Moho Beach

[BURWASHT]

We are a group or eight people looking to go to Moho Beach to see the planes. Does any one now where we can get times when the planes land and how much a cab will cost us. Thank-you

[The Big Booper]

We are a group or eight people looking to go to Moho Beach to see the planes. Does any one now where we can get times when the planes land and how much a cab will cost us. Thank-you

 

Here is a link to KAL's jet schedule, showing activity at Maho beach.....

 

http://www.bywindkal.com/SXMJets.html

 

and a link to the official taxi guild website......

 

http://www.taxisxm.com/rate.htm

 

A lot of drivers use big vans and can take your entire group. Dispatchers at the pier will help.

 

Note, taxi prices are expected to go up a dollar or so now that the government has allowed the price of gas to go up.

[erbngrl]

Go to this link

 

http://www.pjiae.com/pdfs/timetable.pdf

 

It looks like it hasn't been updated yet for the summer schedule but keep checking. I was there last August and the big planes come in from Europe I think beginning at approx. 1230pm. DON'T MISS THEM. I have the most awesome shot of a huge Air France 747 flying right over our heads. It is truly a most exhilarating experience. Be careful when watching planes take off too - the signs posted of "DANGER" do not lie - I nearly got knocked off my feet by the force of the jetwash! It was about a $20 taxi ride from downtown shopping area out to Maho. Feel free to ask any other questions you may have and have a BLAST!

[The Big Booper]

Go to this link

 

http://www.pjiae.com/pdfs/timetable.pdf

 

It looks like it hasn't been updated yet for the summer schedule but keep checking. I was there last August and the big planes come in from Europe I think beginning at approx. 1230pm. DON'T MISS THEM. I have the most awesome shot of a huge Air France 747 flying right over our heads. It is truly a most exhilarating experience. Be careful when watching planes take off too - the signs posted of "DANGER" do not lie - I nearly got knocked off my feet by the force of the jetwash! It was about a $20 taxi ride from downtown shopping area out to Maho. Feel free to ask any other questions you may have and have a BLAST!

 

Can you post a link to your photo?

 

The official schedule is good but I wish they would sort by time (like Kal does) not airline.

 

NEVER stand by the fence when they take off, especially the 747s. I have seen videos of people being thrown 50 feet into the water, with broken limbs. Maybe too many beers at SBB?

[gtaylor]

<snip> NEVER stand by the fence when they take off, especially the 747s. I have seen videos of people being thrown 50 feet into the water, with broken limbs. Maybe too many beers at SBB? <snip>

 

Now I think that I would PAY for a link to that video.

 

By the way, Air France hasn't flown a 747 into St. Maarten for MANY years. Perhaps it was an Airbus?

 

gary

[gtaylor]

I would suggest using the information at kal's link, posted above, but I still like the real-time actual information provided by FlyteComm's Webtrax product.

 

If you track flights shortly before you leave for your cruise, you can get a feel for how closely the scheduled arrival times match the actual arrival times.

 

On the input page, enter TNCM as the arrival airport in the Advanced Users section.

 

You'll receive a listing of the current scheduled and planned Flight Arrivals. Take a look at the top entry in this example, Air France Flight 488. It is currently estimated to land at 1:34.

 

Click the In Flight link under More Info. The resulting screen (usually) shows the Aircraft Type, the originally scheduled arrival time, a map visually displaying the 'current' location, and the currently estimated 'actual' arrival time.

 

Air France 488 was scheduled to arrive at 12:58, but will be about 36 minutes late today.

 

Enjoy your new toy.

 

gary

[Arizona Laura]

Can you post a link to your photo?

 

The official schedule is good but I wish they would sort by time (like Kal does) not airline.

 

NEVER stand by the fence when they take off, especially the 747s. I have seen videos of people being thrown 50 feet into the water, with broken limbs. Maybe too many beers at SBB?

 

When we were there in Jan the fence was lined with guys (no girls of course) holding on for dear life when the plane would take off.

It is an amazing experience at Maho Beach.

[The Big Booper]

Now I think that I would PAY for a link to that video.

 

By the way, Air France hasn't flown a 747 into St. Maarten for MANY years. Perhaps it was an Airbus?

 

gary

 

I think Corsair still uses the blue 747s and maybe KLM (maybe not).

 

I saw the footage last year on You Tube, following a link from here, which led to many videos of Maho. If I run across it again I will post a link. The guy was holding on to the fence for dear life and finally got blown down the beach to the water.

 

The Explorer gets in at noon and by the time the ship is cleared and we make our way past the hordes waiting for the tours and the cabs, it was well after 1 PM, too late to grab a cab for the plane show at Maho. Next November on the Independence we get in at a normal time at 8 AM and maybe more planes than now, since it is the beginning of high season; all my old pics are film, no digitals.

[gtaylor]

Corsair landing on

.

 

No more KLM 747's since March. They first called on St. Maarten in 1989.

 

gary

[knots4crewzing]

Thanx gtaylor for the Flytecomms webtrax .I just tried it today and it is alot of fun very interesting.Now i'm a little concerned that we may not beable to see any planes coming in as we arrive too late. As Big Booper said since the explorer docks at 12 we may not beable to get to Maho b4 1-1:30.We"re arriving on Tuesday. Do you think we would see at least one plane coming in or some going out? Or should we just skip that part of our itinerary .One more question do you know how long it takes from the pier to get to Maho?

 

Thanx in advance for your help.

 

One more question:DCan you only purchase Madoudou rum in the painted bottles in Marigot or is there someplace in Phillipsburg we could find it?

 

Liz

[The Big Booper]

The issue with the Explorer is that it gets in at noon, in the middle of the day.

 

Normally a ship gets in early and people straggle off at different times for different excursions or to head to town or the beach. Here, the whole ship tries to get off at the same time since it is the middle of the day and everyone is ready to go NOW. It was like a subway station at 5:20 PM trying to get off the pier to the taxi area. And the lines were long just to get thru security. Everybody knows this a great island with lots to do; nobody thinks of this as a day at sea, such as Jamaica.

 

The cab ride from the pier to Maho can take 45 minutes even w/o the drawbridge opening to let the boats thru. So by the time you get there and scope out the layout and figure out where to stand, the show is pretty much over. The summer is low season and there are fewer flights.

[kal]

What day/month will you be in St. Maarten? It makes a difference due to time changes during daylight saving time in the US. In any case, if you get off the ship promptly and go straight to Maho, you'll be fine. There's lots of action between 2-3:30 time frame (summer season).

 

You can buy Ma Doudou at all the liquor stores in Philipsburg. Check out Rams on Front Street.

[chaffin514]

Family of 5 would like to experience the planes. We are sailing in October. Outside of the planes can someone give me an idea of what to expect at Maho Beach? ex.: how's the beach, are there water activites, restaurants, bars, etc?

Thanks,

Any info is greatly appreciated!

[redtop101]

Family of 5 would like to experience the planes. We are sailing in October. Outside of the planes can someone give me an idea of what to expect at Maho Beach? ex.: how's the beach, are there water activites, restaurants, bars, etc?

Thanks,

Any info is greatly appreciated!

 

I have a couple of shots of Maho Beach, Sunset Beach Bar and an Amerijet 737 landing.

 

http://travel.webshots.com/album/559481936WujDwI?start=28

 

We didn't stay all that long and didn't swim - it was very early in the morning, around 9 am and we had a full tour of the island to do, so had to move on

[knots4crewzing]

Thanx Kal for your info.We are sailing on August 3rd this summer and arrive in St Maarten on Tuesday the 7th. We are there from 12-9.We're really hoping to see some action.I'm going to check out the flight times tomorrow(Tuesday)and see if it will be at all possible.Then cab it over to Orient beach for a couple of hours.Do you know how long a ride it would be from Maho to Orient?I'm also glad to know we can pick up the rum in Phillipsburg because we were going to try and get to Marigot as well.I know we're trying to get in as much as possible.I understand most of the stores close around 6pm.I'm open to any suggestions you may have, even an itinerary.

 

Thanks so much for all your help

 

Liz

[kal]

Liz - For August you'll be fine. Go to my Big Jet activity site and see what's happening on that day. Hopefully you'll catch the landing of the Air France widebody. That will be a real thrill! Shortly after 2:00p there will be some 757 takeoffs and landings.

 

The trip over to Orient should take about 35-45 minutes depending on traffic thru the Simpson Bay and Marigot areas. Many of the cruisers start to leave Orient at 3:00-3:30p, and lots of the beach bars start to put the chairs away about 4:30p. Most the beach bars stay open until about 6:00p or until there are no more paying customers.

[knots4crewzing]

Kal-Thank you sooooooooo much.So I think we'll try to do this.I realize it will be late getting to Orient but we've never been there and have heard so much about it that even if it's for an hour that would be ok.The last time I was in St maarten was over 20 years ago and went on a boat tour and never got to see the island.At least we'll get some idea with all the taxi's we'll be taking LOL:D

We were also going to try to have dinner in Phillipsburg in fact I think you recommended one, Le Esgargot (sp?)That was a while back. Do you know if Rams(sp?) stays open longer than 5 or 6? Again Thank for your info you must have either lived in St Maarten or have been there lots of times. You are very informative and I appreciate all your advice.

 

Thank you

Liz

[kal]

My guess is Ram's closes about 6:00p like all the other shops. However, there is a nice grocery store just a short walk from Front Street on the way to the cruise terminal. It's called Sang's. They have Ma Doudou and they stay open to at least 7:00p and maybe later. You could go there on the way back from Orient, then walk over to L'escargot for dinner. That would actually work out pretty well. Also, you could stop at Sang's on the way over to Maho. You'll go right by it shortly after you leave the cruise terminal.

[knots4crewzing]

HI KAL,

 

iI think I may have figured this all out:Maho for a couple of hours or less depending on the plane action,then stop on the way in Marigot to do shopping,then to Orient maybe catch a sunset by the time we get there:confused:. then back to phillipsburg go to sangs then dinner.Anyway that's the plan ,a bit intense.BTW, Does sangs have the cheese wheels and would they stay in the cabin or do they have to be in the fridge and can we p/u dutch chocolate there as well?.BTW do you have as much info on St Johns?We were wondering about renting a car when we get there.I'm sorry I hope you don't mind all these questions I'm sure I might have a few more in the near future:eek:We're really getting excited now and my DD especially thanks you for the info on the planes.

Thank you again

 

Liz

[Lib0007]

I vacationed in St. Maarten last week - this is a video of the KLM plane that came in every day at 4:49 p.m. I *think* it is a 727???

 

 

Here's another plane:

[knots4crewzing]

Thanks Libby! We can't wait:D

 

 

 

Liz

[gtaylor]

I vacationed in St. Maarten last week - this is a video of the KLM plane that came in every day at 4:49 p.m. I *think* it is a 727???

 

 

 

KLM flys a MD-11 into St. Maarten now.

 

gary

[kal]

Liz - Only problem with sunset at Orient is that the sun sets on the other side of the island. Matter of fact, it tends to get dark a little earlier as there are hills between Orient and the sunset.

 

Sangs indeed has wheels of Gouda cheese. I brought one home in May and kept it in a softsided travel cooler. I just added ice in ziplock bags. It doesn't have to be ice cold but rather just cool. I don't recall what Sangs has in Dutch chocolate. I'm sure there will be French/Swiss chocolate but dunno on Dutch.

 

I can't help you on St. John. Been there, done it, but really don't have a desire to return.

[gtaylor]

<snip> I just added ice in ziplock bags. <snip>

 

How does TSA treat ice? No liquids over 3 ounces, but ..... ?

 

gary

[The Big Booper]

KLM flys a MD-11 into St. Maarten now.

 

gary

 

Gads, I didn't know anybody was still flying those puppies. I remember in the days before JetBlue when we used cruiseair and they would stick us on Delta from NY to Atlanta and all the cruise people for all the ships out of Florida would be consolidated on a flight from Atlanta to MIA on a big old plane like this or the Lockheed L1011 (?). They were spacious airplanes.

 

Now it is Blue non-stop on A320s

 

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