TravelTalkOnline Forums Travel and Vacation Forums St. Maarten - St. Martin Is Simpson Bay right for us?

Hi All, I used this forum extensively when I made my first trip to SXM in 2012 (Oyster Bay) and had an amazing trip. Now, I want to bring my daughter for her college graduation present. I am thinking Simpson Bay Area and looking at Royal Palm Beach resort, but would appreciate some opinions. Traveling with a 21-year old, she’s not going to want the complete quiet that I would choose (I would go to BSV). I don’t want to rent a car, so we need to be within walking distance of several restaurants, someplace that feels safe, and has easy access to a really nice beach. She will want to be near or in the water all day, when we’re not drinking rum punches. We will be happy to stay in after dinner, relaxing on a balcony. Does Royal Palm seem like a good choice? If the beach there is not the best, would The Horny Toad be better? Thanks!

This is purely my personal opinion and hopefully, no one will take offense if their opinions are different.

If you have access to timeshare, be it owned or traded, I’d try to get into The Royal Islander Club LePlage, even if you went to their rental site and had to rent there from an owner.The units all have lovely balconies and the units themselves with all their amenities are very nice but my main reason for this suggestion is the physical location right on the beach. The pool is gorgeous and sits just off the beach and worse case scenario, if the beach should go away as they sometimes do, you’re a short walk from Mullet Bay Beach as well.

RICLP is located in the heart of Maho which means, aside from the restaurant, bars and activities at the resort, you have all of Maho village at your fingertips. Or as the case might be, at your footsteps! Many restaurants, surely something for every taste and pocketbook but there are also some evening nightspots including the Hole in the Wall which features live music most evenings and the Casino Royale which can be fun......or not on a losing night. There are also shops and other points on interest right there, but if there isn’t enough to keep you entertained, it’s an easy spot to catch a bus or taxi and then the island’s yours.

Personally, I love BSV and that would be my choice but it’s very quiet and a car is necessary.

Mary’s Boon might be another option but I think you’d still want a car since the only place within easy walking distance is Karakter which is right next door, but that’s pretty much all there is in that area. Personally speaking, I don’t care that much for the Simpson Bay Area as I find it too busy and home to too much traffic. And in case you might be thinking that way, I have no personal connection to RICLP beyond having stayed there once and enjoyed the activity in the area.

One other great spot, IMO, is the Grand Case Beach Club but it’s considerably more expensive. The beaches and the pool there are lovely and you have all of GC at your easy disposal not to mention the i site restaurant and activity center.

Good luck and congrats to the parents and the Grad!

Thanks Pat! I remember your posts from 9 years ago, so I really appreciate your advice. And, you’re a fellow Connecticuter!

pat gave some sound advice.

I have stayed at both Horny Toad and Royal Palm. While I prefer Horny Toad, you are not really in a great place to not have a car. The beach is great as are the accommodations. Royal Palm would offer lots of places within walking distance but the beach is not that great. Staying at Royal Palm would allow you to walk Simpson Bay Beach (over the bridge) and get to a nice area.

Cars are not that expensive. Personally, I would rent a car and stay at Horny Toad. Good luck.

As a twenty year owner, I'd second the Royal Islander La Plage - not La Terrasse. La Terrasse is nice, but its across the street and not on the beach. When I was down in January, there was a second little club playing live music nights in Maho. There's also a casino right across the street. The units have full kitchens and there is a pretty good market just across the street with a nice selection of liquor and a surprising variety of groceries in case you just want to relax with some drinks and snacks on your balcony and watch the planes land. Every unit at the Islander has a balcony overlooking the pool and ocean. The Tortuga bar/restaurant is poolside/ocean side right at LaPlage and has a happy hour every afternoon and really good food. And the Driftwood Boat Bar, right next door, has great pizza and a lively atmosphere. And if for some reason you decide you want to leave Maho, there are usually cabs parked right outside by the Marriot - or jump on one of the little van/busses that come by every 5 or ten minutes. Or if you decide you want to rent a car for a day of sightseeing, there's a Hertz rental counter just inside the Marriot Lobby

RICLP sounds great, but I don’t have a time share and I don’t see any information on renting a unit. Ideas?

Simpson Bay is definitely the right choice if you want the most dining and nightlife options within walking distance. Maho area (where RICLP is located) would be my second choice. Kim Sha Beach (where Royal Palm is located) is nice for sunning but not so much for swimming. Beach options are better in the Maho area. Just depends on your priorities. Really can't go wrong either way.

Royal-Islander.org, you can check out rentals under classified

The time share owners have rentals thru the owners group. Follow the link and you can see what's available.

RICLP Owners Group rental listings

Other Simpson Bay area timeshares you could rent with nice beaches and very close to nightlife would be Atrium, Simpson Bay Resort and Flamingo. What time of year you plan on going?

Royal Palm has Roxxy next door as well as a lot of evening options, but I don't care for the beach in the Kim Sha/Atrium/Royal Palm areas but the pools are fine.

Royal Islander has fewer places in the evening but is walking distance to Mullet which is a pretty good beach to spend a day. Maho beach comes and goes and the pool area at RI is pretty nice and of course it is fun to watch the jets.

I would rent a car at either but that is me, if beach is important and you don't want to travel to a beach I wouldn't stay in the Simpson Bay area.

Have fun, I still have pretty fond memories of taking our college age daughter to SXM and having some fun evenings enjoying cocktails at different bars.
Cheers,
Todd

With your 21-year-old, I agree with Pat that the Maho area is the best for you this trip, and I also agree that Royal Islander La Plage is the best resort for you in that area. While I would never suggest going to SXM and not renting a car, based on the criteria you've described, I understand not wanting a car; and if you don't have a car, then Maho is the place to be.

You can also call the RICLP directly - they will often rent out vacant units
721-545-2388

When we rented at RICLP we found a unit that fit our needs on the website others have noted. We contacted the owner and rented through them directly. A week later the same unit but for the following week became available through the rental site manager so we ended up with back to back weeks in the same upper floor two bedroom unit. It was lovely. We could watch the planes at the airport from the hallway outside our door or see them coming in to land from the balcony off the living room.
The only thing I would forewarn you of is the Royal Islander La Terrasse is across the road and while it’s close, it’s just not as convenient to the beach if that is a main priority for you. The pool there is lovely and particularly at night but of the two I would only stay at RICLaPlage.

Just rip the banded off and stay at BSV! Rent a car from Leslie, he will meet you at the airport, and you can drive all around the island while your there. (Lots more fun) it will be a vacation of a life time, I promise you.

Thanks, I did that last time and it was great. But, as I said, it’s been a hard year (for many of us) and I want to keep things simple.

Liz--I really don't understand the reluctance to rent a car, as you will miss much of what is so great about SXM. But I think that Royal Palm would be a great option for you. You can walk to many places from there. The beach there is not great, but the views are beautiful there. You can get a taxi to other beaches or perhaps rent a car by the day. Enjoy!!

Carol,

The op suggested their chief priority is enjoying a laidback trip without any hassle and spending most of their time in the water. With all due respect, and I know the views of the boats would be wonderful at the Royal Palm but that’s one of the worse beaches for actually enjoying being in the water, and we’ve been cautioned to this fact long before Royal Palm came into being.

Granted, the units have all been redone at RP and are probably lovely, but I absolutely get the idea of doing without a car and being close to lots of different venues. That’s why I suggested RICLP. It’s as safe there as any location on the island and there’s lots to do even if it means just walking across the street for an ice cream or going a little further down the street to the The Hole in the Wall for something a little stronger.

The last time we stayed at Grand Case Beach Club we parked our car and didn’t use it once for the whole stay and we loved it.

Adding onto what Pat has stated, GCBC would be my choice for no car and relax on a beach. But, it might be boring for a college aged kid. But if there for beach, cocktails and food GCBC is pretty damn good and can be done well with out a car. LTC is a long long walk but I wonder if there is a shuttle that runs from GCBC to the main strip during the day. LTC does have some evening activities but the Grand Case area is nothing like Maho or Simpson Bay for night life.

Just returned from SXM tonight, Did not stay at Royal Palm, but drove by it plenty. It is a BRAND NEW resort both inside and out. Totally renovated a couple of months ago, so it does have great looking furniture, a fine view, a decent beach, steps to a bunch of fine restaurants, across the street from Nowhere Special, which i am sure your daughter would LOVE! Music every night, plenty of 20 somethings, great drinks and appetizers, and a real fun time. Any type of food and restaurants within a five minute walk, etc. I think it would be a GREAT spot to enjoy SXM, and if you decided not to rent a car, I don't think the location can be beat. I did notice from the time I spent on Simpson Bay this trip, that there definitely is an ''age difference" between Simpson Bay and Maho. I really don't think there is a more happening place on the island now, than the Simpson Bay area.

I'd like to suggest Simpson ya Resort. Walking distance to lots of restaurants and bars. Casino on site. The beach is very nice with palapas, loungers and a big beach bar. The rooms in the Villas building have been totally renovated in the last year.

And yet another good option.

We’ve been staying at The Horny Toad for 17 years and find it the best. New updated rooms and a fully equipped kitchen. Deb and Doug are great hosts. You can’t go wrong staying there. The town is a quick walk away.

Pat,
Over the years I found myself using my rental car less and less while paying to park it in the Maho garage. Also, driving at night on SXM's poorly lit roads was becoming more of an issue as I aged - especially if I wanted a drink (or maybe two) at dinner. So the last few years I haven't bothered. Cabs at night and the little bus/vans during the day have done the job nicely for me. Also, I get to interact more with the locals that way. If I do get really restless (unlikely as I'm very subject to sand gravity), I can rent a car for the day from the Hertz counter at the Marriot right next door to the Royal Islander where I stay. This also eliminates any issues with picking up or dropping off a car on arrival or departure. I'm sure it's my age showing, but I find my vacation less stressful without a car now. So I understand the posters position. While I highly recommend RICP in Maho, I'm sure they'll have a great vacation in either Maho or Simpson Bay.

Pat--often there is no beach at ALL at Royal Islander, so one would have to walk to Mullet. If beach is the number one priority, I would go for Simpson Bay Resort or Flamingo.

With no car I would second SBR and Flamingo.....decent beach and pools, walkable to everything, small market for stuff and plenty of restaurant choices. With a car I would add many more choices most of which have already been mentioned

The trouble with SBR and Flamingo with no car is walking back up the hill every time you go to Welfare road for the restaurants etc, especially if you are in the B block of SBR.
George

Yup...there is a hill from Welfare Rd and a hill to the upper B's at SBR but we are in our early 70's and did the walk MANY, MANY times in January. If at Flamingo or 3 of the 5 SBR buildings one hill is eliminated (or shuttle use). If the OP has mobility issues then that changes things a bit but there are a decent number of places to eat right in the SBR area and save to Welfare Rd walk for another day...

You don't technically have to walk all the way up the hill if you want to walk a little further and go along the water, through where BBB was, to the Greenhouse area.

Yes, Flamingo or SBR really does sound like it fits your needs. We walked the hill from Atrium and did not find it difficult. As Carol said the walk around the hill, through SBR is a nice easy walk along the waters edge.

We walked as far as Pineapple Pete's in one direction and The Palms restaurant in the other direction on Welfare Rd. and there are many places to eat in between.

My wife and I are mid 70s and found the last stretch from Hollywood casino to the B bock to be the hard part.
George

That last leg will get you.....but there is a shuttle from the check in area to the B bulidings

You can avoid the hill by walking to the ground level of the Villas building and taking the elevator to thelobby level and hop on a shuttle to the B buildings. Personally I don't mind the hill so much as I figure it burns some of the calories consumed at dinner. LOL

The shuttle at Simpson Bay Resort will take you up the hill to upper B building and the shuttle will also take you down the hill to Welfare Road as far as the bridge heading toward the airport and in the opposite direction toward Pineapple Pete’s. I’m not sure how far they will take you toward PP’s. They have also picked us up to bring us back. We called and they came and got us. So nice. We tip both for drop off and pick up.

I don't blame you for not renting a car bc for almost your entire trip it is parked. On our original trip and we didn't have the slightest idea of where we were or going we were able to find a personal off duty cab driver who took us to various restaurants during the week and when we were done, if it was convenient for him to come back and get us, if not just find another on duty taxi driver. We did this for probably 2 or 3 years, as we were quite content staying along Orient Beach during the day this was great for us. I believe that the money we spent for the personal service and/or hiring taxi drivers was probably more than renting a car, but we didn't have to be concerned about parking and all the other issues that go with your rental vehicle. Either way I hope you have a wonderful trip and we are so happy that vacationers are coming back and shortly a lot of cruise passengers too.

LizChelsea, you mentioned that you would like to spend time on the balcony after dinner relaxing.
The one thing I don't like about Royal Islander La Plage is that the balconies are VERY tiny which in my opinion makes relaxing difficult. Other than that it is a beautiful resort. La Terasse across the street has very nice sized balconies but as mentioned, is not right on the beach.

That is one thing that Royal Palm has going for it--ALL the units are full ocean view and the balconies kind of vary in size, but I've never seen one that you didn't have room for a couple of (sit down) chairs and some room to move about them. There are very few resorts in SXM that have full ocean view in every room.

Flamingo has full ocean view, on a nice swim beach and great sunsets in building 7 for all the even ending numbered rooms. All have very nice balconies. One bed B side of the lockout units in building 6 also all have ocean view.

Scubaman--so roughly HALF of the units in building 7 at Flamingo, as opposed to Royal Palm, where every single room has an ocean view. That was my point.

Just like SBR where some buildings have ocean view but not all....probably also half. Upper floors of the B's, and the F and M (most) buildings