 - 47

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The Buccaneer, USVI

Beachside
at The Buccaneer.

Ed Wetschler

Although hurricanes Irma and Maria did
enormous damage in several Leeward Islands,
including St. Croix, The Buccaneer came
through in unusually good shape. Only a half
dozen or so rarely used rooms at the 138-key
resort were damaged. Just note that for next
few weeks The Buccaneer will be hosting
FEMA workers, so it isn't accepting last-minute
bookings. This report is from a visit just prior
to this season's hurricanes, but everything
mentioned here is as it was before the storms.
The Buccaneer is the grande dame of the
U.S. Virgin Islands: Owned and operated by
the same family since 1947 on a plantation
founded in 1653, The Buccaneer has a pink
plantation house on a hill and 17th-century
stone buildings that have earned it membership
in Historic Hotels of America. But the present
tense matters, too, because it's this resort's
beaches (the 138-key resort occupies 340 acres,
much of them seaside), par-70 golf course,
tennis complex, kids activities, restaurants,
warm staff, modern traditional rooms, and
easy access to Christiansted that make it a
favorite for today's vacationers, many of them
repeat visitors.
My room, an 800-sq.-ft. Luxury Beachside
Doubloon, featured a carved four-poster, easy
chairs, raised ceiling, marble flooring, and a
marble bath with a big jacuzzi. The terrace
had a balustrade fit for a Roman villa, beyond
which a wall of sea grapes was low enough
so guests could sit on the outdoor couch and
see the sea, but high enough so people on
the beach couldn't see if I, like Hall of Fame
pitcher Jim Palmer, was modeling Hanes.
For lunch at the beachfront Mermaid I
asked the server if I could have the tropical
salad with mahi-mahi instead of chicken. "Of
course," she said, and the result had just

the right mix of fruits, vegetables, fish, and
spicy accents.
At the nearby watersports center, staffers
were helping some children stage a hermit
crab race. Hermit crabs being squatters, each
one wore a different species' shell. One boy
"bet" on the one with the biggest shell, but
that crab, with so much to lug around, came
in last. The guests' kids learned a lesson
there, as did some locals on the beach who
were watching the Crab Preakness.
Over the next few days I borrowed kayaks
and SUPs; I also snorkeled out to the reef
that keeps the bay calm, but because I was
alone, I stayed on the inside rather than the
outside of the reef system. (Some days there
are guided snorkeling tours of the outer reef.)
One morning I took a half-day snorkeling
trip to Buck Island Reef National Monument.
Caribbean Sea Adventures sent a mid-size
boat operated by two scientists to pick up a
half-dozen Buccaneer guests at the dock.
Buck Island is one of the holy grails of
snorkeling. As we approached it, dolphins
played in the wake and sea turtles emerged
to eyeball the boat. When we entered the
water, crowds of angelfish surrounded us.
We saw live coral of every kind and color,
red parrotfish, blue parrotfish, butterfly fish,
and more. Somehow, I missed the nurse
sharks and rays, but that, if you'll pardon the
expression, was a fluke.
One day I had a good look at the eight
resurfaced tennis courts because the new
fitness center, where I was going, shares a
building with the new tennis shop. I also got
a close look at the golf course, a 1973 seaside
beauty, when I followed the Par Course trail
around the fairways.
St. Croix itself is a big draw here: the

Cruzan rum factory, the well-preserved Estate
Whim, the fort in Christiansted, the building
where the teenage Alexander Hamilton
worked, and the St. George Village Botanical
Garden. How to refuel after all that? Dine in
Christiansted at star chef Digby Stridiron's
balter, 40 Strand Eatery, or Zion Modern
Kitchen. What if someone has just one night
in town? Eat three dinners. (For all sights and
restaurants, check ahead with the concierge to
make sure they're recovered.)
Speaking of dinner, one night at The
Terrace, in the Great House, I had a mahimahi picatta whose moist flesh and lemony
tang combined for a masterpiece. Another
night I ate at the bar, where I couldn't
decide between the tacos and the flatbread
(aka pizza), each priced in the teens. Next to
me, a local wrestled with the same dilemma,
so we split the two while listening to a
singer/guitarist who wowed the guests with
R&B classics.
Rates include full American breakfasts,
watersports gear, beach chairs and floating
mats, introductory scuba lessons, free WiFi,
and other perks. Great House Ocean View
rates start at about $300 per couple, but, Vicki
Locke, director of sales, told me, "The 50
deluxe oceanfront rooms [from $400] are the
most popular." My Luxury Beachside Doubloon,
the newest and largest room category, starts at
$650. The 2-bedroom, 1-bath Family Cottage
Suites (from $430), said Locke, "are the best
value at the hotel." She added, "We have a
very good travel agent following, and we want
agents to talk to us, to let us know if your
clients have trouble with stairs or if there's
an anniversary." ■
Contact Information
The Buccaneer: thebuccaneer.com
october 2017 47
http://www.thebuccaneer.com
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