St. Martin/St. Maarten: because two is better than one

Sometimes, the best things in life come in a “buy one, get two” package deal. The black & white cookie. A value sized package of toothpaste. The island of Saint-Martin (French)/Sint Maarten (Dutch). While the island is split about 60/40 between France & the Netherlands, visiting each side feels like visiting two distinct countries. Cruise ships dock in Philipsburg, the Dutch capital, with its winding beach side boardwalk, lined with beach restaurants & bars. Just a short car ride away is Marigot, the French capital, which feels more like a French seaside town than a Caribbean island, full of patisseries & French speaking citizens.

We met our driver for the day, Baby, at the new cruise terminal facility & headed for the French side. We crossed the border almost without knowing it – no border crossing, no guard, no fanfare, just a stone monument & the flags of Saint Martin, France & the Netherlands. After a quick stop at a butterfly sanctuary, we headed to the world famous Orient Beach. A beautiful stretch of white sand, this beach is ½ nude, ½ clothed (although topless bathing is permitted in the clothed area). And when I say nude, I mean totally nude – zero clothing. Americans are known in some parts of the world for being a little prudish & being on an all-nude beach for the first time was a rather interesting experience. It’s like a car accident: you don’t want to look, but…

Following a stroll on the beach, we headed to the French capital of Marigot. As I said, this city of 5,700 felt more like a small French seaside town than a Caribbean city. We strolled the streets, walking past produce vendors & school children scampering off to morning classes. We stopped by Sarafina’s, an outdoor patisserie right out of the streets of Paris, for a morning snack of creamy chocolate eclairs & colorful macaroons. While there we were even yelled at by a visiting French woman, which made the experience feel incredibly authentic.

Shortly after we hopped back in the car in Marigot, the skies opened up, turning the rest of our tour into a driving tour. We crossed back over to the Dutch side to see Princess Juliana International Airport & the world famous Maho Beach, where planes land just a few meters over the heads of amazed beach goers. We had really hoped to get out at this unique beach, but it was pouring, so onward we went.

Back in Philipsburg, we said good-bye to Baby & headed to the Boardwalk for lunch. We stumbled upon the Firehouse Restaurant, where we had a great fresh fish lunch, enjoyed some free wifi, & paid our respects to some of America’s finest first responders. Just as our lunch was ending, the rain picked up. As we dodged rain drops to head back to the ship, we spotted something rather unusual in those parts: a bar with a large Ohio State University flag flying outside. Drawn to it like an oasis in a dessert, we popped in, introduced ourselves to a fellow Buckeye, & enjoyed some rum punch & free wifi. To round out our day in St. Maarten, the weather indeed had the last laugh: during our leisurely walk back to the ship, the skies once again opened up & we walked back in a pouring rainstorm. At least the folks at Celebrity were nice enough to give us towels once we were back on board.

Perhaps the most fascinating thing we learned during our trip was about Saint-Martin politics. The campaign for President was going strong, & we spent much of our time in the car listening to the debate between the two candidates on the radio. Baby lives on the Dutch side & made no apologizes in which side she preferred (“I just don’t understand why people like French food,” she told us again & again), yet she knew a lot about the French election which she would not be voting in. Perhaps most interesting to us political nerds from Washington, D.C., was the fact that there are not any political yard signs & no campaign bumper stickers in Saint-Martin. Rather colored flags with different colors representing each party were everywhere – lining the sides of the road, hanging off homes, flapping from passing cars. Saint-Martians are definitely passionate about their politics – as passionate as we are in the U.S. If you’re curious, Alain Richardson (who represents the Rally Responsibility Success party, aka the green & orange flag party) beat Daniel Gibbs (who represents the Triple R party, aka the red flag party) 56%-43% in the March 25 election & will be president for the next five-years.

During your day in port…
– Orient Beach is located an easy taxi ride from the cruise port & is very popular with cruise passengers. Walk the beach to find the best deal on a chair & umbrella. Many places offer a chair, umbrella & drink combos for $1 or €1. There are places to eat right on the beach & taxis parked at the beach, ready to take you back to the ship.

– The Boardwalk area in Philipsburg is located an easy mile & a half walk from the ship. There is also a water taxi you can take for $6 round trip. On the popular beach there are beach chairs, restaurants, & shops along the well-developed (albeit slightly touristy feeling) area. A day spent here would be a pleasant, cost effective way to spend your day in port in St. Maarten. Lastly, I’d be remiss if I didn’t recommend that you stop by & see my Buckeye friend at Pirates in Paradise.

Our morning tour of St. Martin & St. Maarten was graciously provided by the St. Maarten Tourism Bureau.