St. Maarten/St. Martin is without a doubt, my favorite Caribbean island. Located 300 km east of Puerto Rico, and only 87 square kilometers in size. This island is tiny, but holds 2 countries, so you get two different experiences in one vacation . The French side, St. Martin has some of the best food in the Caribbean, along with pastry shops like the ones you find in France, and a laid back, natural beauty. St. Maarten, the lively Dutch side of the island has casinos, tons of dining options, duty free shopping, and of course, world famous Maho Beach where you can watch planes land literally, right over your head.
We spent a week here in February of this year, and a week wasn't long enough to see it all, which is surprising given its size. The weather was amazing, very hot temperatures with a constant refreshing breeze flowing. We didn't see a drop of rain our entire trip.
A car rental (or a Jeep Wrangler if you want something really fun) is recommended so you are free to explore at your own pace. Driving on the island is easy, road signs are clear and the roads are easy to navigate. You can rent a car right at Princess Juliana Airport when you arrive, and some hotels have car rental offices on site.
We stayed at the beautiful Divi Little Bay resort on the Dutch side of the island, about 10 minutes from the airport. Divi Little Bay sits on Little Bay Beach, and all rooms face the ocean, with some rooms offering a view of Great Bay Beach and Philipsburg. Little Bay Beach was one of our favorite beaches on the island, with beautiful, calm water. This resort offers 3 pools, including an infinity pool with a stunning view. The resort offered entertainment every night outside, and they had a BBQ buffet night which offered some really fantastic food. I am not usually a buffet fan, but this was very well done.
The food at the resort restaurants was pretty good as well, although there are so many options on the island for food, I can't recommend an all inclusive package here, although the Divi does offer it. One of the things I really liked about the Divi was that it didn't feel like an all inclusive resort, with people lining up for cold buffet food. The restaurants were a la carte, and that is something that sits much better with me than picking through food at a buffet. The bar staff at Gizmos (named after the resident Parrot) were hilarious and made every interaction with them a great one. They usually remembered our favorite drinks and would sometimes make it without us asking for it, and if that isn't great service, I don't know what is!
We spent a week here in February of this year, and a week wasn't long enough to see it all, which is surprising given its size. The weather was amazing, very hot temperatures with a constant refreshing breeze flowing. We didn't see a drop of rain our entire trip.
A car rental (or a Jeep Wrangler if you want something really fun) is recommended so you are free to explore at your own pace. Driving on the island is easy, road signs are clear and the roads are easy to navigate. You can rent a car right at Princess Juliana Airport when you arrive, and some hotels have car rental offices on site.
We stayed at the beautiful Divi Little Bay resort on the Dutch side of the island, about 10 minutes from the airport. Divi Little Bay sits on Little Bay Beach, and all rooms face the ocean, with some rooms offering a view of Great Bay Beach and Philipsburg. Little Bay Beach was one of our favorite beaches on the island, with beautiful, calm water. This resort offers 3 pools, including an infinity pool with a stunning view. The resort offered entertainment every night outside, and they had a BBQ buffet night which offered some really fantastic food. I am not usually a buffet fan, but this was very well done.
The food at the resort restaurants was pretty good as well, although there are so many options on the island for food, I can't recommend an all inclusive package here, although the Divi does offer it. One of the things I really liked about the Divi was that it didn't feel like an all inclusive resort, with people lining up for cold buffet food. The restaurants were a la carte, and that is something that sits much better with me than picking through food at a buffet. The bar staff at Gizmos (named after the resident Parrot) were hilarious and made every interaction with them a great one. They usually remembered our favorite drinks and would sometimes make it without us asking for it, and if that isn't great service, I don't know what is!
Make time to stop and explore the many shops in the Dutch capital of Philipsburg. One thing to remember is the cruise ships that come here can really cause the area to become congested, so do your research and find out the day that has the least amount in port, and plan your time around that. For us, it was a Monday with only 1 ship in town. We did go another day when there were 5 ships, and it was a completely different experience. The shops have everything from local (really, really delicious) rums made with natural ingredients, to the typical souvenirs you find anywhere in the Caribbean. There are places to get purses, watches and other goodies (Little Switzerland gets my highest recommendation for jewellery), food, and of course, cold drinks. One place I can't go without mentioning here is
La Sucriere on Old Street, just off Front St. The shop owner was a very pleasant French man and the food was delicious! I felt more like I was in a European destination than the Caribbean while sitting outside enjoying my champagne and macarons.
The only negative to Philipsburg, and St. Maarten in general really, is the constant push for time shares. You will be asked repeatedly if you want to go to a presentation, and a simple "no thank you" usually wasn't enough. They will usually offer you free things if you go, but simply walk away. It won't ruin your trip, it's just a little annoying. Keep in mind St Maarten is tax/duty free, so there are a lot of good deals here!
La Sucriere on Old Street, just off Front St. The shop owner was a very pleasant French man and the food was delicious! I felt more like I was in a European destination than the Caribbean while sitting outside enjoying my champagne and macarons.
The only negative to Philipsburg, and St. Maarten in general really, is the constant push for time shares. You will be asked repeatedly if you want to go to a presentation, and a simple "no thank you" usually wasn't enough. They will usually offer you free things if you go, but simply walk away. It won't ruin your trip, it's just a little annoying. Keep in mind St Maarten is tax/duty free, so there are a lot of good deals here!
There is nobody that will argue the fact that this island has some of the most beautiful beaches in the Caribbean. Some worth mentioning are Little Bay Beach, Maho beach (beautiful but of course, loud and full of tourists) Mullet Bay, Orient Beach, and Friar's. Another option, is Pinel Island. Pinel Island is on the French side of the island, in Cul De Sac. After parking, you go to catch the "ferry" over to Pinel Island. The "ferry" isn't much more than a little boat loaded with as many people as possible, but the ride over takes less than 5 minutes. The cost was 10 euros per person, return. Yes, euros. You are now on the French side where they accept the euro. So keep in mind when coming to this island, you should bring American dollars and Euros, although credit cards were accepted almost everywhere as well.
Once you are on Pinel Island, there are 2 restaurants to choose from. You can also walk around the island taking in the gorgeous views surrounding you, or swim in the warm water. If you want a beach chair, you will be charged for the chair which may sound strange, but it is like that everywhere on the island.
The restaurants are both pricy, but to us, it was worth it. If you buy a bottle of wine, or a bucket of beer, you can request a table to be set out in the ocean for you, which just completely sets the mood. We spent the better part of the day here before catching the boat back, which goes back and forth very often.
Once you are on Pinel Island, there are 2 restaurants to choose from. You can also walk around the island taking in the gorgeous views surrounding you, or swim in the warm water. If you want a beach chair, you will be charged for the chair which may sound strange, but it is like that everywhere on the island.
The restaurants are both pricy, but to us, it was worth it. If you buy a bottle of wine, or a bucket of beer, you can request a table to be set out in the ocean for you, which just completely sets the mood. We spent the better part of the day here before catching the boat back, which goes back and forth very often.
St. Maarten/St. Martin really has so much to offer, and it makes a great base if you plan on Island jumping. Anguilla, St. Barts, Saba, and St. Kitts are all within day trip distance. With so much to see and do on the Island, it's hard to make time for day trips elsewhere though, so we picked only Anguilla this time. I will post another blog about Anguilla, but I will mention here it is definitely worth visiting.
While you are in St. Maarten/St. Martin, check out Loterie Farm, Marigot Market, Friars Bay Beach, or hike Pic Paradis, the highest point on the island at 424 metres. The island offers resorts and hotels for every budget, or you can rent one of the many villas on the island.
No matter how you choose to spend your time here, I can promise you will love it, and once won't be enough- you will be back.
While you are in St. Maarten/St. Martin, check out Loterie Farm, Marigot Market, Friars Bay Beach, or hike Pic Paradis, the highest point on the island at 424 metres. The island offers resorts and hotels for every budget, or you can rent one of the many villas on the island.
No matter how you choose to spend your time here, I can promise you will love it, and once won't be enough- you will be back.