The Ritz-Carlton, St. Thomas

It’s hard to think of a way to do St. Thomas in bigger style than the Ritz-Carlton. The compound sprawls out over thirty secluded acres on a peninsula at the island’s easternmost point, right up against the waters of Great Bay, with postcard-perfect views of the deep turquoise sea and a steady stream of photogenic sailboat traffic — this Ritz has moorings for the not inconsiderable number of guests who arrive by sea.

This secluded location means you can disappear here almost better than you could at a private beach house. Though the facilities are almost comically expansive — two private white sand beaches, four restaurants, a vast full-service spa and fitness complex, and more meeting facilities than you could possibly care about — the Ritz-Carlton feels smallish, even intimate, which is of course one leading measure of the success of a place of this sort.

Rooms are outfitted in classic Caribbean colonial style, each with a private balcony or terrace, and the suites are huge, almost a thousand square feet, all with ocean views. And in case you’re the unlucky soul who’s turned up without a sailboat of your own, you can always take out a loaner, the 53-foot catamaran Lady Lynsey.