Taxi Tour St. Maarten?

[alaskancruzr]

No response on the ports of call board so I'm trying here. The last time we had a port call in St. Maarten (1999), we hired a taxi at the pier. We paid $50 for the day and he took us all around the island, waited while we were at Bikini Beach, etc. Is that still something that we can do? I haven't seen anyone mention it.:confused:

[enymarsh]

We were at St. Maarten in January and didn't want to do anything structured. We ended up walking into town where we got a cab driver to drive us to Mullet Bay Beach. (Great Beach!!) He then came back for us ... we arranged to pay him when he returned us to the ship. It wasn't exactly a tour, but I am sure he would've done that if we had asked. I think the Island is pretty safe and you can do this sort of thing without worrying too much.

 

btw, the drive took about 1/2 hour each way and I think he charged $16 and we gave him $20.

[PescadoAmarillo]

If you like a bit of adventure, there are public buses (actually, mini vans) that circle the island for $1 or $2 for each segment, or about $6 the entire way. The locals are great in helping you get on the right bus in the right direction.

[jemingway]

Just was in St. Martin last Wednesday. The cabs were plentiful and cheap. They will take you anywhere and wait for you all day, if necessary. It was very easy. It may be the easiest cab situation I have ever seen.

[Froufie]

We are hoping to do St. Maarten on our own - and using cabs. We want to see Phillipsburg, Marigot and Orient Beach.....what would be the "logical" sequence/order of our visits? Sounds like we might be able to get a dedicated driver to take us around?

 

Would also like any info on sights/shopping/restaurants in marigot and Orient Beach.

 

Thanks, :D

[balanceok]

You can rent a jeep at a very reasonable rate in St. Maarten and you probably won't even need a reservation. That way you can circle the island and spend whatever time you want at the beach of your choice.

 

:)

[cruising with grace]

We rented scooters on our own and toured the island. What a blast!

[irislady]

We were on a family cruise 2 summers ago and had a day to spend in St. Maarten. When we got off the ship there were cab and van drivers swarming all over the place offering to give us tours of the island or to take us anywhere we wanted to go.

 

Ten of us hired a guy with a van to take us on a tour. He charged us $15 a piece. The 4 of us who sat up front enjoyed the tour he gave us because we could feel the AC and hear what the driver was telling us about different locations. The others griped and moaned later that they thought it was a terrible tour because they were so hot and because they couldn't hear anything the driver was saying. I told them they should have told the driver that. Apparently, he was not aware of any problems with his microphone or the AC. I thought it was kind of funny that the driver took us past his grandmother's house, showed us where he had gone to school, etc., but the others thought that was a waste of their time and money. The "tour" lasted quite a long time and there wasn't much time to do anything else before we had to get back onboard the ship. Was it worth the cost? Half thought yes, half no.

Shae

[alaskancruzr]

Thanks everyone for the info! It's nice to know we can just play it by ear. When we were there we were the first ship in after Hurricane Lenny had stalled over the island so we're looking forward to seeing it when it's not just been through such devastation.

[JanetMarie]

Typically, we sail with another couple. While in St. Marteen, the four of us always rent a cab and split the cost. It's usually around $40 per couple. What I like about doing this, is the cabbie, a lifelong island resident, (usually), loves to show people his island. One time, we were even taken to meet his family. It was quite nice. :o

[Northender]

Thanks everyone for the info! It's nice to know we can just play it by ear. When we were there we were the first ship in after Hurricane Lenny had stalled over the island so we're looking forward to seeing it when it's not just been through such devastation.

 

Is there any places you want to visit. We have timeshare there (Dutch side) and I would be glad to recommend some neat beachbars, etc.:)

[kimanjo]

Hi, I've looked online at thte various car rental sites on St. Maarten and some have offices at the pier, but there are 2 different piers listed. Is there a car rebntal site the the pier--whatever pier it is--that Princess docks? Or is there a greeter who will shuttle you (free) to the car rental location? Or can I do it all online and ahead of time--and please advise, with whom?

[Shelli]

At the beautiful new pier in St. Maarten, there's a government-sanctioned taxi stand with a dedicated dispatcher. They'll arrange anything you like. Our tour last year cost us $22/pp (if I remember correctly), which was the going rate. It lasted several hours, and a lovely woman took 4 of us in her air-conditioned van all around both sides of the island, stopping here and there for photo ops and shopping. She also told us a bit of her life story and showed us some points of interest from her own life, which I enjoyed... I like that personal touch! At the end of the tour, she dropped us off in Philipsburg (at our request) for shopping, etc. on our own, and then we took another taxi back to the ship later. (We would have walked the 1-1/2 miles, but we were too laden down with heavy liquor bottles! LOL)

[alaskancruzr]

Is there any places you want to visit. We have timeshare there (Dutch side) and I would be glad to recommend some neat beachbars, etc.:)

northender - 2 in our party of 4 have never seen the island so we'll want to drive around the island with stops for lunch and the beach. Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated, thanks.

[Unionville]

I'll weigh in here just for fun. I have stayed in St Martin for a week and love the island. It is a little more wealthy than come islands and I think very safe.

If you want to see Phillipsburg, Orient Beach and Marigot I would do this:

If you land at Philipsburg, go to Orient Beach in the morning before it gets too crowded and hot, then cab over to Marigot and have lunch at the Marina outdoors, almost anywhere is good. Then go back to Phillipsburg and do some shopping before returning to the ship. Lots of good prices on jewellery and electronics.

Renting a car and driving is also feasible here. You could see the whole island in a day and driving is pretty easy. It's like a big circle with a road accross the middle. But other than the beaches there isn't that much to see. I would take the route I mentioned first.

D.

[Northender]

northender - 2 in our party of 4 have never seen the island so we'll want to drive around the island with stops for lunch and the beach. Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated, thanks.

I would either rent a car or hire a taxi for the day. If you want to shop for liquor, cigarettes or jewelry - Philipsburg is the place. Other than that, no reason to get caught up in the daily grind there. I would drive toward Simpson Bay - one or two photo-ops along the way - take a left on Billy Folly Road and go about a 1/4 mile - you will see The Atrium Resort and Indiana Beach Rest. Right after the restaurant is the Bucaneer Beach Bar. Stop here and have some libation and if he is not open yet, there are tables, etc. and have a swim. After the BBB, go back out to the main drag and go left and head to Sunset Beach Bar. This is the place for watching the planes come right over your head as they land at Princess Juliana Airport.

 

From here if you want to go to Orient Beach, you need to ask for directions.

I don't do c/o so have no reason to go there. You could also head over to the French side and just drive around, very pretty and there may be someplace that would catch your eye to eat. You can eat at BBB or SBB also. If you do go to Orient Beach, I highly recommend Baywatch for lunch tho, they are closed on Monday, I believe. I don't know what time you have to be back on board, but leave plenty of time to get back if you are doing your own driving. Traffic jams are something one puts up with on SXM.

The area around the cruise docks is also very nice for stopping if you have any time left. The Greenhouse and Sharkeys are very good for a quick munchie or sandwich. There are just so many restaurants on the Island that are very good, it is hard to choose when you only have one day. You will hear folks say that the Island is dumpy. It really isn't. Let me know if you have any questions.:)

[alaskancruzr]

I've printed out all your suggestions, thanks. I'd be ready to go now if it didn't mean I was wishing away the already too short summer here in Alaska! :cool: