$8 vs $50.. City bus vs. City Taxi (they look almost the same)

[MsKatee]

What great photos! Everything looks so beautiful...You have been to St. Maarten many times I see. You must love it there. Your tour route, how long about did that take. This is your own tour or a taxi or what. It looks great, like you get to see an overview of the island. We will be there on May23, only 1 day so we have to maximize. The problem is that if we go with a ships tour, we don't have to worry about getting lost, being late for departure etc. But when you do the tours you miss so much too. Oh well, Iguess you can't do everything.

 

I'm still not done looking at all your photos! I had to save some to savor!:)

 

thanks, mskatee

[kal]

The tour route shown is my own suggestion. St. Maarten is about as easy as it gets for self-exploring. There's basically one road circling the island. The time to make the island loop all depends on how much the visitor wants to stop along the way for photos, shopping or exploring. Also, it depends on the time of day, traffic and season.

 

May 23rd should be a light traffic day as it's early in the week during the off-season with only one boat in port. Tourist traffic should be easy. If you stay in the car and just drive slowly, it should take less than 2 hours to make the loop. Overall, with stops for photos, lunch, checking out some beaches and maybe watching a few planes land, the trip would probably be 4-5 hours. The lightest traffic is between Orient and Philipsburg while the heaviest is thru Marigot, around Simpson Bay/Simpson Lagoon and on the west side of Philipsburg. Depending on the direction (clockwise or anti-clockwise) leave about an hour or more to get back to the ship.

 

You won't get lost.

[The Big Booper]

Thanks for the compliment! I don't know if you've checked out some of my other pixs, but if not go here for more on the island.

 

I'm getting the old Brownie Hawkeye dusted off for the upcoming SXM 2006 collection. Will be on island for 3 weeks in April/May. Stay tuned.

 

Are you staying at the Pelican again ? I see you are a time-share person and belong to TUG.

 

Unfortunately we will not be on SXM in 2006 but going to Cancun in December at one of the Royals on a swap with one of our Orlando weeks.

 

There is always 2007

[kal]

Yep, we have a place at Pelican for 2-weeks every year. This year we're in Orient Village for another week. We also have a week in Key West prior to going to St. Maarten. That's at Hyatt Sunset Harbor right on the water next to the Truman White House. So the combination provides a nice little get away where each step just gets better and better.

[The Big Booper]

We liked our week at the Pelican, good location for things to do, especially Maho and Cheri's, our favorite night spot on the island. Do they still have the wacky entertainment?

 

It can be a nuisance getting from there to Orient but we usually went up the West Coast road past Cheri's and bypassing downtown Marigot going by the flea market and rejoining the main road at the traffic circle North of Marigot, rather tham going thru the Simpson and P-Burg mess.

 

Everybody here appreciates your vast knowledge and links to the various web pages.

 

Enjoy the trip.

[kal]

What makes every adventure so special is the people of St. Maarten. The motto on the license plate .... "The Friendly Island" is taken to heart. Over time we have made many local friends. Some own restaurants, bars and shops. Then one special friend Joyce Prince (frequently mentioned on this board) provides visitors with an incredible personal tour of St. Maarten. Our time to sit and chat with Joyce and hubby Ridley is always a treat.

 

Another good friend Alex is a Rastafarian. Bob Marley mon!! My wife and I spend countless hours listening to him speak about his views of the world, nature, food and of course international politics. It's sad but amazing how he (and others) view what's happening in the US. During our upcoming trip, Alex will take my wife and I plus some of our friends from the US on his sail boat to Anguilla. He'll treat us to a beach cook out of fresh fish and local veggies. Can't wait!! :)

[Brianinidaho]

Just got back from St. Martin. Our ship docked in Phillipsburg at the Wathery pier and from there it was an easy 10-15 walk into Phillipsburg and the beachfront. We got off the ship, walked straight out of the cruiseship terminal, turned left (walk under the coconut trees), after a short walk, about 10 min you will see a sign that says walkway to Phillipsburg. This is where Bobby's Marina is and the beginning of the beach at Great Bay. If you are interested in walking into town, it was very easy to do! About 1/3 of the way is shaded (under the trees) and the rest will be in the sun and a bit hot but we felt it was definitely worth it....fast and we got some much needed exercise :) Our tablemates took a cab there from the pier and it cost them $3 p/p one way (others have said $2?). They walked back after meeting us in town and agreed it was a short walk and worth it; especially since it is much cooler at 5 p.m.

Thanks to everyone for the heads up re: walking. We were the only ship in port that day and the water taxi wasn't running and this was so easy and safe to do!

 

Our experience was that we were ready for a walk after a few days of eating at sea!

[fredpurdue]

It is a shame this thread got lost.

 

Our ship went to this port and st. thomas also. We had heard that the taxis and cheaper busses looked the same.

 

Lo and behold, here is a great way to save.

 

Fred

[DotingDale]

Wow, I had posted on a thread like this a year ago and got blasted by some geek. This is a great way to get around this island.

[Brianinidaho]

Was the "blaster" a local taxi driver that did not want folks to know they can take the "bus" for a lot less even though the two vehicles look about the same? Makes you wonder.

[Joanandjoe]

The tour route shown is my own suggestion. St. Maarten is about as easy as it gets for self-exploring. There's basically one road circling the island. The time to make the island loop all depends on how much the visitor wants to stop along the way for photos, shopping or exploring. Also, it depends on the time of day, traffic and season.

 

You won't get lost.

 

I can't find your tour route. What we want to do is go to Grand Case for lunch (our ship arrives at 11 a.m., then Marigot, then some sightseeing, maybe hit a beach after 4 when the sun isn't too indtense for a redhead.

 

Is that doable by bus, or should we get a taxi? Joyce Prince, Victor Bryan, and Bernard are all unavailable that day (Saturday 12/2), even though the Noordam will be the only ship in port. In any event, the standard Victor or Bernard tour isn't what we want: 1 hour of shopping and 1 hour of beach is about all we're good for.

[kal]

Go HERE for my suggested tour route.

[Joanandjoe]

Go HERE for my suggested tour route.

 

It looks great! Thanks. Does it work the other way, if we want to go to Grand Case first? Do you suggest a car, buses, or taxis?

[kal]

I'm not sure that lunch at Grand Case is a good use of time. It's really a night time dining extravaganza where almost all the restaurants are closed at lunch. Matter of fact, the town is fairly non-descript in daylight hours. I would just drive thru, maybe stop for a quick look then continue.

 

A rental car would work best, but a taxi tour also works. You just need to continue good homework so you will know where you're heading. Buses work best between PBurg and Marigot or Maho. Otherwise I would supplement the bus ride with taxis. Just remember the shops in Marigot are mostly closed between Noon-2:00p.

[Joanandjoe]

Thanks, Kal. I guess we have to rethink St. Maartin completely. For people who love the chance to eat food off the ship, and have to stay out of the sun between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. because of ultra fair skin, a stop in St. Maartin from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. doesn't much fit with our needs*. Ideally for us, an 8 hour stop would be early enough for us to go to the beach in the morning, or late enough to eat in Grand Case at night. We need to take advantage of what we have; but with no lunch in Grand Case and shops closed in Marigot just when we're most likely to want to use them, we're stuck for ideas.

 

* The timing kills, for example, the "beach bash" or America's cup boat race: we'd fry in mid-day.

[kal]

Have patience, you just need to set your priorities (and limitations), but don't miss out on St. Maarten.

 

Based on what I see, you want to see the island, do some shopping, have a nice lunch and stay out of the intense sun for lengthy periods of time. All this during a period 11:00a to 7:00p.

 

Stroll down the "promenade" along Great Bay in Philipsburg. For lunch, you don't have to go to Grand Case or Marigot to enjoy good French food. I would definitely consider L'escargot in Philipsburg on Front Street. The ambiance is fantastic and the food is excellent.

 

After lunch go to Marigot (arrive about 1:30p) and walk the back streets and see the shops. Then continue around the island, drive thru Grand Case, check out Orient Beach and arrive back in Philipsburg (target 3:30-4:00p). Do some shopping then sit on the beach (at Great Bay) until you're ready to go back to the boat. Have something to drink at a number of places along the Promenade (Taloula Mangos or The Greenhouse as examples).

 

You can then get back to the boat by 6:30p.

[J&B in GA]

Go HERE for my suggested tour route.

Kal,

Thanks for the links to your SXM photos and tours ! They are great.

We will be in St. Maarten on 11/29, with 5 large ships in Port that day,

so I expect crowds. We arrive the earliest however, at 7:00am, departing

at 5:00pm. We would like to visit some friends at some point during the day,

maybe mid morning to lunch time. They are staying at Atrium Condos at Simpson Bay.

Are you familiar with this place and location. Looks from your map

Simpson Bay is very near Maho and the airport.

 

Would you recommend a tour for us, either bus, taxi, or rental car ?

We would like to take the clockwise tour route you suggested and also spend

some time at Orient Beach in the early afternoon, before returning to Phillipsburg.

Is shopping better at Marigot or Phillipsburg ?

 

Thanks for any suggestions you may provide.

[J&B in GA]

Sorry for the duplicate post !

[kal]

It may be a bit of a challenge to work out all the stops you have in mind. The Atrium is a multi-story timeshare property at the southeastern corner of Simpson Bay. You can't miss it. I suggest you meet your friends early in the morning as that will free up the balance of the day.

 

Travel clockwise from Philipsburg to The Atrium. See your friends then head toward Marigot for late morning shopping. The shops close from noon-2:00p so it will be important to allow yourself enough time to see the town and do some shopping. Then go to Orient Beach, have lunch and enjoy the beach. If you leave the beach by say 2:30p you'll get to Philipsburg by 3:00p in time for some shopping on Front Street. Time will be tight as you'll have to be heading to the boat by 4:30p.

 

You could easily take a bus to The Atrium and a bus to Marigot. From there take a taxi to Orient and a taxi van from Orient to Philipsburg. Renting a car would probably be too much of a distraction.

[J&B in GA]

Kal,

Thanks for all the suggestions. We will definately meet our friends early,

spend some time with them at Simpson Bay, then head off around the

Island past Marigot, (will shop later in Philipsburg) directly to Orient Beach,

arriving late morning, and hopefully beating the crowds ! :) (Remember, 5 ships in Port !)

 

Can you recommend a nice restaurant or bar there for food & drinks with

beach lounges e/w umbrellas ? We will leave Orient Beach by 2:30pm

which should allow enough time for shopping without rushing back to the

ship. :rolleyes: Hopefully our ship, the Caribbean Princess, will be docked closest

to the shopping area. I always see a checker-board plaza from her bridge

cam when she is in port ! :D

 

Will this work best using Buses & Taxis ? How about the cost for two

compared to a small rental car ?

 

Thanks again !

[kal]

The best way to do Orient Beach is to start at Pedros and walk north along the beach and check out the prices for lounge chairs and umbrella. Find a place that you like the surroundings with a good price and that's the one. Then stroll down the beach to look at various menus until you find something you like. There's no connection between chairs and food so just take a look. I would recommend The Pirate for chairs and Baywatch for food.

 

For transportation you'll have to decide cost vs time. Buses take time as you'll have to wait for the next bus to come along. A taxi is the fastest. For me it would be a rental car. Maybe a bus to Simpson Bay, then taxi to Orient and a taxi van from Orient to Philipsburg. Time is critical as you've paid a few bucks to get to St. Maarten so maximize quality time on the island. A rental car will probably run about $65 with insurance and gas.

[Joanandjoe]

Ah, Gremlins are at it again. We posted a response, and it got lost in cyberspace. If it pops up later, we'll be saying the same thing twice.

 

Thank you, Kal. Great suggestions, although we'll want to be back to the ship by 5:45 so we don't miss dinner. (5:30 to 6:00 p.m. entry to dining room). We sent an email to L'Escargot asking if they are open for lunch on Saturdays, since many restaurants that are open for lunch M-F are closed on the weekend. Their response, or lack thereof, may determine what we do. There are no hours posted in their web site.

 

St. Maartin will be our fifth stop. Maybe we'll use the island to get Caribbean experiences that we didn't get in the first four islands (Tortola, St. Thomas, Dominica, Barbados), since this is our first real Caribbean trip in 40 years of marriage. We've been too afraid of the sun and heat to try this part of the world before now.

[kal]

As a general rule most of the St. Maarten merchants are not very responsive to emails so don't be surprised if they don't get back to you. It would be unusual for them not to be open for lunch on Saturdays so just drop by. If for some reason they're not open, there are other options in Philipsburg for eating.

[Brianinidaho]

wow...now that is the life! Live in a wonderful place and only work when you want!

[kal]

There are many, many nationalities in St. Maarten, but in short there are at least 4 basic "business cultures". Dutch, Indian, French and "caribbean island". They all have a different approach.

 

Merchants whose owners have roots in India are probably the most savy and customer oriented. Their work is their passion.

 

The Dutch equally have a good business savy, but are a bit more laid back and generally observe the European approach to conducting business.

 

French merchants are "c'est la vie". It's hard to overcome their priority to sit back and have a nice glass of wine and a bit of cheese.

 

The "caribbean islanders" are simply "no problem mon, take it easy, there's no hurry".

 

Americans on the island for an extended stay quickly get caught up in "sand gravity". It's just so nice to be there "it just doesn't matter".