St Marttin

[camper123]

Can someone give me any details about the follwing, like taxi costs and travel distance, and any other info to make my day fun

(1) Taxi to Marigot from the ship
(2) Taxi to Mullet Bay Beach from ship
(3) Resturant called "grand case"

thank you

[steandbee]

Just returned 2 hours ago. The taxis are at the cleanest port I've ever seen. The price was a fixed rate $18.00. The travel time is about 15 minutes. My wife and I just returned from Maho bay. Same area. If you have a little free time I would suggest Sunset Beach Bar. We had a blast. Grand Case I can't help you with..sorry.. sunsetbeachbar.com

[Billy in FLL]

Hey, this is Bill and I was on the Carnival Legend last October and I would go back to St Maarten in a New York minute. Beautiful and clean!!! Cabs will be your best bet. For the entire day, it costs my girlfriend and I $40.00 total and gave him an additional $10.00 for a tip. Can't remember his name for the life of me. Sorry.

Okay, here's what you need to do: when you get off the ship, walk up the long pier into the main entrance. There will be an information desk as a landmark. Go behind the desk, there is a little sundries shop on your right--get water bottles, the cabs are 10-steps away. Talk to the drivers and make your arrangements.

We took the day tour that took us to both the French and Dutch side. Things will be more expensive on French side, FYI. A Heineken on French is $6.00, on Dutch side maybe $2.00. He stopped at little roadside stops to take pics, stopped at Oriend beach. Be careful at Orient Beach. Not to my knowledge, parts of this beach, while beautiful, are nude or topless. Careful with kids. Hope this helps.

Take care,
Billy

[mooneydiva]

I agree with both of the above posts! I LOVED St. Maarten (actually picked my store's cruise partially because of that port stop!).

My husband and I took a tour of the island, and I took a tour of the island (offered by the RCCL), and really enjoyed the guide and the information.

I didn't like Marigot at all. . . way too expensive Orient Beach (French side, I believe) is beautiful, as are some of the houses that are on the ocean. I was pretty amazed to find out (from the guide) that these houses are provided for the unemployed citizens of the French side by the French gov't. It almost made me want to become a French citizen and move to St. Martin!!

I LOVED the Dutch side. . . The port at Phillipsburg was so clean, and if I remember correctly, you could take a water taxi from the port to the shopping district for $3.00. The main shopping district in Phillipsburg was the cleanest of all the places we visited. I was amazed.

One of the couples at our dinner table took a taxi around the island for the day. Like Billy said, you can find them right after you dock. They arranged the price in advance, and I think that $40 is about what they paid, too.

Have fun!!

[camper123]

thanks billy. We decided to go to the dutch side of the beach with the kids (not orient beach) Thanks for the advise on the water and taxi. Ny minute, I guess your from new york. Me too.

[camper123]

thanks everyone for your input.Has anyone been to mullet Bay beach on the dutch side. With the kids, I think it would be better than the nude beach at Orient.

[NancyN]

Just as an FYI, although Orient Beach is known as a clothing optional beach (as are many beaches in Europe), it is very possible to spend the day at Orient Beach without feeling the necessity to shed your bathing suit. The south end of Orient Beach, near Club O, is reserved for naturists. If you venture to the other end of the beach, it is very doubtful that you will encounter any nudity.

With that said, Mullet Bay is a very pretty, white sand beach lined with palm trees for shade. It is quite popular with families. The rocks along the shore provide some good snorkeling in spots, and other water sports are available so your family should enjoy it. If you do decide to go here, be careful in the water as the rip tide can sometimes be pretty strong on this beach and make sure to try one of the Lolo's that are there for a snack.

Nancy

[Billy in FLL]

My pleasure. Glad to assist. Actually, I am from Ft Lauderdale, FL and a lot of people from NY live here and use that expression all the time. LOL!!

Nancy makes a good point regarding Orient. When I was there, I didn't see "anything" until the taxi was leaving. The folks that are naturist, appeared to be at the end of the beack towards the right (if you are facing the beach). I haven't been to Mullet, but Nancy described it nice, huh??

Let me know if I can help in any other way. You will love St. Maarten.

Billy