FOS - St. Maarten Excusions

[Arch713]

Hi all,

 

I will be on the FOS Eastern itinerary later this summer and wanted to see what people have done in St. Marten as this will be a new port for all of us traveling.

 

I am open to excursions through the trip or booked separately.

 

I appreciate your help!

[sweetcruiser106]

Check out the St. Maarten board under Caribbean ports of call. It is an excellent source of information. As for when we were there, we used Bernard. He was excellent. We went all over the island. Decide what you want to do and pick the best option for you. Have a great time. Hope this helps.

Anne:)

[tneah]

Check out the St. Maarten board under Caribbean ports of call. It is an excellent source of information. As for when we were there, we used Bernard. He was excellent. We went all over the island. Decide what you want to do and pick the best option for you. Have a great time. Hope this helps.

Anne:)

 

Ditto! I used the same person, too.

[dohertm1]

Here's what we did to get the most out of our one day in St. Maarten. We:

 

-- Rented a car for the day at just $60 right at the dock so we could fully explore this amazing island.

 

-- Drove to the French side to visit Marigot, a wonderful seaside village and harbor.

 

-- In Marigot, we visited a historic French fort from the 1700's that provides an unbelievable view of the Caribbean and other islands -- and it's free!

 

-- We then drove a few more miles to Grand Case, the culinary capital of the Caribbean. It has 30 or so restaurants all along Grand Case beach.

 

-- We had an amazing French meal at Le Tastevin. Wonderfully fresh seafood and a view of the beach and the Caribbean to die for!

 

-- Taking the same road (one main road loops around most of the island) we headed to Orient Bay, a beautiful long beach where some people on on end of the beach swim and sunbathe sans clothing! The water was crystal clear, lots of colorful fish and funs cabana bars.

 

-- After several hours of sea and sun, we took a leisurely 30 minute drive back to Philipsburg, where the ship docks on the Dutch side. We parked the car and walked around while doing some souvenir shopping.

 

-- The only place we didn't hit was Maho Beach, which is an attraction for some, but not us, because the jets take off and land right above the beach.

 

-- It was an amazing day that my teenaged children said they would never forget. And it was a day that was far more fulfilling then huddling with dozens of other cruisers and heading to a single destination. We met a handful of people from the ship who explored on their own too we all agreed it's the best way to experience an island when you only have one day!

[lhall85917]

We have also toured with Bernard (twice) and highly recommend him. You get a great tour of the island highlights, a little beach time, and someone else gets to drive!

[Cuizer2]

Hi all,

 

I will be on the FOS Eastern itinerary later this summer and wanted to see what people have done in St. Marten as this will be a new port for all of us traveling.

 

I am open to excursions through the trip or booked separately.

 

I appreciate your help!

 

I know nice quite beach a little north of where the cruise ships dock. It is called Maho Beach. Here are some pictures ...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

http://www.wayfaring.info/index.php?s=Maarten+

 

http://www.ebaumsworld.com/video/watch/81341382/

 

 

 

 

[Arch713]

Thanks to all for your quick replies.

 

One follow up question, did you do the main tour that is on Bernard's website or did any of you do a custom tour?

 

THanks

[JBSteelerfan]

We also did Bernard last year. He is the best!! We did his regular tour, and it took you all over. Had some beach time included and also went out to Princess Julianna Airport, which was probably the highlight. Especially when the 747's come in right over you.

 

We would highly recommend Bernards Tours!!

[sweetcruiser106]

We also did Bernard's regular tour. He constantly told us if we wanted to do something special or go someplace special, time permitting, we could do it.

[sharod]

Another vote for Bernard's tour. We asked if we could stop by the Harley store on the way back. No problem!!!

[Hoopster95]

I did FOS this past Feb. I think that a private rented vehicle would be the best as I've done that before on other ports of call, but we were warned that traffic congestion has caused major problems in the past getting around and getting back to the ship. I decided to do a RCL island tour in the morning just in case... the island is pretty and saw pretty much everything (Marigot/the fort), stopped at Orient Beach, etc.... Personally, very average in comparison to touring St. Kitts, St Lucia, Antigua, etc etc.

 

100% by far and away favorite activity and memories was spending a couple of hours at Maho beach to watch the planes. Pictures and videos do not do it justice. I suspect others on this message board who considered hanging out for a few minutes to watch a single landing or take-off ended up staying the entire afternoon! If I remember correctly, cab fare was $12USD each way... I asked the same cabbie to pick me up at a certian time (he also confirmed traffic concerns later in the afternoon with regard to getting back to the ship) and he was right there waiting for me exactly when he said. The water is warm to swim in between landings, and the pub/restaurant is right there.

[retdon]

Thanks to all for your quick replies.

 

One follow up question, did you do the main tour that is on Bernard's website or did any of you do a custom tour?

 

THanks

 

 

We had a group of 50 people of which 30 signed up for the private tour with Bernard. It was great, Moho is really interesting and we saw more of the island than we had seen on other tours there.

 

I second and highly recommend Bernard. :D

[Loralie]

Does anyone have the website for Bernards tours?

 

 

Thanks,

 

Loralie

[sharod]

Does anyone have the website for Bernards tours?

 

 

Thanks,

 

Loralie

 

http://www.bernardstours.com/

[JustUs275]

I know nice quite beach a little north of where the cruise ships dock. It is called Maho Beach. Here are some pictures ...

 

Wow - awesome pictures!!! Thanks for sharing...we really want to include Maho Beach in our day. :)

[JohnHall1965]

Rent a Harley for the day - $150.00 a day ! And most of those pictures of the jets flying in were taken from the Sunset Bar & Grill

 

http://www.sunsetsxm.com/index.php/home

[dixieva]

Thanks to all for your quick replies.

 

One follow up question, did you do the main tour that is on Bernard's website or did any of you do a custom tour?

 

THanks

 

 

We were did a custom tour with Bernard. We didn't want an all day tour and we didn't want to be left at a beach for an hour or so. There were 7 of us and we had a great time on this tour. It was around 5 hours and we toured both the French and Dutch sides, we went to the beach where the planes fly over, we stopped for a short shopping trip on each side of the island. He had a cooler filled with water, sodas, beer and rum punch in the van.

 

It was the best tour we have ever done!

[Loralie]

http://www.bernardstours.com/

 

Thanks :)

 

Loralie

[Familygoboston]

Here's what we did to get the most out of our one day in St. Maarten. We:

 

-- Rented a car for the day at just $60 right at the dock so we could fully explore this amazing island.

 

-- Drove to the French side to visit Marigot, a wonderful seaside village and harbor.

 

-- In Marigot, we visited a historic French fort from the 1700's that provides an unbelievable view of the Caribbean and other islands -- and it's free!

 

-- We then drove a few more miles to Grand Case, the culinary capital of the Caribbean. It has 30 or so restaurants all along Grand Case beach.

 

-- We had an amazing French meal at Le Tastevin. Wonderfully fresh seafood and a view of the beach and the Caribbean to die for!

 

-- Taking the same road (one main road loops around most of the island) we headed to Orient Bay, a beautiful long beach where some people on on end of the beach swim and sunbathe sans clothing! The water was crystal clear, lots of colorful fish and funs cabana bars.

 

-- After several hours of sea and sun, we took a leisurely 30 minute drive back to Philipsburg, where the ship docks on the Dutch side. We parked the car and walked around while doing some souvenir shopping.

 

-- The only place we didn't hit was Maho Beach, which is an attraction for some, but not us, because the jets take off and land right above the beach.

 

-- It was an amazing day that my teenaged children said they would never forget. And it was a day that was far more fulfilling then huddling with dozens of other cruisers and heading to a single destination. We met a handful of people from the ship who explored on their own too we all agreed it's the best way to experience an island when you only have one day!

 

What she said!!:D

[deanswife1990]

Just booked a private tour with Bernard today. We decided on a private tour because we wanted to be able to have a choice in which sights we see. I've read so many wonderful things about Bernard. I can't wait for our tour.

[berbician]

Hi,

We are a family of 3 that will be on FOS in Nov for Thanksgiving. I am thinking of taking a private tour with Bernard, does anyone know what the approx. cost will be for three?

 

thanks !

[Cuizer2]

Hi,

We are a family of 3 that will be on FOS in Nov for Thanksgiving. I am thinking of taking a private tour with Bernard, does anyone know what the approx. cost will be for three?

 

thanks !

 

Why don't you ask the tour provider and get an exact figure that you can count on?

[gtaylor]

If you read the Bernard threads here you'll see that private tours are priced in the $300 and up range.

 

gary

[Racquetball]

Just booked a private tour with Bernard today. We decided on a private tour because we wanted to be able to have a choice in which sights we see. I've read so many wonderful things about Bernard. I can't wait for our tour.

We just booked a private tour with Bernard yesterday. Have you given a deposit yet? Trying to figure out how and when we do that. Thanks :)

[Cruiseoholic000]

If I am understanding the post correctly Bernard's charge $300 for custom trips per person but if you do the group tour it is $40 ? I know it is far away but was thinking of Friars bay and Marigot for an hour, plus other stops. Has anyone heard of this group not getting people back to the ship on time?