trixie54 Posted October 29, 2004 #1 Share Posted October 29, 2004 We'll be in port 7am-5pm. Would it work to take a cab to Orient Beach for AM - early aft., then cab over to Marigot, then cab back to ship? Or wouldn't there be enough time for this? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lvstocruise Posted October 29, 2004 #2 Share Posted October 29, 2004 You will definately have enough time. I went last year at 8:00 to orient beach and we were the first ones on the beach. We stayed until 11:00 then we went shopping but our ship was in port from 7-2. It was horrible. We were rushing but we got the beach in and only an hour for shopping. this year we will be in from 11-6. so marigot i am going to first from 11-2 then 2-4 at the orient beach and one hour for shopping on the dutch side then back to the boat by 5 for we leave by 6. hope this helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kal Posted October 29, 2004 #3 Share Posted October 29, 2004 ...this year we will be in from 11-6. so marigot i am going to first from 11-2 then 2-4 at the orient beach and one hour for shopping on the dutch side then back to the boat by 5 for we leave by 6.... You might want to think thru your schedule again as the shops in Marigot close for lunch between Noon - 2:00pm. Then too, depending on mid-day traffic, it will take time to get to Orient and find a place on the beach. Also, don't forget the time it will take to get a cab and travel to PBurg. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lvstocruise Posted November 1, 2004 #4 Share Posted November 1, 2004 Hi- We have no choice what time because the tour of the dutch and french sides leaves at 11:00 and goes to orient beach after 2:00 so we are in their hands. we are not doing this one on our own. we booked a tour for the day. so we have a driver and everything. thanks for your input. bye Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trixie54 Posted November 1, 2004 Author #5 Share Posted November 1, 2004 Thanks for your help! Now that we know we'll have time to get to Orient Beach & Marigot in aft. (yeah!), which would be better - cabs or renting a car? I'm wondering about cost, difficulty of driving, parking, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kay D Posted November 2, 2004 #6 Share Posted November 2, 2004 We have been to St. Martin 5 times on cruises & 2 week-long stays on island, so I speak from experience (just returned home from there!). For a cruise-ship stop, we never rented a car & always used taxis, learning our way around from observing where the taxi went & observing the locals' driving habits-- there are TONS of taxis -- traffic on cruise days is LONG lines moving very very slow -- their driving methods are moderately aggressive & you must get used to that -- only 3 stop lights on the island & lots of T intersections with no stop signs, where people just pull out daring you to hit them or stop -- roads either not marked with signs or not named on maps & sometimes both -- one has to rely on advertising signs to learn where to go -- lots of roundabouts & there are unwritten rules for passage here. Many taxi drivers ask you what time you want to go back to ship & will come back to get you then. The drivers rely heavily on cruise ship passengers for their income, so they know the ships' schedules!!! So my advice is DON'T RENT A CAR & DON'T RENT A MOTORCYCLE OR MOPED!!! You will enjoy the day alot more to use taxis or hire a van/driver. For week-long stay, we definitely rent a car but it takes a couple days to get used to roads, traffic, roundabouts, the locals' driving methods, etc. Plus I'm quite experienced (from my job) to reading maps & figuring out directions in rural places. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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