Excursions

[Tntt]

One of the ports we are visiting is st marten, I would like to go to maho Beach which is famous for the airplanes landing over the

Beach. However my spouse is skeptical about going too far from the port area because how sometimes tourists are targeted In foreign islands and my spouse doesn't want to do an independent excursion because RC is not responsible if you are late getting back to the ship. I was wondering has anyone did a RC excursion to maho Beach and what was your experience. Also is it true if you are late getting back to the ship on RC excursion they will either wait or make sure you get back on the ship without penalty. 

[George C]

I have always felt safe in St Maarten, I would just take a taxi. The only positive about a rccl tour is you don’t need to worry about missing the ship, but they are over priced and often crowded.

[Tatka]

Islands rely on tourism!!! Nobody targets tourists. Of course you need to watch your belongings just like in any other place including where you live, but nothing dangerous.

 

We often rent a car and drive around St Maarten/St Martin. Feel safe everywhere,

 

From time to time we stop at Maho while driving. This is video I filmed in 2019.

 

This is my video from our island drive last year including Maho bay. Does it look dangerous?

 

 

We also stopped there twice this year, and spent time and closest beach.

Very safe

Edited April 7, 2023 by Tatka

[bigque]

I have been to St Maarten twice and have done Bernard Tours both times which is a good tour with a stop at Maho for a couple of hours to see the planes. They have been in business for years and are just as reliable as any tour you would take through Royal. They and other tour operators on these islands are well aware of what time these ships come and go and will not jeopardize their business by not having you back to the port on time. I usually do excursions that are early and get back to the port area at least 2 or 3 hours early then I can walk around that shops at the port and then back to the ship. I never do excursions that end right close to departure time. 

[dcourt]

10 minutes ago, bigque said:

I have been to St Maarten twice and have done Bernard Tours both times which is a good tour with a stop at Maho for a couple of hours to see the planes. They have been in business for years and are just as reliable as any tour you would take through Royal. They and other tour operators on these islands are well aware of what time these ships come and go and will not jeopardize their business by not having you back to the port on time. I usually do excursions that are early and get back to the port area at least 2 or 3 hours early then I can walk around that shops at the port and then back to the ship. I never do excursions that end right close to departure time. 

I have used Bernard Tours every time I have been to St. Maarten.  His tours are wonderful and I would definitely use him the next time I get to St. Maarten.  Highly recommend.

[RedIguana]

36 minutes ago, Tntt said:

One of the ports we are visiting is st marten, I would like to go to maho Beach which is famous for the airplanes landing over the

Beach.

Also 2019 experience, so may have changed. We booked an noon or so island excursion through RCL, so no worries getting back to the ship in time for that excursion.  That left the morning free to head to Maho Beach. Left the ship around 8 or so. Walked out to the excursion/taxi/shuttle area, and grabbed one of the shuttles to Maho Beach. They drop you off by the Sunset Bar and Grill parking area (couple hundred feet from the beach?). Shuttles back every 30 minutes I think. 45 minutes or so to shuttle there, an hour at the beach/bar, and 45 minutes back and we had no trouble making our noon excursion. I think they stopped the 747's and other large planes, but a few decent sized. I suggest checking the flight schedules for the airport if you want to see the larger planes. Back then, the few big ones came in pretty early. Once again, this is from 2019 so Your Mileage May Vary.

[LB_NJ]

Last time I was on St. Marteen I used a ship tour because of timing; ship was in port for only a short period.  I think St. Marteen is one of the safer islands (some are not that safe).

 

IF the ship will be in port long enough (you want to be back at port with an ample cushion of time), I would be OK with just getting a taxi.

[nimbex1970]

I have been to St. Marteen 6 or 7 times, so my comfort level is different than going first time.  We take a taxi there, It does get busy and backed up a bit (say 15 minutes), and of course, it's busy by the port.  Give yourself and hour to get back.  There are taxis lined up, and some large vans to take you back to the port.  There is a restaurant right there that could be used as backup for calling a taxi on some odd chance there are none there (which would be very rare).

 

You can also make a deal with a cab driver for the day to take you there and say another beach or site seeing.  We did this once and paid $250 from memory for the four of us.  We wanted to see several beaches and have our toes on the sand for pictures.  That way, you are with the same driver, they wait for you and it takes some of the worries out.  The driver stopped at a place for lunch, we bought his lunch and he was great company.  To each their own with this.  

 

There are cheaper options on viator and trip advisor, where you can see reviews of island tours. They know to get you back to the ship on time, this is their livelihood. 

[Zach1213]

St. Maarten/Martin is perfectly safe. Grab a taxi and go wherever you want, just give yourself plenty of time to get back. 

[ajtaylor29]

We always do either private tours or DIY days in port....20 cruises in and never missed a ship! The tour operators do NOT want you to miss your ship, it's bad for their business....so they'll make sure to get you back in time. When you read horror stories about people missing their ship, it's either a rare, unpreventable delay (due to traffic accidents, etc.) or an alcohol related "i forgot to get back on the ship" event!!!

Anyway - as for St Marten, we've done several private excursions and had a great time exploring the island. We've also just grabbed a cab at port and gone to Orient Beach for the day.

[Tatka]

  We are completely comfortable with self-exploration at almost every Caribbean island (we only missed 2 major islands Guadeloupe and St Vincent), but I feel that OP feels differently. Maybe they should start with ship's tour and see how they feel about.

 During our very first cruise I took all ship tours as I (mom) was alone with our 11 years old and did not know what to expect. The very next cruise we had several independent private tours and self explored.

Edited April 7, 2023 by Tatka

[Fouremco]

Another vote for Bernard Tours (https://bernardstours.com/tours/adventure-island-tour). On our first visit to St. Maarten, we booked a tour with them after conducting extensive research. While the tour included Maho Beach, we saw many other things that, for us, were more interesting. As others have mentioned, experienced local tour companies are very reliable and will get you back to the ship with time to spare. In our case, there was a major car accident on our planned route, causing horrific traffic backups, but our driver with his intimate knowledge of the island took a series of back roads to get us around the blockage.

 

At our recommendation, family members have also used Bernard Tours and have been completely satisfied. You really can't go wrong booking with them. 

[baldilocks]

We were in St. Maarten on a ship sponsored excursion. Everything was fine until we were leaving. The bus had to stop only a quarter mile off the beach as there was a very serious traffic accident ahead of us. We sat for about 45 minutes. After that, the traffic was awful. Thank goodness it was a ship sponsored tour as we just barely made back on time.

[Newcruiser2012]

3 hours ago, bigque said:

I have been to St Maarten twice and have done Bernard Tours both times which is a good tour with a stop at Maho for a couple of hours to see the planes. They have been in business for years and are just as reliable as any tour you would take through Royal. They and other tour operators on these islands are well aware of what time these ships come and go and will not jeopardize their business by not having you back to the port on time. I usually do excursions that are early and get back to the port area at least 2 or 3 hours early then I can walk around that shops at the port and then back to the ship. I never do excursions that end right close to departure time. 

I also highly recommend Bernard’s Tours. We used them on our very first cruise visit to St. Martin in 2012 and have used them again on our two subsequent visits. They have a variety of options that include Maho, super reasonable prices and they’re very reliable. 

[CFLRetired]

Recommend a taxi.  It's not far, and very safe.

[cruiseguy1016]

We've been to St. Maarten and Maho Beach many times. Take a taxi, it's the easiest and most affordable way to get there. There will be plenty of taxis at Maho Beach to get you back to the ship.

[buddyjones]

On 4/7/2023 at 12:04 PM, ajtaylor29 said:

We always do either private tours or DIY days in port....20 cruises in and never missed a ship! The tour operators do NOT want you to miss your ship, it's bad for their business....so they'll make sure to get you back in time. When you read horror stories about people missing their ship, it's either a rare, unpreventable delay (due to traffic accidents, etc.) or an alcohol related "i forgot to get back on the ship" event!!!

Anyway - as for St Marten, we've done several private excursions and had a great time exploring the island. We've also just grabbed a cab at port and gone to Orient Beach for the day.

@ajtaylor29 thanks for your post. Which beach bars or specific locations do you recommend at Orient Beach? I appreciate your help! 

[ajtaylor29]

42 minutes ago, buddyjones said:

@ajtaylor29 thanks for your post. Which beach bars or specific locations do you recommend at Orient Beach? I appreciate your help! 

We've gone to Le String (String Beach) the last 2 stops in St. Maarten and loved it there. Got beach chairs w/ umbrella and spent the day sunning and swimming. I think maybe the chair rental came with a couple of drinks but i'm not certain about that....We had lunch there and the food is really good! you can have them bring it to you on the beach or go up and sit in the restaurant which is what we did. The owners are very nice.

But i will also add - there are numerous beach clubs and restaurants all along the beach, so if you get a taxi over there you will see many places to choose from!

[ruru107]

On 4/7/2023 at 10:52 AM, Tatka said:

 

We often rent a car and drive around St Maarten/St Martin.

What rental company do you use? I’m trying to reserve a car with Rodael but I’m having a hard time getting ahold of them. 

[PORT ROYAL]

21 hours ago, buddyjones said:

@ajtaylor29 thanks for your post. Which beach bars or specific locations do you recommend at Orient Beach? I appreciate your help! 

Personal recommendation

Coco on Orient or Rainbow on Grande Case

[diesel1973]

How far is it from Phillipsburg to Marigo? About how much would a taxi cost to take us there round trip? Would just like to go shopping there and possibly lunch as we have never been there.

[PORT ROYAL]

1 hour ago, diesel1973 said:

How far is it from Phillipsburg to Marigo? About how much would a taxi cost to take us there round trip? Would just like to go shopping there and possibly lunch as we have never been there.

Recently posted by @Ashland

We always take a shared taxi (they fill up fast and usually hold about 8 people) from the taxi stand when going to Maho. $12.00pp round trip but we have them drop us off in town and water taxi back.

Distance just over 7 miles taking about 15 minutes.

 

[diesel1973]

18 minutes ago, PORT ROYAL said:

Recently posted by @Ashland

We always take a shared taxi (they fill up fast and usually hold about 8 people) from the taxi stand when going to Maho. $12.00pp round trip but we have them drop us off in town and water taxi back.

Distance just over 7 miles taking about 15 minutes.

 

I think you misunderstood me. I want to go from Phillipsburg (Dutch side) to Marigot (French side) for 3-4 hours for shopping and lunch. Thanks for your response.

[PORT ROYAL]

5 minutes ago, diesel1973 said:

I think you misunderstood me. I want to go from Phillipsburg (Dutch side) to Marigot (French side) for 3-4 hours for shopping and lunch. Thanks for your response.

Sorry, my bad…..

Plenty of taxis at port

Work on $50/60 each way.  
If you wish to explore the markets, asked to be dropped there.

Restaurants can get busy, best to book in advance, suggest La Villa for a shabby chic dining experience with an excellent set Menu (one can upgrade a course if wished).  Do book early.

PS: Distance about 10 miles, but work on just over 45 minutes there to allow for heavy outward traffic , but for peace of mind allow 60 + minutes return, as traffic can be appalling heavy when multiple ships are in port.

[diesel1973]

Thank you. Might check into alternatives.