TravelTalkOnline Forums Travel and Vacation Forums St. Maarten - St. Martin Covid Environment on the island now

We are arriving Jan. 22 for five weeks. We are definitely going unless we are ill. Elaine of Bill & Elaine mentioned they are self quarantining. Are visitors on the island being more cautious? We are not worried if a curfew is put into place because we are usually home by 8. Are people still dining freely? I really don’t want to cook. Just want to know what the feeling on the island is. Please don’t take this post as negative, we can’t wait to get there for the beaches & warm weather.

We are the same. Arriving Jan 22. Watching situation. How is the Dutch side? Are people staying safe? As someone posted elsewhere, all guests at resorts have been vaxxed. You can't be sure of that at home in US.

SandS,

As always, use your own good judgement and listen to the advice of responsible Islanders. A curfew would be no problem for us either, since even for special evenings we’re generally in ny ninish or thereabout.

When we were on island in early to mid November we followed pretty much the same protocols we follow at home - masks, hand-washing, etc. The island was moderately busy although certainly not at the level of high holiday weeks. We had no problems but we deliberately avoided closed in venues and crowded outdoor locations, and we did most of our evening dining alfresco when possible. We stay in one of the smaller resorts so there’s no necessity to be in crowds there.

My biggest concern was, and still is for that matter, the possibility of coming into contact with people at the airports where, through necessity, the herding factor still exists. Still hoping for our April trip but situations at the time will dictate our plans and any possible changes.

Hi Everyone, we just returned yesterday after spending 6 weeks on our sailboat. Hope to go back at the end of January. We spent time on both the Dutch side and the French side. Both sides have a mask mandate however, individuals following it seem to vary. Establishments enforcing it seem to vary. If you go into a grocery store, they are enforcing it pretty well. Restaurants and bars vary. On our last night out before we left, we were going to eat at an indoor restaurant that we knew was small and intimate and choose to pass and eat at and outdoor restaurant that we knew had good spacing. Before I read about the significant jump in the number of cases on SXM, I didn't give it a second thought about being in an indoor space that was small.

That isn't at all true....all guests either have had a negative test before arrival OR were fully vaxxed. That IS better than at home since there are many unvaxxed and untested wandering the earth....and being vaxxed prior to arrival doesn't mean you do not have the virus on arrival....VERY complex

Totally true about the airport as ground zero for the biggest potential on Island for getting infected,,,,from the crammed bus to the crowded documents line....yuck

"As someone posted elsewhere, all guests at resorts have been vaxxed."
I don't think that is the case at all resorts as you don't have to be Vaxed to get on island.

You probably won't notice much difference. Some places will be temporarily closed due to lack of staff. There's plenty people out and about. Our comfort level ( and many friends) is much lower than most, I guess.

Hopefully the "sanitary" measures will finally be enforced.

Correct. An OPINION that is NOT factual.

Basically you wear your mask and try to keep your distance on the trip down through the airports and on the plane. And hope for the best. After that you have control over how much risk you want to take but I would advise wearing masks wherever it is appropriate like grocery stores etc. Personally I am avoiding my favorite bars until this surge subsides because mask wearing is uneven.

I think this one will be toast very soon....but... the vaccines were NEVER advertised to be 100% effective....and they DO limit the chance of getting seriously ill from the virus....but go with what you have been led to believe and good luck. (Confirmation bias)