Caribbean Travel and Life
January 1999
Nestled beneath the historic watchtower of Blackbeard's Castle, L'Hotel Boynes overlooks the red rooftops of Charlotte Amalie and boasts a spectacular view of the entire harbor, with its gigantic cruise ships and sailboats at rest in the turquoise waters of the Caribbean Sea. The inn itself reeks of legitimate old-world charm. The 200-year-old stone and ballast brick structure was once the Anglican parsonage and is now listed in the National Register of Historic Homes.
Its lush terraced gardens, wide iron-filigreed gallery and sweeping stairs beckon you inside, where 12-foot-high tongue-in-groove ceilings, antique furniture, mahogany doors, four-poster beds, stone walls, and marble and teak parquet floors greet you. I love its warmth and charm, but most of all I love the ebullient personality of the bed and breakfast's owner, Sam Boynes.
Sam named this eight-room bed-and-breakfast after L'Hotel Boynes, built in Paris in 1720 by the family that produced King L
ouis XV's navy minister, Pierre-Etienne Bourgeois de Boynes, because Sam has traced his roots to this French family. He discovered that Pierre-Etienne's second wife moved to Haiti after her husband's death, perhaps the link between the African-American Boyneses and those in France.
Sam first came to St. Thomas when researching his genealogy because Boynes is a common Virgin Islands name. He moved here and worked for another hotel, but with the dream of owning his own place.
At L'Hotel Boynes there's always someone available to drive you to the beach or to dinner. Or you can luxuriate beside the hotel's pool or read on the gallery. If you're in the Red Room, you can even relax on your own private balcony. Each of the rooms has a different look and personality, but all have the perquisites of comfort—daily maid service, private baths, TVs, VCRs, air conditioning, ceiling fans and irons.
If you want company, there are cocktails and conversation in the Marquis Room. It's a wonderful spot for gathering; flowers decorate its piano, and the Boynes family history documents adorn the walls.
Sam will, if you want, leave you totally alone. But don't let him. You want to hear his stories about visiting the Parisian L'Hotel Boynes, now the Banque of Paris ... researching his book, The Name Is the Same ... learning the Japanese language ... entertaining Mohammed Ali in his home. The stories will introduce you to the real Sam Boynes and the true charm of L'Hotel Boynes.
—Joan Amerling
