TravelTalkOnline Forums Travel and Vacation Forums St. Maarten - St. Martin Trip Report, June 4-11, 2021

While there was anxiety about the testing process, it actually went smoothly for me. My 120th hour occurred on Labor Day. However, I found an urgent-care clinic open 24/7 that did testing. My appointment was at 2:30 p.m. Monday. My results arrived at 12:30 a.m. Wednesday morning. I uploaded test results and vaccination card copy by 1:30 a.m. and went to bed. When I got up Wednesday, I noted the pre-approval had arrived at 4:30 a.m. These are all PDT times. Good to go!

Friday, June 4

Friday night finally arrived. While waiting for my Uber driver, I listened to the live music from my next-door neighbor’s party. I would have liked to attend, but SXM was calling. This would be my first flight in a year and a half, and I was ready!

When I checked my bags, the American ticket agent asked for my pre-approval form; I wasn’t asked for it again until arriving in SXM. My first leg was a redeye from PDX to CTL. Sleeping on a plane is something I’ve never been able to do, unfortunately. The gate for my flight to SXM was two terminals away; CTL has neither a sky train nor carts with drivers, at least in these COVID times. The AA Admirals’ Lounge was in the terminal of my departure so I dropped in. Before pulling out the credit card, I asked if, by chance, fees were waived for those traveling first class. I was pleasantly surprised to learn they ARE waived for first-class passengers traveling to the Caribbean. Thank you, American! I was able to pass a couple of hours in pleasant surroundings and get breakfast to boot!

As has been reported elsewhere, there were seven American jets arriving within forty minutes of each other. From what I could tell, I was on the second one. Still, the line was horrendously long; it looked to be the length of about four city blocks. It went fairly quickly, however, and was about fifteen minutes to the health check and another fifteen minutes to C&I. As I proceeded to baggage claim, I noted that they were just starting to send bags from my flight. The bright orange “priority” stickers worked this time, and my bags were some of the first out.

Leisure was waiting for me outside the terminal, and off we went to their office for the short paperwork process. Then it was off to Divi! Check-in isn’t until 4:00 p.m., and it was about 2:30 p.m. So I dropped off my bags with a bellman and headed to Tech Hub to get “wi-fi everywhere” (my terminology, not theirs) added to my phone for a month. I had already switched SIM cards in the plane. Back to Divi, where my room still wasn’t ready so I sat drinking in this view.



Finally I could check in. There was barely time to shower and change before heading out to The Palms to join friends for happy hour. So lovely to be able to exchange hugs again! I had dinner there and headed back to Divi to crash

Sunday, June 6

Morning came too soon, and I was still exhausted. Went to Pure Ocean at Divi for breakfast, which was unexceptional, but the view is nice.



I thought Carrefour closed at 2 p.m. on Sundays but checked their website, which said 6 p.m. So I dawdled around on my deck and organized my room a little more, then headed out for groceries mid-afternoon, only to find Carrefour was closed. So I headed to Market Garden. Shopping there isn’t nearly as pleasant as at Carrefour, but I picked up most of the essentials I needed. Back to Divi to unpack.

Desiring a low-key dinner, I went to White Swan; this was a first for me. The Peking Duck had been highly recommended, and it did not disappoint. Served with “pancakes” and shredded green onion and cucumber, it was delicious. The lights at night from my deck are quite pretty.



Monday, June 7

After breakfast in the room, it was off to Philipsburg for errands. The mechanical system at the paid parking lot wasn’t working, so parking was free. I dropped off jewelry at DKGems for cleaning and met Deepti for the first time. Turns out she and her family were at White Swan the night before. She said she almost came over to say hello; I hadn’t noticed her, unfortunately.

Lunch at The French Touch was as pleasant as always; I had a nice quiche which came with salad. Jean-Pierre acknowledge that he had seen me before but thought I was a woman whose ex-husband was named Sol. Nope. Back to Divi for the afternoon.



It was raining cats and dogs as I was heading to my car for dinner. I changed plans and decided to go where I could park close to the entrance since I was sopping wet; Chesterfields was the choice.



I had French onion soup, which was more cheese than onions, and the coconut shrimp appetizer. Fortunately, the rain had stopped by the time I returned to Divi.

Tuesday, June 8

Anse Marcel day! I had made reservations on the beach club’s web site a few days earlier, but they appeared to be unaware of the reservation. I thought they were going to turn us away, but a friend started speaking a little French, which saved the day. The weather was overcast for most of the day. The water was a little cooler than usual, and there were more boats in the bay than I’ve ever seen before, but it was still a lovely experience.



Although I hadn’t reserved it, we were given a cabana for lunch; that French speaking obviously did the trick! I wasn’t as impressed with their menu this time around. Lunch for me was pigs’ knuckles, a first; very rich, and I probably won’t order that again.

There were a few people on chairs in front of Secrets, but it didn’t look very busy. I did not go over to see the state of the construction.

I was invited to join a group of about 17 for dinner at Jai, a restaurant in Simpson Bay serving Indian fusion. My appetizer was lamb samosas; I didn’t particularly enjoy the shredded lamb, but others loved it. My entrée, however, was outstanding: crusted cod in a divine sauce. It was a pleasant evening and was nice seeing everyone again.



Wednesday, June 9

It was a Divi Day, spent at the Infinity Pool. Very relaxing.



I met friends for dinner at Sale and Pepe; Lesley Bruce and family were also there celebrating his birthday. My entrée was shrimp risotto; it was okay but not outstanding.

Thursday, June 10

Time for sailing! Met friends at the Yacht Club for breakfast and then proceeded to the dock at Nowhere Special to be taken via dinghy to No1SXM for a half-day sail.



The morning was lovely and sunny, and the sailing was delightful; it was wonderful seeing Pieter and Mirian again after over a year and a half. Captain Pieter was looking for a location with calm water so we could swim and snorkel and decided on Baie Longue in front of LaSamanna. The water was refreshing, and a good time was had by all. Back on the boat for lunch, followed by a return to Simpson Bay. That’s when the heavens opened up, and most of us got drenched as there isn’t a lot of covered space on the boat.



Tnw2007 on this forum and his wife have been married for 45 years. He planned an anniversary dinner for her and surprised her by inviting a few friends. I was honored to be invited to join them. A couple of people had to cancel, but it was a lovely evening at IZI. The other person was their long-time jeweler who is a broker and says he provides gems to most of the stores on Front Street as well as Maho.



Friday, June 11

I was supposed to go on a sail on Spellbound today but sailing two days in a row seemed exhausting, plus I got burned yesterday and felt more sun wasn’t appropriate. I was planning on breakfast in my room, but all of a sudden, no water at Divi, and it wasn’t expected back on until 10:30 a.m. So I headed to Reveil Matin for breakfast, located in the Top Carrot area. I’m told the owners are from Danny’s by the Sea. They were doing a brisk business; portions were huge!

I then embarked on a round-the-island drive to see what had changed in the 17 months since I was last here. This is the monstrosity in Cupecoy.



The mural by Dany’s in Cupecoy




Marigot harbor



Friar’s Bay



Le Galion



And impending nasty weather back at Divi



I think I am at my picture limit for a post so . . . more later.

FANTASTIC trip report. Makes me can't wait for mid March again!!

Thanks for the report and pictures, very nice.

Thank you for the report. Your pictures are fantastic. Enjoy week #2.

Excellent report and great pics....

Thanks for sharing

Thanks for the report - surprised you got through immigration so quickly with so a long line. BTW, thanks for posting titles for the photos, it makes it much easier to follow. Glad to hear you are enjoying your trip so far.

Great report and wonderful pictures! Thanks!

Thanks for sharing Linda. I anxiously awaited your trip report. As always your details and photos make me feel like I’m there.

Enjoy week 2 and beyond.

Thanks for such a detailed report and pictures. Looking forward to seeing you tonight.

Linda--I am constantly amazed how much you get done on island! Great report! Hopefully we will get together. So far, we're not too in to planning...

A couple of things I forgot to mention:

When in Pburg, I went to Rima. I did purchase something, but it's a pretty small footprint compared to their former store. I asked about the upstairs and was told it's wholesale only.

Friday morning, Snorkeller contacted me to see if I could say hello before he and his wife moved to Palm Court. He reminded me we had met several years ago at a TTOL meet-and-greet that I organized. His memory is better than mine, but it was nice talking with him.

When going through Grand Case, I had wanted to stop at Tijon. Closed. Big for sale sign (building only) outside. Also a note to contact their website for store hours; website says by appointment only. I plan to contact them as I had wanted to take another perfume-making class.

An awesome report, Linda.

Love your format and I’m amazed you can remember all those details. I’m usually lucky if I remember the beach and restaurant choices for any given day and sometimes I write myself notes for that.

Thank you for sharing and looking forward to the next chapter.

Beautiful pictures !! Thanks for sharing. It looks like things are slowly coming back on the Island. We can't wait to get back, unfortunately nothing planned in the immediate future-Too much on our plate right now.

Nicely done, Linda....thank you for sharing.

Great photos and enjoyed reading about your adventures on the Island. Looking forward to the next installment!

Thanks for sharing your week. I can't wait to get back. Matter of fact I just booked our FC redeye for next May out of SEA to MIA and then on to SXM. Never too early to plan.

Thank you, Linda, Your reports & photos are wonderful.

Amazing detail and pictures! Thank you for sharing Linda. How you have so much “get up and go” is beyond me. I would be crashed for two days in the room and pool after the trip from the West coast!

You’ve already run into some of our favorite people.

Pat....I doubt that the classes at Tijon will continue. John and Cindy have left the island and moved back to the states.

I know, but they had hired a manager for the store, and I have seen pictures of classes since her hiring. Probably another victim of the pandemic.

Wow!!

That's all I can say!!

Enjoy!!!!!

Great report and pics! I'm glad to see some travel reports starting again!!

Great report and pictures! We can’t wait to get back to the Horny Toad! Yes, that “structure” at Mullet is a monstrosity. Is it my imagination, or do you see a slight leaning to the right?

It's possible I was the one leaning as I took it while in my car.

Thank you for your time and effort writing and posting this, Linda! Like all who missed SXM in 2020, we're particularly anxious to get back next week! See you then!

Enjoying your trip. Thanks for taking time to post. Hope your weather gets a little less wet.

Your trip report and photos are amazing. Thank you! Can’t wait to get there on Saturday, 6/19. We are also staying at the Divi. Hope we get the chance to meet. Enjoy your second week.

We too want to thank you for all the information you gave about the many locations on the island. We have also missed 3 trips during the past 18 months, but will try to head back in a few more months. Hope everything goes as well for us as it did for you. Our three weeks will give us plenty of time to see most everything you have written about. Thanks again.

Thanks for posting these photos. The photo of Le Galion beach rings back so many memories of the gentle surf there and the nice people who ran the snack bar. Orient gets most of the attention, but Le Galion was a good beach to visit when seeking a quiet day on the island.

I always look forward to your reports with wonderful labelled photos. They often remind me of my visits in years past since I am currently not able to to travel. Looking forward to your great reports for upcoming weeks.
Enjoy!

I also look forward to your trip reports! Thanks for sharing and your photos are fabulous.

Thanks for sharing your experiences! The photos really bring your report to life. Can't wait to get back to Divi, too.