St. Maarten next week????

[beachbum13]

We have figured out what we are doing on our other two stops next week but have not settled on anything for St. Maarten. Does anybody have any good ideas. We are thinking about just heading out on our own. What are the "must sees". And the best place to have lunch. And of course shopping for her and a swim for me.

[Donna]

They do offer a wide variety of shore excursions in St. Maarten, one of my favorite Caribbean ports. You may want to consider doing the America's Cup regatta. They run the race right there by the port and it will not take up all your time, still plenty of time left to explore the town. I find the locals to be friendly and not overly pushy, so enjoy. I've also gone to Orient Beach, which is a cab ride from the pier, but plenty of cabs waiting there for the return trip....Have fun whatever you decide to do.

[beachbum13]

Thank You

[cruise planner]

It depends on what you want to do.

Personally, we want to have a leisurely day and do what we like to do when we like to do it. So, we prefer to rent a car and do our own thing. As you come off the pier, turn right and there are several car rental kiosks. Rentals are cheap, ranging from $35 - $85 depending on the vehicle you want and the time of year.

We like to drive to Marigot and do some shopping at the wonderful outdoor flea market. Then we'll make our way to Orient Beach and have lunch at the Bikini Beach Bar & Grill. Then we'll go over to the other side of the stone jetty where the nude beach is and enjoy a wonderful day at a beautiful beach skinny dipping. (Don't try to picture that - you'll hurt yourself!) But there's a bar on the beach and there will be anywhere from a couple of hundred people to several thousand people, depending on the time of year.

Of course, if you don't care for nude, then stay on the other side of the jetty and you can still enjoy a beautiful beach with lots of activities. Just know that you're on the French side and you will definitely see topless. (But hey, at my age, I enjoy topless more than I use to!)

Pete

[beachbum13]

Originally Posted by cruise planner

It depends on what you want to do.

Personally, we want to have a leisurely day and do what we like to do when we like to do it. So, we prefer to rent a car and do our own thing. As you come off the pier, turn right and there are several car rental kiosks. Rentals are cheap, ranging from $35 - $85 depending on the vehicle you want and the time of year.

We like to drive to Marigot and do some shopping at the wonderful outdoor flea market. Then we'll make our way to Orient Beach and have lunch at the Bikini Beach Bar & Grill. Then we'll go over to the other side of the stone jetty where the nude beach is and enjoy a wonderful day at a beautiful beach skinny dipping. (Don't try to picture that - you'll hurt yourself!) But there's a bar on the beach and there will be anywhere from a couple of hundred people to several thousand people, depending on the time of year.

Of course, if you don't care for nude, then stay on the other side of the jetty and you can still enjoy a beautiful beach with lots of activities. Just know that you're on the French side and you will definitely see topless. (But hey, at my age, I enjoy topless more than I use to!)

Pete

We spent most of the day at Orient Beach. With the exception of the people next to us stopping every single hawker on the beach to see what they were selling (all the same stuff!) it was a great day. We walked down by the nude beach.Scary!!!

We visited the Guavaberry Liquor Store and sampled many of the rums. And bought several bottles. Guavaberry Coladas!!!! Yummy!

[green_rd]

We had a blast (pun intended) at Maho Beach.

[Phil&Liz]

Originally Posted by green_rd

We had a blast (pun intended) at Maho Beach.

Just came back from Sunset Beach Bar. Since we were there a few years ago and the place got new owners, it has grown so big that it is no longer the great place it once was.