TravelTalkOnline Forums Travel and Vacation Forums St. Maarten - St. Martin Karacter beach bus?

Havent been to sxm in a couple of years, and saw a video of one guy, and it appeared that Karackters has changed? or is not open? can anyone confirm or have any info please.
Thank you

Changed how?? It is open, yes.

I think new owners in the past few years. Still in a bus still just so so. Music can be techno obnoxiously loud at times. Nice beach.

Some say that the food isn't as good as the previous owners. The Sunday OBNOXIOUS techno music off the chart ridiculously loud that it kills my day on my deck at BSV!!! It's sad, I remember when they just rolled that bus in and had only a few chairs and tables. It was really nice!! The music is insulting LOUD to all the neighbors!!

Hi Carol
Not sure, I was just watching some videos a vacationer showed on facebook,,,,they were walking to Mary Boon's and when they walked past Karackter they said,,looks like nothing happening, that's sad, and it appeared to be shut down?? Thus the question. We usually went there for an afternoon , but havent been to SXM for a couple of years, so I was just curious. We want to make sure to visit Mary Boons this year, as we have not had a drink or lunch there either. We will be staying one night and day at Azure Guest House, so kinda in the vicinity. Then we move onto Royal Palm.

Perhaps it was just closed that one day. I'm not aware that they have been closed at all.

Enjoy your trip!

Ya you are probably right,,,we will cruise by when we get there and check it out for sure. If we can find parking! LOL,,,that was always tricky. And thanks,,we don't go till March 30,,,never been to sxm that late before, usually January is our month, but just didnt work out this year. Hopefully it is not real busy at that time, but who cares,,,just being able to get back to SXM is good with me!!

megamania we were on island for 2 weeks in December and probably stopped at Karacter's half a dozen times to re-hydrate on our Simpson Bay walks. In fact they were putting up their Christmas
decorations on one of our stops, so they are definitely open for business.

megamania,, those were my videos,,,, ya we were there when it opened years ago and Monique was there,,,, that was our "goto" for ever but since they put in the kabana area it's just not the same,,
We did go for cocktail and coconut shrimp one afternoon,,, it was good,,,, but ya it just didn't have the "vibe" the last couple of trips,,,, but the beach has also been washed out
and the loungers have been set up on the side so space is limited,, ,,,

Hi there.....btw enjoyed your video's,,,,lol Makes sense,,,,last time we were there (jan 2020) I believe it looked like something would be changing. Anyways, probably pop down for a beverage when we have a day at Azure Guest House, prior to moving to Royal Palm.....thanks to all that responded.....cheers!

The neighborhood agony might be over soon. The property is owned by Jessica same person that owns the former El Zafiro property and she has a pending Eviction case in court now. I believe it was lease had expired. Obviously if it’s a court matter it will take time. But plenty of good beach bars still close by.

Interesting. I was not aware that Jessica owned that property also. Will be interesting to see what happens.

Eviction would be a landlord tenant issue. Does Jorrit still own the property???

Jorrit didn't own the property, and sold the business.

I figured that Jorrit didn't own the property, just surprised that Jessica owns it.

Yes Jessica is the owner and also another small lot Next door. Use to own all the way down the beach to BSV but not sure if it’s usable land anymore. A Dutch lawyer runs karakter now. From what I understand the lease expired and she wants them moved because of several nuisance types of issues. She has a big price to sell on that land and the former El Zafiro property. A local Real Estate company has the listing. Sxm always interesting.

Explain to me how you get evicted if you own the land??

sxmbound--read the other responses. Karakter does NOT own the land.

Isn't this the third or fourth turnover of Karakters???

Should be a tax on that! Sorry, I couldn't resist.🤣

Spent the day at Karakter yesterday. Windy day so beach not crowded. Lunch was good and large crowd late (after 2) for food. Low key music. Lounges comfortable.

It will never be the same as what Jorritt created, but we need to move on. That was a looong time ago! Still a decent place.

I agree LeAnn, some of it is better than when it began. It is just a bit different now, but we enjoyed it on our last trip more than most other places on the Dutch side. I liked the value for what we paid.

Enjoy your trip!
T

Thanks Todd, I’m sure we will! But I do miss the November crew……

Are chairs still free if you buy food and drinks? Also at Mary’s Boon?

Definitely no charge at Mary’s Boon for chairs and umbrellas if you are eating or drinking. Great food and staff and a real comfortable dining room beach side if you prefer that. Personally I don’t understand why anyone would go to the Bus with Mary’s Boon there too. Really nice crowd and lots of fun.

forever--historically, Karkater's food was always MUCH better. Not sure that is necessarily the case now. We basically have not been to the beach for the day at either place for a long time, so can't really comment on the beach experience per se at either.

Yes, no charge for chairs and umbrella at Karakter if you are eating or drinking.

As far as I'm concerned all beach bars should be that way.

We tried Mary's Boon twice in recent years; the food was terrible and the service was worse. We won't be back. Karakter has a new, and very extensive, menu which we enjoyed in December. The service was good as well.

I will echo this on our last trip ther 11/9/22 🙌

MB In resent YEARS? As managers and chefs come and go Restaurants are constantly evolving for the better or worse. A while back they briefly they had bad restaurant management but that changed about a year ago. We were just at Mary’s Boon in December and the dining room and Beach Bar was packed everyday and they have a great following. Always have great food and service. We tried the Bus next Door, still just very mediocre food and service. I think mb been in business over 50 years. Obviously , to each his own. We also like Sandbar at times.

I’ve been to going to Karakter this trip. I like the Boon but the chairs are more comfortable at Karakter. Well spaced now. And the music is not loud at all maybe because I’ve been going during week and not the weekend. Just had some of the best fish and chips I’ve had in a long time there today. The service is good. Occasionally you have to remind them about something small like a bottle of water, napkins etc. But overall the service is decent. And it’s always nice to see Mary there. The owners could be a little friendlier but maybe that’s their nature.

I was at Mary's Boon with two island friends in early December. Two of the three of us had sandwiches, which were mediocre at best. One had soup, which was proclaimed good. That said, it is nice to not have to pay for chairs/umbrellas.

Linda--I'm confused--Is Karakter charging for chairs now, even if you eat there?

I can't imagine any business charging to sit down to spend money but maybe Karacter has a min order to get a free chair. that would be fair. We love any of the fish dishes at Marys Boon, chicken or shrimp curry dish is great too. The Tuna and thee Salmon with the lemon butter sauce is amazing and at dinner they have it with goat cheese. Everyone has their favorite places, just funny how some people just never have anything good to say about widely popular places that most people love. yes good to get opinion but That's way we experience it our own then decide.

No. Not charging for chairs if you eat/drink there. But they will charge you if you don’t. Not sure if there is a minimum. I had a $16 bill the other day and wasn’t charged.

forever--many restaurants on the French side charge for chair rentals, even if you eat there.

Tim--OK, thanks. That's what I remembered from before, but was confused by Linda's statement.

No idea as I haven't been to Karakter for some time.

OK, sorry, I misunderstood your post.