This was our 5th trip, not including 3 day trips on cruises.

As in the past, we stayed at Esmeralda. We like the pool after our morning walk and after being at the beach all day. We usually do a 1 to 1.5 hour walk every morning from Es, down to the end of Club O and back, usually twice.

This year there was only 1 other unit in our building that was occupied, and we hardly ever saw them, so lots of privacy.

Overall it seemed like the island was very quiet, less people than in the past. Two ships in port on Thursday and one on Friday, so the beach was not too busy other than those 2 days.

No traffic problems at all. Parking is always an issue in Grand Case and the parking lot near Il Netuno was closed for 3 days for some type of festival. I can not imagine what it must be like during high season. During low season there is no traffic and there is no problem getting into any restaurant without a reservation.

We stayed at Coco the first couple of days. Many French and not too many English speaking people on the beach and those that were there did not really want to talk. We used to stay on the c/o part of Coco, where people tended to be friendly, but those days seem gone forever.

We had an unfortunate experience on the Club O beach in an earlier year, so my wife was reluctant to hang out at Club O but she did agree to try again.

We had a great time on the Club O beach and met some really nice people, including Bill and Laurie. Laurie was wearing her TTOL hat so I went up and asked her who she is.

We are not nudists or naturists and our only experience and really our only desire for topless/nudity is at the beach or the pool.
My wife is only comfortable topless but has no problem being around people who are nude. And nobody had any problem with her only being topless. She tells me that she would have no problem hanging out at Club O next time that we go.

The weather was as perfect as could be. A bit windy the first few days but the wind calmed as the week wore on.

Ate most lunches at Baywatch, had something different every day. Even they did not seem as busy as in the past.

We love to eat out on holidays. Ate at Spiga twice, great meal both times and dollar at par with Euro for cash. The second time there we went with new friends that we met and they also enjoyed it.

Had thin crust pizza and a crepe at California. Also very good and dollar at par for cash.

Tried Mario's Bistro for the first time. Had an excellent meal, well woth the price, even in Euros.

Bistro Caraibes was a disappointmentand probably our least favorite meal. Food was okay but nothing spectacular. The menu is a bit of the same old thing.While it is not their fault, when $100 becomes almost $160 the value seems to disappear and we expect better than simply average. When I compare Marios and Bistro, they are about the same price and Marios is more creative and we enjoyed the meal so much more.

Temptation was very good. Asian fusion type of food. Being on the Dutch side, no Euro issues.

Car rental and phone rental from Unity. No problems and Michael is a pleasure to deal with.

Leaving SXM was a bit different. As a result of a wind shift we took off over the water rather than going inland with a sharp turn to avoid the mountain. Flights that left while we were waiting departed the traditional way.

Did not experience any crime and did not feel unsafe or uneasy at all.


SXM may be in for some difficult times. As the Euro continues to rise, as fuel prices continue to rise and as airlines reduce their flights my fear is that SXM will become just another stop on a 7 day cruise. While the shops and the beach bars may benefit, the hotels and restaurants may be in for some harder times, especially those on the French side.