Looking for a kid friendly beach

[sabast1]

Are there any nice kid friendly beaches (i.e. no nudity) where we can take our children and not have them feel embarrassed? Any suggestions are greatly appreciated.

[Zeno]

Many children go to Orient Beach and are not traumatized or embarassed. It all depends on how YOU react to the occasional nude person. We were next to a family with kids the last time we were on Orient. The kids were not the least bit upset by the occasional nude person walking by. However if you feel you cannot handle nudity, generally the beaches on the Dutch side of the island have less nudity (with the exception of Cupecoy). Great Bay or Divi Little Bay should be free of totally nude people. BUT be aware that at ANY beach on the island you WILL see topless women.

[Almagetty]

We were just in St. Maarten last week and went with our children to Divi Little Bay. We had a wonderful time!!!!!:D There was not a nude or topless person in sight. From what I understand this is NOT a clothing optional beach. There are lots of water sports rentals at very good prices and they have beach games that they run for the kids (sand castle building contests, crab races, etc.) My DH and DD(15) rented jet ski's and rode on the banana boat. There was also parasailing available. The only drwaback I can think of (and my DD's did not consider it to be a drawback;) ) was that the waves were pretty big for a Caribbean Beach. My two DD's "body surfed" all day. They did not want to leave!!!

 

Enjoy St. Maarten!:)

[cruzobsessed]

will be in st. martaan next dec. did you go to divi through your ship or by yourself?

[Almagetty]

We went to Divi on our own. Right on the dock we took a taxi that cost $4.00 per person. It was a relatively quick ride (about 10-15 minutes). On the way back we picked up a taxi through the rental car place that is located right outside the lobby of the hotel. (This taxi charged $4 per person, but the kids rode free! He was not allowed to drive onto the dock, though, so we had to walk a total of maybe 300 extra yards. Not bad for the savings, though!:D Actually, we had been told by guest services on the ship that if we walked away from the pier area we could get much better prices on taxis, but we just didn't want to risk walking out into "uncharted territory".:eek: )

 

We rented 2 beach chairs and one umbrella at a cost of $5.00 per for a total of $15.00. No one used the chairs except me! The kids and DH were way too busy in the water and on the beach to sit still.;)

[TheWog]

Great Bay beach right at Philipsburg did not have any nudity as it is the Dutch side. We had a great day and was very convenient. Had 6 year old son with us.

[Buckeyefan]

We just returned from the Carnival Glory last week and we booked the Divi Little Bay Resort tour through Carnival. My sister in law and I took our 3 girls - 12, 11 & 8 and they had a ball. Tour included chairs, lunch, 2 drinks and use of the pool. The girls loved the waves - there was some action. The scenery was lovely - you could see the cruise ships coming in and also sail boats. We stayed mainly by the pool. It was a clean beach with restroom facilities but I must say it was pretty crowded (must have been because of spring break). The snorkeling I heard was not very good (saw very few fish). They did have some shops (got some great t shirts). You would not be disappointed in this trip. I have to say that St. Maartin was my favorite island of the cruise. Hope you have a great time.

 

 

Kathleen

[green eyed lady]

Almagetty,

 

How much were the jet skis? Do you know what the age is to drive one? We will be there in Nov on the Valor and this is what my boys want to do. Thanks.

 

Jen

[gtaylor]

Are there any nice kid friendly beaches (i.e. no nudity) where we can take our children and not have them feel embarrassed? Any suggestions are greatly appreciated.

 

There is a chance that you will see topless on most any beach on the island, but very rare on Great Bay Beach or Mullet Bay Beach, rare on Divi Little Bay Beach.

 

People here rarely mention Le Galion Beach, which is over by Orient and the Butterfly Farm, and is really a "local's" beach for the most part. You might possibly see topless, but I would doubt it is likely. It is a calm beach, with a very shallow drop off, and has facilities. There is also wind/kite surfing there (love to watch) because it's on the Atlantic side and has good wind.

 

If you go, make arrangements with your taxi to pick you up at an arranged time, as it a bit out of the way.

[Almagetty]

Green Eyed Lady:

 

The jet ski was $50 per 30 minutes. They come out into the water to find you when your time is up. I'm not sure if there was an age restriction for driving them. My daughter is 15 and was not questioned as to her age.

[Cruisin' Patty]

Thanks ever so much for the sites.

[TheWog]

The fee when we were there on Great Bay for jet skis was $40.00 per half hour. Has probably gone up since then.

[WNYer]

We were just at Great Bay a couple of weeks ago, during Spring break. We got 2 jetskis and use of the trampoline for $80. Two chairs and an umbrella were $15. We rented from the people at the second trampoline you come to. I didn't notice until we were walking back to the water taxi that the sand was nicer near the first trampoline. Where we were it was more like tiny shell pieces. The people we did business with were very nice though. Our original plan was to go to Divi, but we changed our minds just before the trip. We knew we wanted to do some shopping, so we decided to save some money and just pay for all day water taxi use. From what I've read, Divi sounds like a nicer place with more to do, but we had a great time. The jetskis were the highlight of our day. My son and I saw a huge turtle while we were jetskiing. I didn't notice any topless women, but there weren't many people near us. It was more crowded the closer you got to the water taxi area.

Linda

[kal]

We were just at Great Bay a couple of weeks ago, during Spring break. ...the sand was nicer near the first trampoline. Where we were it was more like tiny shell pieces. ...Linda

 

That's because it's a man-made beach.

[Disneycruiser#1]

We are also going with our sons on the Glory this summer. I am not concerned with nudity as we have vacationed in Playa Carmen the last 2 years and you see what you see not a big deal.

 

 

We usually do our excursions on our own but something in me is being lazy so should we book the DIVI beach break through Carnival or do on our own.

 

1. If you book through Carnival how much time do you have at the beach.

2. If you book through Carnival I know you get lunch and punch, do you get a chair?

3. If we do it on our own it seems as if the taxi for 4 will be about $16 each way and then renting beach chairs around $15, can you also use their pool if doing it on our own?

4. Is there an additional cost to the Divi Beach Resort?

 

Which you recommend on our own or through the ship?

 

BTW our sons will be 4 and 7 when we sail :)

 

Thanks!

DC

[Buckeyefan]

Booking through Carnival you had about 2 and one half hours of beach time (it may have been a little more but right around there). The beach chair does come with your ticket. Only additonal charge would be for drinks above the 2 alloted and if you wanted to Jet Ski, Bananna Boat etc. I really liked the convenience of the bus and not having to worry about transportation. Did shopping at Divi and also at the pier. The shopping was good.

 

Kathleen

 

PS forgot to mentiont that the pool came with ticket also. My girls had fun going back and forth from the beach to the pool. Not many people in the pool area. This was the one time I got a chair by the pool - never did on the ship.

[Disneycruiser#1]

Thanks Kathleen for the information! It sounds like Divi is a great choice! What did you do in St. Thomas? I am thinking of getting a cab and heading to either Magen's Bay or Sapphire Beach and "maybe" the Skyride not sure if my youngest would like it. They have been to the western caribbean, Mexico and the Bahamas so I want to have them to see and experience everything.

 

:) DC

[Disneycruiser#1]

Almagetty-

 

We have always done excursions on our own or through private tour companies and most places we have been to it saves a bundle (i.e. Grand Cayman, Cozumel) but some places (i.e. Jamaica) I have learned through the ship is better. I believe with 2 children under 6 Divi is the right place for us and think we should do it on our own. From what you said but I am trying to decide to do ......it sounds on our own taxi will be RT $20-$30 for 2 adults and 2 children plus tip, chairs $15 for 2 chairs and $5 for umbrella.

 

How much was the food and drinks (snacks, water, Sprite or lunch)?

 

I assume booking through the ship you are guaranteed via the ticket a chair and umbrella. Did you have any trouble getting one on your own?

 

Do you remember how much the ship was charging for this excursion (adults and 3 and up)?

 

 

If you have the info thanks :)

 

DC

[Buckeyefan]

DC

 

On St. Thomas we took the Godfrey's tour to the top of the mountain and then went to Saphire Beach. The kids with us were 12, 11 & 8. They put up with the sightseeing but would really rather have been on the beach although the trip did give us a good perspective of the island. We opted for Saphire Beach at the recommendation of our driver and we were glad we did. It was a pretty beach with great clarity. Not a lot of wave action so the snorkeling was great. There was a coral reef right off the beach and my daughter saw a puffer fish. Snorkeling was $5.00 for equipment for an hour. Thought that was a bargain. There were bathroom facilities, bar for drinks and a little convenience store for pop and snacks. Beach chairs were available. This was a great beach for the kids. Enjoyed it a lot. We were going to go to Coki beach but when we pulled up it looked a little rough (locals and snack shacks) and our girls didn't want to get off the bus. Hope you have a great time.

 

Kathleen