Maho beach....

[Cruisechic470]

What info can you share about maho beach? Is it crowded?

[Cincinnati513]

Go to Youtube.com & enter Maho Beach in the search box...You will see some WILD Videos from that beach:eek:

[2boys2girls]

We were at Maho Beach in April thru Bernards Tours (which I would highly recommend)...anyway, all I can say is that we were there for about an hour in the early afternoon and we saw at least 5 big planes landing and it was so cool (go on to YouTube.com and it's cool but being there is amazing) and we saw one big jet taking off and it was so worth being there...I would have actually liked being there for longer and getting in the water and having a drink at Sunset right there at the beach...there were 7 of us ranging in age from 7 yrs up to to 78 yrs and we all had a blast!!

[Cruisechic470]

Did anyone notice watersports? How was the bar? Did you rent chairs?

[Langley Cruisers]

You can use the "Search this forum" button for more info. There are literally dozens and dozens of Maho threads.

 

The beach is small and the undercurrent in the sea is rough. The only reason I would recommend going there would be to see the planes. The Sunset Beach Bar is there for burgers and drinks, and the service was extremely slow (just sayin' - not complaining).

 

If you want a nice beach day, Maho isn't the first place I would suggest - many suggest Orient or one of the other beaches.

[The Big Booper]

I second that.

 

If you search out videos and stills of the planes at Maho you will notice that the level of sand changes a lot, sometimes just a thin strip of beach.

 

You don't go to Maho for the beach, just planes.

[kal]

If a person wants to just sit in the sun and enjoy the ambiance, Maho is not the place.

 

However, if you enjoy these features, go for it:

 

* hurricane force winds from the jet engines

* hot, oily exhaust gas from the jet engines

* sand blasting of your skin

* very loud noise

* bodies flying around as they get blown off their feet

* excessive testosterone from fellow beach-dwellers

* loud cheering on each landing/take-off event

* disappearing sands due to localized sea conditions

 

Other than that Ms. Lincoln, HOW WAS THE PLAY? :eek:

[Cruisechic470]

Thanks everyone... good to know.

I was looking for the search before posting this, but can't find it? Am I blind or is it really gone?

[Bonnie Voyager]

If a person wants to just sit in the sun and enjoy the ambiance, Maho is not the place.

 

However, if you enjoy these features, go for it:

 

* hurricane force winds from the jet engines

* hot, oily exhaust gas from the jet engines

* sand blasting of your skin

* very loud noise

* bodies flying around as they get blown off their feet

* excessive testosterone from fellow beach-dwellers

* loud cheering on each landing/take-off event

* disappearing sands due to localized sea conditions

 

Other than that Ms. Lincoln, HOW WAS THE PLAY?

 

I know I am in the minority here, but we LOVED our day at Maho Beach and wouldn't give you two cents for Orient! I hate crowds and when we got to Orient Beach first thing in the morning all I saw were chairs EVERYWHERE soon to be filled with people!!! Way too congested for me! I was glad to see it in person as it is such a famous beach, but as soon as we saw it, we decided to head elsewhere. Here is a photo I took during my very brief visit to Orient Beach (where we DID see some funny sites that we all still laugh about though ;) )...

 

 

 

 

After taking a lovely tour of the island, we ended up at Maho Beach to watch the planes for a while and it was here that we decided to just park ourselves and spend the remainder of our day. It was the most fun yet relaxing afternoon! The beach was not crowded at all when we were there and the water was beautiful! The planes were so much fun! The noise wasn't bad at all. They didn't land all that often and unless you were directly beneath the planes, there was no issue with wind or sand blowing or anything like that. There were a few people who were deliberately trying to get blown over when one large plane took off, but not many planes actually took off while we were there. Mostly they were coming in for a landing and that happened about every 15 minutes or so. Mostly it was smaller planes. I never noticed any jet fuel smells. I did smell burgers cooking at Sunset Beach Bar though. Yum!

 

Here are a couple of photos I borrowed from Webshots (I was having so much fun at Maho, I forgot to take photos, but I did get some video of the planes!). Anyway, Maho looked exactly like these photos while we were there and it was a great beach to spend some time on!

 

 

Maho Beach looking right (away from Sunset Beach Bar)...

 

 

Maho Beach looking left (toward Sunset Beach Bar)...

 

Wait, I do have one photo that I took at Maho Beach. This is my children swimming in the crystal blue water! As you can see, it was NOT crowded! The water was wonderful too! We had a blast! Next year we are headed back to St. Maarten and we are going straight to Maho!

[kal]

I guess we can share photos if that makes any difference:

 

[kal]

Also, Maho suffers significant changes in sand content during the year. Here's a typical example:

 

[Bonnie Voyager]

Also, Maho suffers significant changes in sand content during the year. Here's a typical example:

 

 

 

You're right, it does change! It looked nothing like that when we were just there in March! But, this still wouldn't keep me from visiting Maho. We loved it there. ;) I don't really care how wide the beach is. It was the novelty of the planes that we enjoyed and it was just a pleasant surprise to find the beach somewhat lovely and serene on the day we were there.

 

To Cruisechic470, I did not notice any watersports. I suspect that is why it wasn't crowded there though. There were a few chairs and umbrellas for rent from the Sunset Beach Bar. People seemed to be enjoying themselves at the bar. We walked away from the bar area and plopped ourselves right in the sand, closer to the area where the planes flew over though (but not TOO close :eek: ). It was fun! :D

[Cruisechic470]

Wow...Thanks everyone! Great pictures.

Bonnie Voyager -Thank you for a finally positive opinion and some great pictures

Regardless of what everyone thinks, I think we will spend our day at maho.

Thanks everyone!

[kal]

...Regardless of what everyone thinks, I think we will spend our day at maho.

Thanks everyone!

 

Just remember, Maho is a great location to watch big jet landings and takeoffs. If that's your goal you can't find anything better on the planet. However, if your goal is the beach, it really isn't very good for many reasons. For me, the actual available area is off the flight path and that's way too small of a foot print. Second, the prevailing winds make it very hot with little or no breeze.

 

If you want the best of plane spotting and beach, I would go to Mullet Beach which is within walkable distance away. You could watch the big jets then go over to Mullet or do Mullet then go see the jets in late afternoon.

[Bonnie Voyager]

I agree with Kal that the attraction of Maho Beach is the planes. If you have no interest in the planes then there are plenty of other nicer beaches to choose from. My point is simply that, if you ARE interested in watching the planes and don't want to beach-hop, Maho was a pleasant surprise in our experience. :D

[MDSue]

I agree with Kal that the attraction of Maho Beach is the planes. If you have no interest in the planes then there are plenty of other nicer beaches to choose from. My point is simply that, if you ARE interested in watching the planes and don't want to beach-hop, Maho was a pleasant surprise in our experience. :D

Hi Bonnie, I second your opinion- I loved Maho Beach and Sunset Beach Bar. Watching the planes come in was fun, the beach was clean and nice and not nearly as crowded as Orient [i do like Orient, but it is crowded].

I loved the Reggae band that played at Sunset.

No watersports here, but fun just the same.

p.s.- maybe I'll see you on next year's m&m. We haven't booked yet, but thinking about it...

[alliesma]

What is the best way to get to Maho beach and how far is it from the cruise ship dock in Philipsburg? Thanks.

[MDSue]

Just grab a taxi, I can't remember the fare but it wasn't that much. I think it was about a thirty minute or less drive from port. The big planes start coming in around 12:30 in the afternoon, so if you wanted to shop or do something else do that first and then head over to Maho. If you go to the Sunset Beach bar website [don't know the exact address, but it's easy to look up online] it may have all the info you're looking for. Just make sure you get a taxi arranged to pick you up at the time you'll be ready to leave [or you could do a tour that includes a stop there]. There isn't a taxi stand there, so you need to keep that in mind.

When we were there in March we took a taxi to Orient beach and the driver said he'd come back at a designated time to pick us up and take us to Maho. We waited awhile and he never showed. Another driver at Orient took us there and arranged to have someone waiting for us when we were ready to go back to the dock. It's a long way from Orient to Maho, so we paid alot in taxi fares to get from one place to the other. Next time I'll just pick one place or the other to hang out at. Maho was fun for us, and the story about jet fuel and wind was exaggerated. I never smelled any jet fuel and it's only a small part of the beach that is affected by the wind from the engines. It's easy to avoid.

There are alot of cool videos on you tube showing the planes coming in.

[monicajay]

We rented a jeep and did Orient in the morning and Maho in the afternoon, teens were 13 and 15. Noticed some topless at Orient but no full nudity. We arrived at Maho in time for the big planes, it was a gas! My daughter and I would get in the water each time a big plane came in so we didn't get blown around with the sand, worked perfect.

 

We loved the thrill of plane spotting and will most certainly go back, but as has been mentioned you wouldn't choose Maho only for the beach.

[kal]

...the story about jet fuel and wind was exaggerated. I never smelled any jet fuel and it's only a small part of the beach that is affected by the wind from the engines. It's easy to avoid.

There are alot of cool videos on you tube showing the planes coming in.

 

Anyone on the beach when the wide body jets take off would know about the wind. Moreover not only is the jet fuel strong at the beach, but you can even smell it at the hotel/resort complex away from the beach.

 

Here is what the wind strength is like. The image is taken from Sunset Beach Bar.

 

[MDSue]

Yes, but on either side of the runway, the wind is not an issue. So unless you stand on the beach directly behind a jumbo or large jet as it is taking off you are not going to be disturbed by the wind. Maybe we were having too much fun to notice any jet fuel odors, It wasn't an issue for us. I guess you either love it or hate it. I loved it, not for the beach but for the thrill of watching the planes and the music at Sunset. The day we were there the beach conditions were nice.

[ladycaveat]

As a former flight attendant and private pilot . . . the only thing I want to see at Maho Beach are planes coming in for a landing. I grew up in Florida and take cruises to the Carribbean or long weekends at the beaches on the Eastern Shore of Maryland to swim and enjoy the beach. I can find a beach anywhere but what can't find is one with planes flying low overhead.

 

On my Eastern Carribbean cruise in January I so want to go to Maho Beach. I've read that the distance/time to get there from the port is about twenty or thirty minutes. Does anyone remember what the cab fare was? Also . . . my ship departs at five . . . suggestions on when I should leave the beach in order to make it back at least an hour before departure (at age 62, I really won't be up to running up at the last minute . . . tee hee) and don't know what traffic will be like in the afternoon. Thanks for any suggestions you can offer . . . :p

[kal]

The bad news is the fact that during the winter St. Maarten is on Atlantic Standard Time, i.e. one hour ahead of EST. That means the majority of big jet activity will be from about 2 - 4:00pm. If the ship sails at 5:00pm and you want to be on board by 4:00pm that will conflict with an enjoyable time at Maho. It will take AT LEAST 45 - 60 minutes to get from Maho to the cruiseship terminal. It all depends on the number of boats in port that day.

[gtaylor]

Anyone on the beach when the wide body jets take off would know about the wind. Moreover not only is the jet fuel strong at the beach, but you can even smell it at the hotel/resort complex away from the beach.

 

Here is what the wind strength is like. The image is taken from Sunset Beach Bar.

 

Some time ago I posted here that departing jets could blow "towels, coolers and small children" into Maho Bay, exageratting only slightly.

 

After reading kal's post, I went back to YouTube to

that I remembered. Enjoy.

 

gary

[kal]

...The noise wasn't bad at all. They didn't land all that often and unless you were directly beneath the planes, there was no issue with wind or sand blowing or anything like that....

 

Hmmmm, this would be the case with the little 2-engine pretend commuter jets. Get some big wide-bodies involved and Maho is a very tiny beach. Even if a person is laying on the beach at the far end, it would be an uncomfortable day with all that going on.

 

The beach is EXCELLENT for plane spotting, but for pure sunbathing it's not a good choice.