A few months ago, we spent a long weekend at the 61-room Cheval Blanc St. Barts (or St. Barth, or St. Barths, if you prefer). For those not familiar, St. Barts is a Caribbean island belonging to France. The trip was for a special occasion, as it was my mother-in-law’s birthday, and we were also…
Continue reading: Review: Cheval Blanc St. Barts (Caribbean Palace Hotel)
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I cannot explain just how much of a pain in the a@$ it is to read anything on this site now.
Ads jumping in and out, ads stacking on top of each other to the point only ¼ of the page is readable.
I'm done
@ RetiredATLATC -- I hear you, and I'm sorry for the frustration. Our ads are handled through BoardingArea, but of course this is my site, so the responsibility falls on me. I'm passing on this feedback so that the ads can hopefully be dialed back to a more agreeable level.
How is the hostel service for parents with small children? Do they offer childcare so that parents can go to dinner on their own?
@ Sergio Díaz -- The property does a great job with children, and they even have a webpage dedicated to it showing many of the amenities they have for families:
https://www.chevalblanc.com/en/maison/st-barth/experiences/families/
We didn't use it, but they do offer childcare. 🙂
Really helpful review. I’ve been looking at a visit there and didn’t have much to go on, but the way you zeroed in on the vibe is really helpful. Appreciate it.
I have Adblock, so I don't see any ads. But I just looked at the icon on the top of my browser and saw that on just this page, 100 ads were blocked!
He does indeed. Until Ben moves to a subscription model, I’ll keep reading his blog distraction-free via Reeder and only use the “real website” for comments.
Alas, even the 5 minute or less I spend on the comments section is almost unbearable due to these intrusive, overlapping ads.
Do you know what is funny about these annoying ads? The more I see them, the less are the chances I will ever click in any of them. The more they keep coming, the more I will be annoyed and never use them. Reading this website on an iPhone has become impossible.
I use Ad Block Plus in Chrome. No ads. No popups. None. I'm a faithful re4ader and I use Ben's affiliate links when applying for cards. I have a completely clear conscience. If I should not, I'm sure someone will let me know.
Went to St. Barths many (30?) years ago and yes, Flammands was windy then and had a reputation for being so. There was a resort on the Flammands beach back then, and I think it failed because people didn’t like so much wind. Did you research this resort before staying at it?
The obnoxious noisy pop-up ad accompanying this review is THE WORST. Might have to stop reading this blog if all of your articles include it, because it is so annoying.
100% agree. I love your content, but your ads are getting out of hand, covering the majority of the page, popping up exactly where you move your hand to scroll, and the minimize X is almost unclickable on the vast majority of them.
Or you could book with a Travel Agent associated with the Signature Travel Network
Or you could book with a Travel Agent associated with the Signature Travel Network
This hotel is owned or managed by Louis Vuitton (LVMH group). Did you notice if they sold or served only LVMH branded items?
Ben, ignore the criticism. Your content is spectacular!
2 comments and 1 question for you:
—beaches in the Caribbean that face north are largely unpleasantly windy in winter—the beach at CB in St Barts faces dead north. I make an exception with Grace Bay (faces dead north) and put up with the wind because it is so beautiful.
—CB St Barts bought the property next door, did low level renovation, and combined it with their original property. I understand the quality is now uneven.
—The question: I have never visited there because my wife has knee arthritis and has difficulty with steps/stairs. It appears in the photos that there are many stairs there. Is that true? Please be as specific as you can.
Thank you. Continue your excellent blog and ignore the negativity—it is everywhere.
Pillow mist, lol. I love luxury properties as much as the next person. But some amenities I have to laugh at. But that's me. Breakfast was amazing looking though!
While visiting the island and Cheval Blanc beach on month of november, wind wasnt an issue at all. Or maybe we just got lucky:-)
Are you now hawking credit cards? Never would have guessed. I thought you were all about hawking Virtuoso. I’m still holding my breath for a post with a pure travel perspective with no side gigs.
With Hawaii as a nonstop from many West Coast cities it is a no brainer to take its luxury over the Caribbean. It seems that the only ones who are prime for this location is the East Coast. But as you alluded to it was “almost” Hawaii. Can’t think of why to go East on 3 flights to get to this place.
I really miss the internet in times when every activity didn't involve targeted ads, sponsored content, personal data mining, cookie tracking, etc, all in an attempt to sell me something.
Reasonable ads are fine but everyone has a different definition of reasonable. So ad blocker extensions, PiHoles, and other means continue.
What I really want is an blocker of AI generated content (not that it's necessary for this blog) that also blocks recycled posts (definitely a thing on other blogs).
Thanks a lot for another great review, Ben.
Can you say which other turndown gifts you got beside the pillow mist?
Thank you,
Lior
I don't think the US west coast is anyways a target, it makes perfect sense from Paris during Winter - all domestic flight - with a quick transfer in Guadeloupe or Saint Martin.
The "criticism" is justified, if you've been here for years reading Ben's content.
I get it, ad revenue is what pays, but, at least on a handheld it is almost impossible to read an article without being sent to numerous retailers because of the tiny x's that need clicking.
Ben has a large following and maybe a word to BoardingArea from him might help with the issue.
Another user of an App called AdGuard which has revolutionised online browsing on my apple devices, no pop-ups at all now, highly recommended.
Do you not use an ad blocker? I can't imagine using the web without one anymore.
We've been to St Barths 8 times and only stayed at a hotel once (the new Barthelemy - -awful!). We rent villas, which are spectacular and 4-6 times the space of a hootel suite at the same price.
We knew Cheval Blanc in its earlier guise -- St Barths Isle de France, and Cheval Blanc did a great job when they renovated it.
But.
St Barths is not about a live music vibe. It's what Cheval Blanc is. Live music you can get anywehre. Peace and quiet and the sound of gulls and surf are what St Barths is.
Music ruins and dominates the environment wherever it is. Unless its in a closed off room, it forces people to 1. like the music -- or else! and 2. not be able to have a conversation or read a book.
One other different point -- yes there can be wind on Flamands, but it is not a constant, so you had bad luck. But it can pop up any time.
The best hotels are this one, the newly redone Rosewood Guanahani and Le Toiny.
Barthelemy is awful, Eden Rock is nice but weird setup, no pool, overpriced, hard to navigate.
Two other points:
1. (ready for the accusations): main reason St Barths is so much better than the rest of the Caribbean is that its French and the locals are not angry about racial issues, since there are none. So also, there's no crime or violence towards visitors.
2. Highly recommend renting villas. For the price of a hotel suite you'll get a gorgeous, large place. But until you know the island a bit and which locations you'll favor, you need to ask the renting agency a lot to find out the characteristics of the locations. They are all pretty good, but Wimco is the best and St Barths Blue second.
3. When renting villas, you can also eat in instead of the many restaurants requiring a mortgage to pay for the $45 burger (look at Cheval Blanc's beach menu). The Marche U supermarket is excellent and, being French, has excellent prepared foods. Also Foodland St Barths in town has excellent ingredients, meat, fish, etc.
We stayed at Cheval Blanc in February. I agree St. Barth’s is beautiful and usual in its mountains, trees and similarity to St. Tropez. My worst nightmare would be a live dj pumping random music. We thought about trying Eden Roc next time but since it is near the airport and has a dj, definitely not. We had a plunge pool and we were located on the beach; I could walk out and walk on the beach. Cheval Blanc is quiet, peaceful, no airport noise and definitely no dj. It deserves extra points for all those things. I go to the Caribbean to relax and enjoy nature and the beach.
I think @RetiredATLATC has spoken out on behalf of many of us.
For me, It has been a tremendous restrain on my part not to use the Ads Blocker since the content is barely readable on mobile device obstructed by all the annoyingly misplaced Ads.
12€ for rice or mashed potatoes lol. That is just sooo stupid. Why not charge 12€ more for the main, and just say "One of the following sides included:"? It just seems really ridiculous to charge that much for rice.
Hey, I'm a fan of the Andaz Peninsula Papagayo. I found it punches above its weight:
Great review, Ben. I love LVHM hotels. Their refinement and quality appears to be lost on many of your readers. Regardless, Cheval Blanc is my 2nd favorite property on St Barts after Oakter Collection's heavenly Eden Rock.
I really enjoy your recent reviews from the upper luxury brands. Ignore the envious point chasing crowd and keep 'em coming (I would love to see you review some of the impressive new 5 stars in the Maldives).