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Passport renewal times o2bnsxm 1 hour ago We will be renewing our passports toward the end of August after we return from our Anniversary Cruise. We have another cruise in November to Panama which requires a passport and it cannot expire within 6 months of the last day of the cruise, so that necessitates us renewing before then. I don't think we are cutting it too close from the end of August to November when we need the passports again, but can anyone provide the amount of time it took for their renewal that has done it recently? Should we opt for the expedited service (costs more but supposed to be quicker)?
Also, we don't currently have the passport card only the book. Is there any real advantage to spending the extra $$ to get the card in addition to the book??

Thanks.

Carol if you need to move this to a more appropriate Forum, please do so.

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SXM Rental Car Deposit Release time TJTrippe Yesterday at 03:29 PM My rental ended 6 days ago and an $800 deposit was required/applied 14 days ago.

How long does this pending charge that eats up available credit limit take to be released?

At what point should I be worried?

Ive never noticed it take this long after rental is completed for this to fall away.

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Friends on a shoestring Sailor1985 Yesterday at 12:21 PM Hi all, need some advice:

Some friends of mine will anchor their Jeanneau (sailboat) in October for a week of sxm fun (2 adults, 3 kids of 6-12ish age). I know every penny counts in their household, to the level i do not even want to recommend renting a car. Budget and shoestring is key.

I already gave supermarkets, buses as a way to save money. Do you have other suggestions how to make their trip most worthwile?
- affordable but great food
- affordable packages
- same specifically for beach chairs (day on beach)
- discount listings

Any other idea would be welcome.

Regards

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Orient trip report BillDauterive 08/03/2026 12:14 AM Just now getting around to writing a brief trip report for our July 15 - July 22 visit. I travelled with a friend this time,

Flew AA. Arrival was on tarmac with stairs, then bus. We were smart: On the bus we stayed close to the door we entered, putting us among the first to exit the bus. We then walked fairly quickly, and entered the immigration area. While most people stood around scratching their heads, my companion and I headed straight toward the kiosks (all were unoccupied). Because we used entry.sx, our time inside the terminal was about 90 seconds (all carry-on, no checked bags). It's all timing... the previous large jet passengers had obviously had sufficient time to clear out, expediting our passage.

Although I thought I had reserved a car with Empress, I guess I didn't. Uh-oh. We shuttled to the Empress building, and ended up being charged just $250 for the week (incl liability) for an Hyundai i10 (smallest car). I expected worse. (EDIT: actually, it was $232).

ACCOMODATIONS: About a month before our departure, I reserved a 2br villa (with a pool) on VRBO, near Phillipsburg. Two weeks later, the host messaged me and said, "Sorry, this unit is not available for you to rent. Contact VRBO for a refund," Oh, no. I was imagining the worst, and immediately started searching for a similarly-priced, similar villa on VRBO. There were none for the same price, but a few more expensive (either much nicer or larger) villas available. So I called VRBO. The agent immediately refunded what I paid (most VRBOs require immediate full payment). Then... check this out... In addition to the refund, VRBO gave me a credit for the amount of my original rental, provided my stay included the days of the original reservation. So my original rental was $1,700. And I was able to start looking for a rental up to $3,400 for the week. Oh boy, this expanded my options. I was torn between an opulent two-bedroom in Sandy Ground with a huge pool and very private setting, and a more basic (but larger) four bedroom unit way up the hill in Orient. I opted for the 4br villa in Orient. While we didn't need all four bedrooms, the villa was near the top of the hill, with a beautiful view of Orient Bay and was also very private. It was incredible. Pool, outdoor shower, full security, Washer & dryer, snorkeling gear, pool floats 80-inch TV with Netflix... it had everything.

Lesson: If you reserve a unit on VRBO, keep your fingers crossed and hope that the host made a mistake!

FOOD: Regarding meals, Johnny Thinwallet here doesn't like to dine out a lot. I usually prefer to eat breakfast, skip lunch, and prepare dinner myself, dining out less than half of the time. We got pizza a couple of times (Pepe pizza (YUM) & Enzo (meh)). The rest of the meals were in the villa. Regarding breakfast, we went out for pastries (as mentioned in an earlier thread). Here is how we rated them, best to worst
1. Sebastian Quillere - the best
2. Good Morning - close second. Get the Swiss pastry.
3. Bisou Sucre - the cinnamon pastry was excellent. Limited quantities of everything.
4. L`Express - this is the only place where we had to queue up. Good, not great
We did not make it to Sucrier in Grand Case. That's on the list for the next trip.

BEACHES: We visited just two beaches. Obviously, Orient, and Happy Bay. Again, being the cheapo that I am, I rented chairs and an umbrella from Craig. The rest of the time was spent at the villa.

Regarding beach conditions on Orient, I'll echo the comments on other threads about conditions on the yellow-umbrella section. Lots of erosion and very rocky conditions in the water (we were slumming it with our rented chairs, either past the flagpole or on the far, far south end). Very little sargassum, though.

Happy Bay was busier than I've ever seen it. Though it was not crowded, there were several families scattered around (and lots of swimwear). It's summer, and the kids are out of school. But it's my favorite beach, undeveloped and mostly natural.

Not much else to report. Return trip through SXM airport was a breeze, with short trips through security. Gate area was packed, though. Not pleasant.

Random observation: My go-to beer on the island is Amstel Bright in cans. I had a very difficult time finding it. None at SuperU, none at Leader Price, and none at the bottom-of-the-hill Carrefour. On my last trip, I found it at Cole Bay Carrefour, but it wasn't worth driving there from Orient, so I settled for Heineken.

And I'm already planning my next trip.

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WestJet on Strike - SXM Flight Cancelled Today TJTrippe 08/02/2026 03:24 PM Looks like flights to/from SXM cancelled today….who knows how long this will last

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Iquanas - Lots of them TJTrippe 08/02/2026 12:54 PM Maybe it was just us and where we went but we encountered large numbers of iquanas this trip.

Saw them everywhere sometimes a dozen in a group. Granddaddy’s to babies.

Anybody know if there is a population explosion?

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Sunset Beach Bar 0810 08/01/2026 09:38 PM Is something going on there? I understand there is no beach, but there are no people either. That bothers me. We went on Wednesday night this week for the sunset and there were only 2 other people there and that’s all. It was not the best sunset, but when we left, there was none??

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Collectivité is deploying floating sargassum barriers ChiTownHarry 08/01/2026 06:52 PM The Collectivité to install barrier fence to block sargassum on st martin

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3 arrested one firearm confiscated SXMScubaman 08/01/2026 02:14 PM These upstanding people have history of previous firearm arrests. What are they doing walking the streets. Good that the police reacted to their suspicions.
Herold LINK

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