Carnival Excursion of just better of "on own"

[Meredisney]

Hi there. I'm traveling to St. Maarten on the Carnival Dream in July. It will be my husband, my parents and myself. We are interested in going over to the French side, Marigot, to do a little shopping. Then we would like to head back over to Philipsburg for some more shopping. We are not interested in going to any of the beaches, as we have beach excursions booked on other days.

I like the idea of booking an Excursion through the cruiseline because all the planning is done for you. I've looked at the Carnival Excursions and these look like the best ones for our needs.

1. St Maarten Island Tour 2.5 hours @ 39.95

See downtown Philipsburg, the capital of the Dutch side.

View many important homes and businesses as you travel along Perimeter Road towards lookout point.

Cross the Dutch / French border towards the capital of the French side of the island, Marigot.

Spend time shopping or strolling along the main street of this quaint little town.

Proceed past the resort areas, featuring many luxury hotels and resorts.

Return back to the Dutch side of the island to finish your excursion.

2. Dutch & French Island Experience: 2.5 hours @ 25.95 a person

Ride an air conditioned bus, from which you will witness the tremendous development which has made the 37 square mile island so popular and busy.

Ride through the Dutch side and capital of Philipsburg, founded in 1763 by John Phillips, a Scottish Captain in the Dutch Navy.

See the predominant landmark - the restored courthouse originally built in 1793, before continuing to the other side of the island.

Ride through the hills towards Marigot, the capital of French St. Martin which was originally a fishing village and now features gingerbread houses and sidewalk bistros.

Enjoy some time on your own to explore Marigot’s boutiques lining the picturesque narrow streets.

Continue your journey through Grand Case, a seaside town known as the “gourmet capital” of the Caribbean, and past the ever popular Orient Beach.

Stop at Cole Bay Lookout for a photo opportunity of the beautiful Simpson Bay.

Choose to be dropped off downtown or return directly

Has anyone done either of these excursions? What was your experience? Are they the correct ones for what I am looking for, or am I better off just doing this on my own?

Thanks for your help!

Meredisney

[Cruisewombat]

Neither Marigot or Philipsburg are very big cities, so from that point of view, no need to a book an excursion from the ship, even though it´s all planned. It also fairly easy to take a taxi from the ship to Marigot at the taxi stand close to the ship. Prices can be seen here: http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v357/gtaylor/Taxi/?action=view&current=DSCN3856.jpg

 

So from my point of view, if the goal of the day is shopping in both Marigot and Philipsburg I would just go for a taxi over a trou from the ship

[gtaylor]

Although rarely mentioned, in addition to straight taxi transportation you can also book a variety of island tours at the taxi stand, right at the Cruise Facility.

 

(click)

 

With your party of four you might even be able to book a personal tour with Joyce Prince for about the same price as a ship excursion.

 

gary