My wife and I just returned from our second trip to St. Martin this year. We spent twelve days and had the time of our lives!! With a high of 85 degrees and a low of 80 degrees it was hard to take! We had vacationed there in February and could not wait to go back! We enjoyed this time even more since there were fewer people and less traffic (even though that is still hectic).
Travel:
We travelled Continental and the trip down was nice, but the trip back was full of delays which made us arrive back here about five hours later than planned. Upon arriving at St. Martin, we were met at the airport by David from Justice Car Rental. He drove us to our villa and at the end of our trip, came and drove us back to the airport. A door handle broke on our Getz and he said that it was no problem and took care of it. We will definitely rent from him again next time.
Accommodations:
During our first visit, we stayed at a villa alone. This time we wanted to meet people so we nervously made reservations at Club Fantastico never having stayed at a clothing optional place. Our hosts, Mike and Peggy made us feel right at home from the minute we met them! During our stay people came and went and we got to meet a variety of people who we now classify as friends. The breakfasts were wonderful with fresh fruit and pastries and choices of other items. Everything was neat and clean - king size beds and air conditioning in each room. All rooms were around a common area where we would visit with others. There were four outdoor showers, so we never had to use our tub/shower that was in our room. If we wanted directions or information about anything on the island, Mike was very helpful. Peggy was always coming up with something to do and we were never bored. We played quite a few pool volleyball games with the guests and also when others came to visit. Farkle was the game to play when we had less energy or were waterlogged. All visitors were made to feel at home and all were impressed with the villa. They even have Wifi that is as fast as I have at home! We will definitely book again next year!
Food:
We are not foodies but wanted healthy meals. We never had need for breakfast since it was provided at the villa. We would stop at Tap 5 in the morning when we headed for the beach to pick up a baguette and some fruit to snack on for the day and would eat out in the evening, or as happened we ate at the villa a few evenings (Mike and Peggy were so accommodating!). We ate out at Bikini Beach, Rancho Del Sol, Safari Grill, a bakery shop at Marigot, Subway at Phillipsburg and smoothies at Papagayo. We enjoyed Rancho Del Sol so much that we went twice. One night we also went to La Bodega in Grand Case to see if we could see the “green flash” at sunset. We didn’t. While there we ate at the lolo next door.
Shopping:
We made two trips to shop. One day we went to Rima’s in Phillipsburg. We left early so that we would be back on the beach by noon. At three we were on the beach wondering if it was worth it to get lost coming back from shopping. We weren’t lost, just could not untangle the maze of roads to get back to Orient. On Wednesday we invited a couple of friends to go with us to Marigot to the market. This trip went without a problem and we got back at about noon. Our friends did not rent a car as they were staying at Club O and after the trip said that they would probably rent next time.
Beach:
This is singular since the only beach we spent time on was the south side of Orient Beach. We would get up early in the morning and walk the entire length of the beach and after breakfast go back to relax there all day. We took our snorkeling gear and enjoyed the fish and other ocean life from Pedro’s south. We found a four legged starfish that was formed that way (no missing leg). It was very enjoyable to relax in the calm waters while watching underwater. There was a group that was offering a free beer to the cruise ship people if they remove their suits. All involved seemed to enjoy the attention. A few did get the free beer and the rest walked the rest of the beach as they came. There was no hard sell. One couple came down and after much hesitation started to remove their suits and then the man of the couple pulled her shorts off to reveal no tan lines! They had been bested by one of their own! They did give them a free beer. The beach was very wide, but started to wear away by the time we left. It must have lost five feet within a week in some places. We met a native gentleman on the beach that was making baskets out of palm leaves. We asked him if he could make some smaller ones and while we waited he made two beautiful baskets! He said that his name was Reality and he had been doing this for quite a while. We also bought a lovely painting from a beach vendor.
Tiko:
We went on the Pic Nik Cruise on Thursday. This was a little different than the full trip we took in the spring. Instead of coming back to the boat for a meal it was brought to you on the beach. Phillippe’s cruises always are wonderful! We spent some time on the back side of Tintimarre and then came back to the beach to visit and snorkel. I bought an underwater camera before leaving the states and it took great pictures of the urchins, fish and a manta ray (or whatever kind of ray they have). It was nice having some younger folk on the trip as well (pre-teen). They kept jumping off the boat and swimming to shore and back. We missed the Peacock and chicken. I wonder if they are gone or just taking a vacation. It was a very relaxing and enjoyable trip! On the way back my wife laid on the mesh on the front with a towel under her and she really liked that!
Peggy and Paul’s Snorkel Trip:
We had read about this trip on TTOL and other sites and the trip lived up to its reputation. This is totally different in that you are active most of the time. It is a snorkeling trip during which we visited three islands; Pinel (before anyone gets there), Grand Cay and Tintimarre. Even the mud bath on Tintimarre was done differently than other cruises. The fish were plentiful and I got nice pictures of the underwater vegetation as well as sponges. Paul took my camera deeper to get pictures that I would not have otherwise. Some saw a turtle while others saw a puffer fish. By the time we got back to the “naked buoy” we were ready for some relaxation. So we went back to the villa where Peggy organized another pool volleyball game! We slept well that night! The next morning we went for our morning walk a little later.
My wife cried when we had to leave Peggy and Mike as well as when other friends left. It was sad, but we are happy to have met these new friends!
Jim and D
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