I've been meaning to share about mine and Lucy's time at Casa De Tortuga on Vieques Island, so here's some of my thoughts.
We had a great time here. Vieques, in general, and Tortuga as our home. Matt, the proprietor, is a totally chill dude who has a great knack for interacting just enough with guests and not too much.
Tortuga is new. As Vieques starts to blow up, the inns are filling up during season and Tortuga is one of the places answering that call. As such, it's literally new all over, only built in the last year, as I recall. That having been said, it probably has yet to find its own intrinsic charm, the ideosyncracies that sort of make Vieques accomodations delightful and peculiar. But it's a youngster, and I think this will happen. Here are some of my favorite things and a few small criticisms, all offered with a general overall fondness for Casa de Tortuga:
The Good:
* Matt is a prince. He helped us in countless ways. He took us to the airport. He rules.
* The pool is nice. In the AM, you should sit out beside it and watch several giant Iguanas fuss around in the trees.
* I had cell phone service when directly across the street, I didn't. Vieques is weird that way.
* Nice bed, nice bathroom, as I recall.
* AC can be nice and they've got it in every room.
* Pickle is the dog of the Tortuga. What he says, is the way it is. Mosty he says: "time for a nap."
The Slightly Off:
* Tortuga could use some more charming shared areas. Like a backyard bungalow or shack for people to sit around and lounge. Even just a few more well-placed chair sets outside where guests might visit with each other. Or where you might sit out and have morning coffee.
* Dog poop stench -- this may be out of the control of Tortuga. The adjacent yard, I think on the right, occasionally offers a stiff stench of dog poop. Not all the time. But sometimes it was bad. Not a deal-breaker, but would be great to somehow remedy.
* I fear a little bit that the rooms won't hold up over time. They looked fine during our visit because they were brand new. But as the climate and time take their toll, it will be important for the Tortuga to be pro-active to keep the place up-to-snuff. I say this because the modern construction of Tortuga robs it of some of the "rustic charm" that some of the older places have --it's a bit vanilla in the rooms (to be fair we stayed in one of the small rooms, not the exceedingly cool looking "suite") --and thus they kind of have to work extra hard to keep it spick-n-span as a counter-measure.
* I wish the coffee situation was more appealing. Each room has a two-cup coffee maker, which is fine, but it feels so transient... things are so chilled-out in Vieques! It would be nice to feel a little more ... planted. I would like to see Tortuga have some sort of coffee area for all guests.. I think it would help the overall vibe tremendously.
Thanks again to Matt and Casa de Tortuga! You helped make our stay on Vieques wonderful and I hope that all comments here understood to be supportive and constructive.
We'll see you again some day!
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