Rara Avis – Hart Bay

Rara Avis consists of three distinct buildings – a 2-level stone great house, plus a master bedroom cabana on the left (east) and another on the right (west) side of the great house. You park above the great house and descend a stone stairway into a sheltered garden courtyard on the leeward side of the great house. The upper level of the great house contains the great room with the living, dining and kitchen areas, plus a half bath, and a laundry room. In the great room you’ll find native stonework, exposed beam cathedral ceilings, terra cotta tiled floors, bamboo furniture, and native artwork. On the south side of the great house is a 450 sq/ft tiled sun deck where the views are magnificent. Two sets of exterior stairs lead down to the two bedrooms, shared bath and deck on the lower level of the great house. The pool and its sun deck are in a garden setting in front of the west cabana. In addition to the pool’s sun deck there are four other private sun decks including two off the great house, and one off each cabana. The three buildings and the pool are connected by courtyards, gardens and walkways.

Distance To Town: 2 miles; Restaurants/nightlife: 1-2 miles; National Park beaches: 2-3 miles; Groceries: 1 mile

Living And Dining: The living and dining rooms have been artistically finished to look like the interior of a centuries old Spanish or Italian villa. They are furnished with a combination of antiques and designer furniture that blends comfort with function. From either room screened sliding glass doors open to warm breezes, a spacious deck and sweeping views of the south shore National Park. A cable 32″ flat screen cable TV, a stereo, and wireless internet are provided. Dine inside at the stately mahogany table seating 6 – 8, or outside on the sheltered garden patio.

Kitchen: The complete kitchen includes a 4 burner stove and oven, refrigerator/freezer, dishwasher, microwave, blender, drip coffee maker, toaster and a fine selection of dinnerware, cookware, and server ware. There is a gas barbeque grill in the courtyard

Bedroom Details: The two bedrooms cabanas (1 king & 1 queen) are spacious (370 sq/ft) and each offers excellent privacy, lovely views and an intimate setting. Each cabana includes a tiled bath and a private deck or patio that is perfect for morning coffee and other quiet moments. The two guest bedrooms (twins that convert to a king) are located on the lower level of the great house and also offer romantic ocean views. The lower level guest bedrooms share a bath, and a 1/2 bath is located off the kitchen in the great house.

Rara Avis is located on an oversized lot in the southwest corner of Hart Bay, which is 1/4 mile east of Great Cruz Bay, on the south coast of St. John. The setting gives this villa an excellent degree of privacy and tranquility. Rara is the last villa on a private drive so there is no vehicle traffic or noise; the only sound you’ll hear in this villa is the music of small waves breaking on the beach below you. It is blessedly peaceful and quiet, yet only minutes from Cruz Bay. Rara is truly a place where you are indulged with the basic elements of Caribbean life – sun, sea, moonlit sky, lush vegetation and the trade winds. The house faces southeast and the sun shines on your decks from early morning to late in the afternoon. The beautiful 180 degree view sweeps from north to south and takes in most of the south coast of St John, much of which is unspoiled National Park. A short walk down a private path leads to Hart Bay Beach. This is a nice beach to walk along, or if you prefer a great area to kick back and read a good book. It’s about a 2 mile drive into the restaurants, shopping and nightlife in Cruz Bay, and about a mile to the restaurants and spa at the Westin Resort.

INTERNET SERVICE: The internet service is subject to frequent interruption. We cannot guarantee internet quality or speed. Renters might find it convenient to travel with a cellular carrier MiFi – a couple of examples are AT&T and Virgin Mobile. There will be no refunds due to the internet not working.

PHONE SERVICE/CELL PHONES: Local phone service is interrupted regularly and in spite of our efforts to reinstate service it can sometimes take weeks. AT&T is the only cell service we find operates efficiently on the island. If you do not have AT&T we strongly suggest you bring a pay as you go AT&T cell phone with you as we do not provide cell phones should the local phone service be interrupted.

POOL FLOATS: Pool floats are not guaranteed with your villa rental. If you want access to them, please bring them with you.

PRIVACY POLICY: All photos are the property of Caribbean Villas and Resorts Management Company (unless otherwise indicated) and may not be reproduced or used for commercial purposes without the express written consent of Caribbean Villas and Resorts.

RATES, PRINTING ERRORS, CHANGES, AND OMISSIONS: Caribbean Villas is not responsible for printing errors and inadvertent omissions. All rates and villa details are subject to change without prior notice.

VEHICLE INFORMATION: A 4 Wheel Drive vehicle is needed for travel on St John.

Jan. 2023 – secluded, quiet, just the wave sounds of the ocean bay

Dec. 2022 – What a beautiful piece of property! We were skeptical about not having an air conditioner but the trade winds and the open doors/windows made for the perfect sleeping weather. Check in process was a a breeze as well. We had a younger adult flying in on a separate flight and on a routine call from The property manager, she offered to meet my young adult and help her find the way to the property! THAT is going above and beyond. Luckily, all the flights landed around the same planned time and we didn’t have to go to plan b. The ground at Rara Visa are lush, mature and absolutely beautiful. We met 2 iguana friends on property as well. A small hike down the waters edge was nice- rocky but it was a nice adventure. The property was conveniently located close to the grocery store, downtown, and other beaches. If we come back to St John’s – we will stay here again!

July 2022 – Amazing views and a short drive to town. We liked that there were two structures separate from the main house for use as bedrooms. Air conditioning in the bedrooms would be a welcomed addition. The breeze was lovely, but we stayed during an unusually warm week. Highly recommend!

June 2022 – Very peaceful and easy to get to from Cruz bay. As advertised and a wonderful place for a group to stay

Jan. 2022 – We loved the layout of this property. The main house with kitchen, dining room, and living room is open and airy. It was perfect even on the one rainy day for hanging out and playing cards. The separate cottages are very close and on level ground with the main house providing privacy and ease. The downstairs bedrooms were equally comfortable for our boys. The path to the beach was a hidden gem, the pool and decks lovely.

– Thank you for everything! We have absolutely LOVED our stay at Rara Avis!! What a beautiful home and location!

– Awesome..just awesome!! Thank you – we will be returning to Rara Avis!
– We had a wonderful time! The house was perfect for our family! Loved the views and breezes over Hart Bay!
– Everything was perfect, thank you so much! Though Rara Avis may not be the newest property, we found that it had an intimacy with the water and an openness to the sky and sun that gave us much peace and relaxation. We all loved it!
– Thank you for all of your assistance with our rental of Rara Avis. The home was great and we were pleasantly surprised that Rara had done some painting, new bedding etc. This was our 14 trip to St John and rental with you and Rara Avis is clearly one of the best locations on the island.
– We had a great time and enjoyed our second stint in Rara Avis. All things being equal, we plan to reserve a week in late April ’13 for another stay on Hart Bay.
– Just a quick comment to let you know that we had a most amazing time in St. John this last week! We were there for my daughter’s wedding and it was just spectacular! The Villa served us well to keep us calm and serene during this hectic time. We would highly recommend this Villa to anyone looking for a peaceful, soothing and comfortable Villa with privacy and views to die for! Everyone there in St. John was most helpful and accommodating. Thank you for your time and effort; you are a very professional group and the transaction was smooth and as expected!