Travel Weekly Editor at Large Johanna Jainchill earlier this year spent a week at two Caribbean villas, named Exclusivity and Day-O. Her impressions on Exclusivity follow: Vacation rentals vary as much, if not more, than hotel brands.
Exclusivity, a villa situated in Captain's Bay, one of Anguilla's most secluded areas, is exactly what its name implies. Perched above the sea and steps away from a sparkling stretch of what feels like a private beach (no beach is private in Anguilla), Exclusivity defines privacy. (
View a slideshow of Exclusivity and Day-O here or by clicking on the photo.)
This villa differs from many in that it is fully staffed, making it akin to a private luxury hotel.
The expansive, five-bedroom home has several housekeepers, an award-winning chef who serves three meals a day -- lobster, crab cakes and prime steak are on the menu -- as well as any snacks guests would like. The on-site concierge attends to all guests' needs but is otherwise invisible, which can also be said of most of the staff here.
No sooner has a guest contemplated going to beach that staffers are setting up beach chairs, an umbrella and a cooler. Before they realize they're hungry, the chef is serving a snack of coconut-crusted shrimp or offering cocktails by the large pool. Guests don't even have to ask for champagne and conch fritters as they gather outside to watch the sunset.
If guests feels like experiencing the island, the concierge will not only recommend places for them to go but will personally chauffeur them, eliminating the need for designated drivers after an afternoon spent at a reggae beach bar.
But as the staff at Exclusivity have found, guests usually don't wish to go very far, since the villa seems to have it all, plus a remote location that offers a kind of privacy that is difficult to come by in most parts of the world.
Luxury and its amenities come at a premium to unstaffed villas. Because it is full-service, Exclusivity's rates start at $16,000 per week, plus a service charge, for two to three people, up to $30,000 per week for 10 guests.
This includes not just meals and liquor but a private tennis court, a gym, high-end mattresses and linens, and furniture hand-chosen by the owner and imported from Italy. The villa also has a private helipad.
Sylvia Jones, the owner of Villas and Apartments Abroad and one of Exclusivity's top producers, said the property is unique in that its owner manages the property, as opposed to an outside management company, and that it has a full-time staff.
"If you really want privacy, it's a wonderful place," Jones said. "This is why celebrities love it."
Follow Johanna Jainchill on Twitter @jjainchilltw.