Morningstar Buoy Haus Beach Resort at Frenchman's Reef, Autograph Collection

Resort

Interesting place. The rooms are separate low rise buildings with the lobby and restaurants in different locations. We ate at two of the three restaurants and the food was unbelievably expensive and not very good. The pool and beach were very good. Overall, I would recommend staying at the Westin next door. Also a Marriott property. This was my first time to Virgin Islands. Can’t say I’d go back. Island overall is in rough shape.

We thoroughly enjoyed our stay. The people were extremely friendly — shout out to Renee, Shakeem, Makesha and our friends at Salt who greeted us warmly at all times. I was there with my daughter and 16 month granddaughter and the pool was great as was the service. There is an extended ledge that my granddaughter loved. Many pool chairs look on to the really beautiful beach. We stayed in a garden view room — no upgrade as Titanium — but not a problem. If you can swing the ocean view 2nd floor, I’d go for it. Maybe the only critique is that garden view do hear traffic from the road and 1st floor is liable to be noisy if you have a stomper on top as we did. We found the food to be really good. Cocktails too. Shout out to the ladies running the pool bar! I mentioned a wish list to the manager and she asked that I put it on my TA review: Nightly local music, gift shop featuring Buoy Haus swag and local handmade goods, pool/ beach treats during the day, start pool/ bar service earlier and more proactively (maybe flags on the chairs? ), quicker shuttle service to Westin (or timed schedule) and posted times for opening of different restaurants/ bars (on a piece of paper at checkout-in but would be easier with posting). None of the wish list is necessary for me to return but would elevate the stay. Lastly, Buoy Haus has a great boutique, relaxed vibe. The Westin definitely feels like a conference hotel.

We had a lovely time at this resort. The grounds are beautiful. The staff are friendly and beach easily accessible. I agree with other reviews however that note service is far from 5 star. For instance, for check out I had to lug all of our suitcases down a flight of stairs to the lobby because I couldn’t get anyone to pick up the phone at the front desk to request assistance. There were several other examples of slow service or missteps that I wouldn’t expect at a resort at this price point. I did however consistently receive excellent service at breakfast at the Salt Shack. Overall, we did enjoy our time at this resort despite service not quite meeting our expectations.

The location is amazing. The beach is beautiful and the activities provided at the beach are extremely convenient. Unfortunately, our room had many broken items that weren't addressed. Also, the staff closed my tab at the poolside restaurant on two occasions and tipped themselves without my permission. Service in general isn't great. They have a very laid back approach, so don't expect drinks or food to arrive in a timely fashion. There were a couple of days where we couldn't even get a beach towel. The food is expensive and not worth the price — same for The Westin. But if you stay here, you won't have many options to eat unless you want to take a taxi or rent a car.

My wife, daughter and I spent 7 nights at this property and had a wonderful experience, despite having some concerns after reading some negative reviews before checking-in. One of the hotel managers, Mika, addressed our concerns before our arrival and personally ensured that our visit was everything we had hoped for: The staff was friendly and attentive; the grounds were gorgeous and well-maintained; the room — although smaller than we expected — was new, clean, and very comfortable; the meals at all the restaurants were very good; the hotel beach and pool were fantastic; and the shuttle between the Buoy Haus and Westin was very convenient. Highlights: the comfortable and plentiful lounge chairs by the infinity pool; the lovely lobby with expansive views of the ocean; the tiki torch-lit pathways on the grounds at night; the night-time kayak tour from the Westin dock; and the complimentary coffee and rum cocktails in the lobby. We highly recommend this property and would definitely return someday!