My plan for St. Martin - experienced visitors, please review

[handbellplayer]

After reviewing these Boards, here's my plan for our stop in St. Martin/Sint Maarten:

 

(Arriving on Glory 8:00am - 6:00pm)

 

1) Take a cab to Marigot for a little while and explore on foot - maybe have some french pastries for breakfast.

 

2) Take a cab to Orient Beach and spen an hour or so there.

 

3) Take a cab back to Pillipsburg for shopping, lunch, drinks, etc.

 

How does that sound? Will we see much of the island on the trip? What will we miss with this plan? By the way, we're not ones for just sitting on the beach.

 

Any feedback would be mmuch appreciated.

 

Anne

 

Glory 5/1/04

[Zeno]

Speaking as a person who (as well as stopping twice by cruise ship) has spent a week in St. Martin/SintMaarten, this sounds like a good plan for non-beach people. You will get to see a good part of the island.

 

 Until NCL SKY

 

[gypsygirl]

We will be there for the day also. We'd like to spend an hour or so at Orient Beach and also go to Maho Beach to see the planes come in. Anytime left to have a cold one at "Everyting Cool"? What do you think?

 

gypsygirl

 

Emerald Seas 1985

Caribe 1986

Carnivale 1991

Westward 1993

Fantasy 1994

Fantasy 1995

Fascination 1997

Destiny 2001

Enchantment 2002

Sovereign 2004

Serenade 2004

 

[handbellplayer]

I certainly hope so - that's what I meant by the "drinks" in #3 of my plan!

 

I have to visit Everyt'ing Cool - I've heard so much about it.

 

Glory 5/1/04

[gypsygirl]

Handbellplayer, go to Everyting Cool's website. There's a coupon for a free drink.

 

gypsygirl

 

Emerald Seas 1985

Caribe 1986

Carnivale 1991

Westward 1993

Fantasy 1994

Fantasy 1995

Fascination 1997

Destiny 2001

Enchantment 2002

Sovereign 2004

Serenade 2004

 

[Zeno]

Gypsygirl: Plenty of time. Allocate at least 2 hours for Orient Beach. Ask your taxi driver what time the BIG planes land and time your trip to Maho Beach accordingly and be prepared to be sand-blasted. Personally I would rather have a drink at one of the many spots on Orient Beach but EveryT'ing Cool is fine.

 

 Until NCL SKY

 

[gypsygirl]

Zeno, thanks for the information.

 

gypsygirl

 

Emerald Seas 1985

Caribe 1986

Carnivale 1991

Westward 1993

Fantasy 1994

Fantasy 1995

Fascination 1997

Destiny 2001

Enchantment 2002

Sovereign 2004

Serenade 2004

 

[shoreboy]

Your plan sounds good, however, the shops in Marigot don't open until 10:00AM unless you happen to be in SXM on market days-Wednesdays and Saturdays. If that is the case, go to the waterfront. Otherwise walk around the Marina area. I would suggest ZEE BEST for breakfast-great croissants and pastries or LeCroisaterrie(sp?) in the Marina.

Orient is only about 10 minutes from Marigot. I would suggest CoCo Beach-it's least crowded, has the widest beach and the service and food are great. It is on the far end of the beach from Club Orient-the naturist resort. Another great spot to eat and people watch on Orient is Baywatch-you will know it by all of the New Jersey road signs. Great food. This is near Club Orient.

A walk on the brand new boardwalk in Phillipsburg is a great way to end the day.

Instead of Phillipsburg, you may want to consider stopping at Sunset Beach Bar at the airport for a drink and to watch the planes come in. Topless women drink for free!

Instead of taking taxis, I would consider renting a car at the pier (Best Deal is good). It will be alot cheaper and give you more flexibility. It is easy to get around SXM since it is basically one road the circles the island.

[mary07054]

I can't find the free coupon on 'everything cool' site. can you help?

[gypsygirl]

Mary, Sorry, but I can't find the free drink coupons anymore either. I found them several months back. Maybe they were giving away too many free drinks. LOL

 

gypsygirl

 

Emerald Seas 1985

Caribe 1986

Carnivale 1991

Westward 1993

Fantasy 1994

Fantasy 1995

Fascination 1997

Destiny 2001

Enchantment 2002

Sovereign 2004

Serenade 2004

 

[tatania_starstrider]

Zeno, would you agree that Coco Beach is the best Beach? I know when you spend a week in place you get a far better idea - which is one of the drawbacks of cruising. I'm definitely a beach nut and have sought out the best beaches in the world from Malaysia to the South Pacific. In the Caribbean my favourite beaches so far have been on Tobago and St. John where we stayed at the Maho Bay camp for a week. What beach in St. Martins has warm, clear, water with no undertow, wide stretches of sand and not too crowded and maybe some snorkeling? Would love to hear what people who have been there think.

[Zeno]

Ok - Tatania will try to answer some your questions.

1. St Martin does not have any really excellent snorkeling (like for example Turks and Caicos) but there is some snorkeling. Most people seem to feel Dawn Beach has the best snorkeling BUT it is also prone to extreme wave action and undertows.

2. Orient Beach is my favorite beach on the island BUT it does not have good snorkeling. There are some fish to be seen in front of Pedros (a beach restaurant next to Club Orient (the nudest resort). I like Orient Beach for the exact opposite reasons I like other beaches (usually I am a fan of out-of-way quiet beaches (like Dawn Beach) BUT Orient Beach is by far the best "busy" beach I have been to. It is long. Parts are wide and parts are narrow. There are many beach front restaurants (Coco beach BTW is one of the restaurants on Orient Beach -not a separate beach). All the restaurants rent loungers and umbrellas. People watching on Orient Beach is superb (ranging from naked people from the nudist resort to cruiseship passengers gawking at the naked people -quite funny really). The beach is big enough and long enough that even when a lot of people are there it does not feel overcrowded. The water is warm and clear. Wave action depends on wind direction - I have been there on calm days when tiny little waves just lapped the shore and on days when big rollers were coming in. (On those days there is some undertow but nothing to compare with what you get in Hawaii.) The beach slopes gently into the water (no sudden drop). The calmest water on rough days is right in front of Club Orient (because they are sheltered by an island) - Since the beach is public you can use any part of it. The naked people don't mind as long as you don't gawk. The quietest (fewest people) part of Orient Beach is the opposite end (north) (fewest nude people too - if that bothers you) . Coco Beach is nearer to that end. Other nice locations along Orient Beach are Kakao Beach and Bikini Beach (about midway along the beach). Really though you can just go to Orient Beach and walk till you find a spot you like (extreme south end - nudest resort, extreme north end - fewest people, middle - most activities (water slides etc).

3. Other beaches:

Dawn Beach as previously mentioned

Anse Marcel - charming little beach but a bit isolated. The Meridian Club is located here.

Petit Plage - small beach near Grand Case (quiet, nice views, drops off a bit too quickly for my taste) - some snorkeling by the point separating it from Grand Case Beach (too narrow and built up and not too clean for my taste)

Great Bay Beach - closest to cruise ship dock - once again too built up for my taste.

BTW: question for you - which beaches did you like on Tobago? - I may be going there next year.

 

 Until NCL SKY

[tatania_starstrider]

Thanks for all that Zeno. Since I'm not a shopper I'll probably try Dawn Beach in the morning and Orient in the afternoon. Having lived in Europe for 4 years and having one of the most popular nudist beaches in Canada in my city (Wreck Beach) going nude at a beach doesn't bother me one bit. It's actually the only way to swim and it's amusing how uptight Americans can be about it.

 

I've been to Trinidad twice (3 weeks each time) and always took some time to visit Tobago. I'm not sure the beach I discovered there had a name (not that I knew of, hehe) but it had an endless stretch of gorgeous white sand, fabulous water and NO other people. Heaven. It might have been Great Courland Bay as I walked a long way from Pigeon Point. When I went to Buccoo Reef I ran into a "booze" cruise and hung out with them a while. The girls were really going wild with the local hunky guides and it was a lot of fun. Check it out for snorkeling.

[Zeno]

Tatania: thx for Tobago info

 

 Until NCL SKY

 

[pkvdo]

Zeno,

we have a group of 8 arriving on the caribbean princess early sept.....we are thinking about taking the water taxi to front st for shopping and wanted your opinion as to where to go to watch the planes land & have drinks...what time will the big planes be coming in...

Pam

[Zeno]

I am not sure of the exact landing times for the big planes but I believe most land in the afternoon. One of the locals can probably tell you. The beach which they fly over is Maho Beach. It is a short taxi ride from Phillipsburg.

 

 Until NCL SKY

 

[kal]

The majority of the big planes land between 11:30am and 2:00pm. The Air France flight generally arrives between 1:50-2:30pm (AST). It takes off between 4:00-4:45pm.

 

Air France

[billybob123]

Sorry for the late reply, I just read this thread today. If you want to see big planes landing, get to Maho before 12. After 2 pm, you probably won't see anything but the small commuter planes landing, but you will see the big ones taking off. The best time is between 11:30 and 1:30; depending on the day of the week you'll get the Air France and KLM jumbos. Be warned though, that taking a cab or driving from the dock in Phillipsburg can be hazardous in terms of time -- traffic can be horrible, especially if the drawbridge into Simpson bay lagoon is open when you want to leave. Leave LOTS of extra time.