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St. Maarten, what not to miss?

C

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Hi.. My question sounds backwords.. but I want to know as a young "50" year old, what sites should not be missed. Husband & I Will be staying at La Plage very soon deciding to rent car for one day? Or not.. Anything on the French side we need to see or visit? I heard something about Butterfly Farm? What places would a day tour guide take us? Thanks in advance. :hi:
 
We had a great time with Captain Alan's three island snorkeling adventure. One of the best, if not best snorkeling trip on all of the islands I've been on. They stop on one beach where you do a mud bath which is supposed to be great for your skin. Not sure if my skin was softer but it sure was fun.
 
Orient Beach, go down to Club Orient and really live a little.
 
Watching all the different cruise ships dock in the island.
 
Snorkeling trip around the island. Day trips to St. Barth's, Saba, Anguilla. Rent a car and check out all the beaches. Have a meal in Grand Case, culinary capital of the Caribbean.
 
Maho beach to see the planes take off and land. Google it and watch the videos. Gran Case on the French side for a great gourmet dinner. Read my review of the Villas @ Simpson Bay in the marketplace for more info.
 
You can walk to Maho beach from La Plage.

IMHO while you are at a great resort in a fun area, you will be a bit limited without a car in three major areas that St. Maarten is very well known for.....restaurants, shopping and beaches. The beaches nearby are OK, but you would need a car at least a day or two to get a flavor of some of the excellent beaches available. For my money, if I only had one day I would go to Pinel Island (some topless, but not in your face). Some other good choices are Mullet Bay (calm, sandy, near La Plage), Orient Beach (a bit of surf, lots of restaurants and activities, Topless in places, overhyped and crowded at times), Cupecoy (Very rough surf, Not a lot of beach, but really cool sandstone backdrop....no facilities).....Great Bay in Phillipsburg is actually pretty decent too.

As for restaurants, they are all over the island. We particularly liked Skipjacks on airport road and Chesterfields in Phillipsburg, both of which you would need a car or a cab to get to.

Shopping would be best in the two major cities, Marigold and Phillipsburg and both are about a 20 minute cab/car ride.

Just be aware, traffic is awful on the Western (Simpson Bay, Marigot) half of the island, especially airport road. Not so bad on the Eastern side (Phillipsburg, Orient beach, Oyster Bay). West of Simpson Bay lagoon (La Plage, Mullet Bay, Cupecoy) seemed Ok too.

As for the Butterfly farm, it is near Orient beach and Friars bay (very calm beach). My 7 yr. old loved it, my 4 yr. old not so much. There were lots of butterflies in a netted in garden about the size of a large house. Worth a visit if you are in the area, but not a special trip. No more than a 30 minute stop...my wife says 20 tops.

Anthony
 
humsor said:
As for the Butterfly farm, it is near Orient beach and Friars bay (very calm beach).
Anthony
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Lots of good suggestions from Anthony. Just wanted to note that the calm beach near the Butterfly Farm is Galleon. Friars is a nice quiet beach with two good beach bars/restaurants but it's on the other side of the island between Marigot and Grand Case.

I'd strongly agree with the recommendation to rent a car. There are so many great beaches with fun restaurants/beach bars that it would be a shame to spend the time only at your resort. We'd list as our favorites Orient (wonderful food, great people watching, nice views), Mullet (beautiful sand, usually good waves and good ribs), and Friars (quiet and more laid back).

It's also fun to get out on the water. There's an around the island boat trip that makes a couple of stops to snorkel and swim plus for lunch in Grand Case. Fun to see the island from the water. It goes on Friday (Friday Farewell Tour) and Tuesday (usually with a smaller boat and fewer people). We also like taking a catamaran trip for the day to either Prickly Pear, an uninhibited island with fair snorkeling, or Anguilla, a neighboring island. Our favorite is Bluebeard which includes a bus tour across Anguilla.

SXM is known for wonderful restaurants. We like SkipJacks and Chesterfields too. For more upscale, Antoine's in Philipsburg or Le Moulin Fou in the Maho area. There are dozens of wonderful restaurants from beach bars with gourmet French lunches or good pizza to casual rib places (Mark's Place in the parking lot by the grocery store is good and inexpensive) to seafood and steak places. if you like gelato, visit the Carousel in the Simpson Bay area.

We've been going to SXM for more than 15 years and still haven't done everything or tried all the restaurants on our list. Oh, and watch out for sand gravity. It's a mysterious SXM ailment that seems to leave you stuck in your beach chair watching the waves and enjoying a beverage when you keep thinking you should explore some more. It's perfectly acceptable to succumb to sand gravity and just relax!
 
Take a cat to St. Barts for the day; same for Anguilla or a number of other isalnds.
 
Your area is served by mini-buses. You can get to Marigot or Philipsburg by bus, but to experience the whole island you will need a car. Driving there is not much different from city traffic, watch for speed bumps and kinds on little scooters. Have fun!
 
AKE said:
Take a cat to St. Barts for the day; same for Anguilla or a number of other isalnds.
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Be careful about the St. Bart's trip if you get seasick. That route has a reputation for being very bumpy..There is a high speed ferry that makes the trip quickly, and lots of people do it. Saba is another nearby island that many visit; it's very different in typography than SXM. but that trip is also rough.

I've not done either of these trips because I get seasick and the reviews I've read of them describe people often loosing their breakfasts on the trips! The cat trips to Anguilla and Prickly Pear are much calmer because it's not open ocean but a calm area between the islands that's more protected.
 
That's the same reason we never made it to St. Bart's. We looked into taking the plane over and the cost wasn't too bad. Just never got to it, but will someday.
 
Take the ferry suggestion and enjoy the ride. Also, watch out for 5,000 passengers cruise ship called the Allure of the Sea.

Beware of some of the camera shops on the island selling gray market Nikon cameras & lens.
 
We were in St. Maarten last week and did day trips to both Anguilla and St. Barths, and we highly recommend both. We took the ferry to Anguilla which made us a little seasick even after taking Dramamine. For St. Barths we took the Voyager, a high speed boat, which was an easier ride. For that reason, if you get seasick we would recommend paying a little extra for one of the high speed boats. Leave for Anguilla from Marigot and either Oyster Pond or Philipsburg for St. Barths for the shortest trip.

Both islands have beautiful beaches and quality restaurants to fill your day. Rent a car for about $35 to tour each island.
 
We really enjoyed the sunset cruise on Simpson Bay. My wife gets seasick easilly and was very apprehensive, but the water in the bay is so calm she had no problems and we both had a great time. You cruise beside mega yachts, see some celebrities homes, and get a great view of the Island and the bay. Nice drinks are served as you cruise. We ate at Skip jacks (the dock you leave from is at the restaurant) after the cruise and both had great meals. http://www.sailstmaarten.com/sunset-cruise/

I used to own a timeshare on St Maarten and I joined Jeff Berger's web site for the info offered, cheap air fare updates, discounts, and general Island information. In the past (not sure if it is still) there was a free sunset cruise on the same boat for members (you e-mail them a code to make your reservation). The fee to join was much less than the $70 a couple to take the sunset cruise. http://www.sailstmaarten.com/sunset-cruise/ http://everythingsxm.com/
 
For a change from the sea, go to Lotterie Farms. Zip lines through the forest. Also a wonderful restaurant.

Also enjoyed the Rhino ride. Jet ski with pontoons so you don't tip.

Spend one sunset at Sunset beach, get there early and watch the planes come in (never thought I would find watching planes land to be fun) and sunsets on the island are amazing

For a local experience, dinner at Yvettes
 
I remember asking my DH to go and watch the planes land he thought I was crazy. After finally getting him there once he wanted to go back.

Lynn
 
If you are physically fit you must do the America's Cup sail and work the ship as well as climb the slave trail up the mountain at Loterie Farm. Plus we had the best ever croissants and crepes in Marigo. The food is to die for. Phillipsburg is a good place to buy liquor and the prices on jewelry are not too bad depending on what you desire. It's definitely worth renting a car for at least a couple of days. The beach bar at Maho is fun and take your camera to photo the incoming planes. I know you will enjoy your stay whatever you decide to do.:) :) :)
 
sxm-- must to do

Check with the America's Cup captain -- one person who couldn't participate had a great time handing out drinks. Everyone had a great time.
 
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