President Biden arrived in the U.S. Virgin Islands on Wednesday for another free vacation with wealthy supporters — after previous gifted stays drew criticism from ethicists, including for his failure to disclose munificence on annual forms.
The 81-year-old president is expected to stay six nights at the Bill and Connie Neville’s three-bedroom beachfront homewhose secluded St. Croix retreat typically operates as a VRBO rental.
First lady Jill Biden, her granddaughter Natalie and possibly other family members will join the president at the lush villa, which offers an in-ground pool and picturesque views of the Caribbean Sea and an offshore island.
Biden stayed in the same house last year over the New Year holiday and also didn’t pay a cent – sparking outrage because he had given the Nevilles’ tickets that same month to his first state dinner as presidentwhich featured a very curated list of around 300 billionaires, cultural icons and politicians to welcome French President Emmanuel Macron.
The Nevilles, who could not be reached for comment, loaned the house to Biden in previous years, dating back to his vice presidency, and noted the fact on listings for the property.
“As they have done previously, the President and First Lady are staying with their friends Bill and Connie Neville,” a White House official said.
The value of the free stay is over $6,000.
As of Tuesday, the house was available for rent on VRBO — for $875 per night — during the same date range in 2024 and 2025, for a total cost of $6,338 before taxes.
Biden’s habit of taking free vacations — then not disclosing it on annual ethics forms — has led to unflattering comparisons to trips conservative Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas took with the billionaire of real estate Harlan Crow, who had no known cases in court.
Biden, like Thomas, has a long history of accepting free stays. But there are two important distinctions: Biden’s host is usually not at home, and the president travels at taxpayers’ expense rather than his benefactor’s.
“Joe Biden has been staying with donors for free for years and has never included this vacation in the reporting forms,” said Mark Paoletta, a longtime friend and defender of Thomas and top lawyer for the White House budget office. under President Donald Trump.
“They’re not long-time friends, they’re wealthy donors, so there’s no excuse not to reveal it. But since his name is not Clarence Thomas, who visits his friends at their home and is not obliged to report it, the media doesn’t care. They protect Biden and only care about one side.”
Bill Neville, 61, is the founder of American software company Viking, which creates a news content platform. called ENPS marketed by Associated Press. He and Connie, 60, are from Alabama and have donated to both Republicans and Democrats, including Biden.
Viking’s software is used by 800 media outlets, including the BBC and ESPN, to “easily search media content”, “easily adapt stories for digital publishing” and “integrate seamlessly with digital and social media platforms ”, according to a Virgin profile. Islands Economic Development Authority.
Biden has stayed at other luxury homes for free, spending seven days last August at the nine-bedroom Kiawah Island, South Carolina, mansion of donor Maria Allwin, whose family runs a hedge fund, after giving him asked to use the house, a source told the Post. (First lady Jill Biden ended up staying longer due to contracting COVID-19.)
“They don’t pay. They never paid,” the source said.
In November 2021, the Biden family stayed for six days at Billionaire investor David Rubenstein’s Nantucket island resortco-founder of the powerful Carlyle Group, which manages $382 billion in assets in the United States and other countries shaped by the Biden administration’s policies.
Biden returned to Rubenstein’s Nantucket home for a six-day stay around Thanksgiving 2022 and for six days this year during the same holiday.
The White House and Rubenstein did not say whether the Bidens were paying for their stay, but it is assumed he would come for the visit without direct compensation.
In August, Biden stayed with his family for nine days at billionaire climate investor Tom Steyer’s six-bedroom waterfront mansion on Lake Tahoe, Nevada.
In a break from previous holidays, the White House said Biden would pay Steyer “fair market value.”
The local government in Douglas County, Nevada, requires vacation homes to have permits and has launched a short-term investigation into whether Steyer broke the law due to his confirmed lack of documentation.
That investigation ended abruptly for unspecified reasons, and the parties to the alleged transaction did not say how much money changed hands.
Biden came under particular pressure to not disclosing your free vacation on annual forms that require federal office holders to list their gifts.
“The owner must be a personal friend of the president or first lady and be present during the stay – otherwise it is on the form. There’s no excuse for not having it on the form,” Richard Painter, the top ethics lawyer in George W. Bush’s White House, told the Post in May.
“You can’t let the president just use people’s homes for free and without disclosure. It’s no better than a Supreme Court justice staying on a yacht for free with no disclosure,” Painter said.
There is some disagreement over whether Biden — and Thomas before him — must list vacations because of a “personal hospitality” exception in the disclosure process. Some experts believe this allows public figures to accept free stays without disclosure, while others, like Painter, insist the exception only applies when the owner is present – and certainly not for a commercial property such as the Nevilles’ VRBO rental.
Walter Shaub, who led the Obama-era Office of Government Ethics, previously told the Post: “It has always been my view that the exception cannot be used when the friend is not there, and I think the arguments to the contrary make no sense. . It’s not the exception of the rich friend who can give you stuff. It’s supposed to apply to things like your friend’s kids’ wedding or a home-cooked meal with your friend.
Biden vacationed at some of the same vacation properties as vice president and also did not disclose the stays as gifts.