TravelTalkOnline Forums Travel and Vacation Forums St. Maarten - St. Martin New member, travelling to SXM for first time

Hi all,

Been lurking for a while absorbing all the great information here. Travelling to SXM with family on July 11th. Already in touch with Lesley at Kenny's for our car (based on all the great reviews here) and now looking for cell phone DATA options. Seems as though Sharon is off-island, don't know when she is returning. Is a chippie sim the best option for data? Mrsimcard? To buy a sim and get a 30 day plan (4 gigs 4G data) will be over $100. Seems pricey. We will be there for 10 days so the 7 day plan doesn't work for us.

Note: we are Canadians and our carriers don't offer any good options ($50 for 150mb data - crazy!)

Appreciate any input.

If you are staying at a hotel they offer wifi. Some free some you pay. Leave a message on your phone to contact you by e-mail.... <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Thumbsup.gif" alt="" />

WE are Canadians too and we can get service from our Canadian provider for only $10 a day which is a good price.However, WiFi is readily available everywhere on the island and at your resort to do what you want to do there.

We purchased a Chippie sim from Sharon, but it doesn't provide data, only calling minutes. You can purchase data plans for the sim, but they're not cheap. For data we just use the free wifi when we're out and about. I did buy one day's worth of data while we were there, and that worked well (can't remember now why I did that; the wifi at our resort may have been down). Email Sharon; even if she's off the island, she has people who will respond to your questions.

And welcome to the forum!

We're staying in one of the VRBO homes above Orient Bay and we have wifi there. Is wifi available on Orient Beach? Do each of the bars have their own hotspot? If that's the case, maybe I don't need a data plan. My "kids" (20 and 22 yrs) are the ones who start sweating and quivering if they are not connected 24/7, lol.

According to her website, Sharon apparently does offer data for $0.55 per day (cheap!) but she warns "it is slower than you are used to", so I'm not sure how usable it may be.

Thanks for the welcome!

Welcome - also Canadians - though I have a Corp package and don't worry about the cost - Bell has a daily rate of $10/day and packages that [though end up at $100] start at under $100
Though to be fair, $10 daily will add up to $100 if you use it every day!

Depends on your carrier - though in Canada limited options so guessing the Bell rate is competitive with other Cdn carriers

Bell has worked for me on both sides of the island. When I have wifi, I just set the phone to wifi as other have noted. Most of my use is with wifi, depends on your situation. I'm not going to talk or email business on Orient. I generally catch up am or pm pre happy hour[s] when I have wifi

Enjoy - tell your trip details and "finds" when you return
J&B

Hmm, I don't know about that 55 cent data; the Chippie plan is more than that, or at least it was last December.

Most of the bars along Orient have their own wifi, and are happy for patrons to use it. Basically the internet on the island is slower than what you're used to at home, pretty much anywhere you connect.

We just use available wifi for data. If you have iPhones, iPhone to iPhone texting is free. That may take some pain away from 'the kids'

I live on Island and find most available wifi to meet expectations for texting, mail etc. I have iPhone, do use FaceTime over wifi, text via wif and Pinger for textingi. My teen Grandchildren have never complained while visiting. They seem to have no trouble staying in touch with friends. They even post pics on Instagram while waiting for meals. Although, I have told them that they probably wouldn't die if they were out of touch for 1 week lol.

We have an old flip phone and purchased a Sim card from Dauphin phone. There used to be an outlet in the Simply grocery store but as it is closed I am not sure where one would purchase one now. That gives us a phone we use mainly to make reservations or to have in case of emergency. We spend 4 weeks on island in the winter and 2 in the summer. For data we rely on Wifi in the places we rent. No problem connecting and doing what we need to do. However we are not teens who like to be connected 24/7. In Orient Village Yellow Sub has free WiFi. They will give you the password as long as you make a small purchase. I know that Orange Fever on Orient also has WiFi, not sure about the other restaurants but I imagine most of them would have it. Hope you enjoy your first stay.

Dauphin has a store right in Marigot, on the Main Street just beyond the West Indies Mall. We also have an old Nokia phone and bought a SIM card there so our guests would have a phone if needed. You can have Bla Bla card minutes downloaded, so it gives you low cost calls to the US, Canada etc.

Sharon is off island but her capable staff keep the business running smoothly. <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/circle.gif" alt="" />

I would hope that your kids wouldn't be so concerned with being connected 24/7 on one of the most beautiful islands in the world with so much to do. They will forget about all of it in the day time !! Yes, it is good to have a phone in case of an emergency. But once your family hits the beaches and the other fun activities, having a phone will be secondary! Have a great time, never leave ANYTHING in the car without it being attended to!!! Take lots of pixx, looking forward to your first trip report! <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Groovin.gif" alt="" />

Thank you, everyone, for your input. Going to try the wifi route and see how it goes. If there are too many complaints from the "kids", they may have to chip in for a data plan.

Looking forward to the trip!

A couple days in they may not even care. Wouldn't that be nice

Something fun for you to ask on this forum; Calling all TTOL'ers. I need a list of activities with contact information!! Now this will be better than any data plan!!! Twice the fun!!From Boat tours, scuba, jet ski tours, Rhino runners. So much to list!!! Ask the question, bet you get 2 dozen or better responses!! Have a GREAT trip. Your family will love you for all that you've done for them!! Also, post the question, "What to pack and not"!? La vie est une plage, profitez-en!