What are good things to do in the St. Maarten one day on a cruise? what is a must buy?

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binga_4980

It's a great place to snorkel. The water and the fish are just beautiful. If you're going to buy anything, buy some jewelery. Great prices.

Dianamite

When we went to Orient beach (on the French side) the clothing optional part was pretty full of nude or partly nude people. Great for that all-over tan, but stay away if that bothers you.

Rent a taxi and see the island - it's really beautiful.

do it movin'

jetskiing..

Mac

I was in St Maarten last Thursday. We used that day to buy a few pieces of jewelry (prices are better here than at St Thomas). If you are cruising take the water taxi from the pier ($5 for all day- as many trips as you want) to the downtown area. There is a lovely beach right there with chair, umbrellas and water toys that you can rent for a nominal fee. We just spread our towels out on the sand for free and enjoyed the water and sun. If you get hungry there are wonderful local places to eat right on that beach. The water temperature was in the 90s and was perfect for what we wanted. There are other beaches on the island, but farther away from Philipsburg and not much nicer. If you are bringing children you may want to be careful about going to the French side of the island. Clothing is optional on those beaches. I can tell you what NOT to do. We made this mistake when we were there 2 years ago. DO NOT take the submarine ride. You really don't see much and it is very hot and stuffy in there. Same goes for the semi-sub. It doesn't dive, just lets you sit below the water level and see what's around. Definitely NOT worth the money. Whatever you choose to do I hope you have a wonderful time. St Maarten is one of my favorite islands.

Megan M

Wow, I was in St. Maarten in March... it's so amazing. We went to Orient Bay (beach). It's absolutely huge. This beach is on the French side and is clothing optional. However, we were there all day and saw one nude male, no completely nude females, and many topless females. However, when I say many, there were still more clothed than unclothed women. There are many, many, many restaurants, bars, water rentals (jet skis, parasailing, etc). The bad side is the cost. First, it's a good 20 minute or so taxi ride that will cost anywhere from $5-10 a person depending on how many people you get into your van. The good thing is that they have a very nice taxi station where you can wait and build up a group of people. If you want a chair/umbrella at the beach that's another $10 or so dollars pp. Then, the food is picnic type food but still around $10-15 for a sandwich. There are many beach sellers here. (buy a hat, a bag, some jewelry, braids) Even with all these negatives, I still would go back there in an instant. I LOVED LOVED It. Honestly, the shopping and downtown area were nice, but I didn't like it as much as the St. Thomas shopping area. Oh, Magen's is on St. Thomas.

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