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Scrub Island dockage/marina rates ggffrr11 1 hour ago I am showing Scrub Island overnight dockage rates with resort fee for our '50 mono hull charter in Feb at $350 per night. Do I get 10% ownership of the island plus future stock shares for that price?
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Upcoming agenda mahokid 3 hours ago Will be arriving this Saturday with a week in Orient followed by 10 days at Royal Islander resort.
This will be our last time staying at Neptune rental as they are switching from Blue Ocean Villas rentals to air B&B and will not have single room pricing.
It is a fully appointed three bedroom overlooking Wai beach bar.
It had everything you could possibly need or forget including a fully stocked bar.
We enjoyed the two pools but really don't eat in the village as we find better restaurants elsewhere.

Keeping in mind restaurant closures, this is our line up for the first week but hopefully aren't missing a hidden gem.
First night is always Astrolab as it is very close and always enjoy the food and especially the service.
Filling in the week will be La Villa, Le Pressior, Cosmos Cafe for a first time visit, Bona Momma for a inexpensive casual carry out.
Possibilities for two open night include Bistro Caribes, Java, Ocean 82 (haven't been for a long time), and Ti Palm.
Maybe even something a bit more casual since we are eating less food now because of food noise if you know!!
Also considering Big Fish in Oyster Pond.

The following restaurants are closed for vacation L'Auberge Gourmand, Les Galets, L' Altier and Le Cottage.
Restaurants in the village are ruled out since none have warranted a return visit.

Someone mentioned a new casual restaurant on road near Gran Case airport.
Open for suggestions.


We tend to chill once we get to Maho but certainly have more options.

On the list are Mario's which is offering a $50 prix fix, Altro at least once (very good value but absolutely love Sammi our server), Pizza Italy, Spices of India, Roma / Mr Chow happy hour at least once (walk across the street and great appetizers at bar), Pardon my French for first time, Dingy Dock bar happy hour and the best nachos, big lobster thermidor at Pineapple Petes. Jai Contemporary Indian
Two nights we will drive back up to Le Cottage and Les Galets which open back up September 1st.

A wild list of possibilities include prime rib night at the greenhouse, Dom's Pizza or Izi (enjoyed last years visit although a bit cheesy (not the food)), Coquette in Cupecoy,
Mexican food in Jordan Village,

Lunches so far include Little Jerusalem, Driftwood, Rosie's, a trip back up to Cool Heure as they don't reopen until September and is worth the trip, Bacchus if a cloudy day, Gutside to see Richard and Lourdes and the whole red snapper and of course jazz brunch at Rondevous. Also Orange Fever to see JC and Luke and hopefully Florence.

some lunches we eat in as we are mostly pool people and stay by pool. Also enjoy leftovers for lunch.
Also will be visiting new Vellor caviar in Simpson bay

While I always want to try new places, it is hard not to visit restaurants we have good meals at.

Should be interesting since we have definitely been eating less and have a new life style, almost always no fried food and eat mostly proteins.
Will be ordering a lot of tar tars, crudos and ceviche's as they are very healthy

With all this said, we will be visiting Le Suciere, Sebastion's, Chez Ferdinand and Zee Best for almond croissants.
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United Miles and Cape Air Tickets Boulderboy Yesterday at 10:52 PM May is my wife and I Farwell Tour since first visiting in 1979 to Land Based Virgin Gorda with a soft
spot in our families heart for all these years. Is it best to buy the air seats now (from Los Angeles) or wait a few months? Also is Cape Air reliable on morning schedules from SJU these days? Any advise is really
appreciated. Thank You
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Back from another Island & missing SXM. the captain Yesterday at 04:58 PM A month ago today, our family embarked on a medical mission/ecotourism trip to Madagascar. I was fortunate an old college professor who sparked my interest 30 years ago. Amazing rainforests and lemurs abound. I can't say enough about seeing the lemurs in their element. Truly a gem of a place that needs its wildlife to be tendered after.

But what an experience, not for the faint at heart. As it was winter there, the temps ranged from 50 at night to 73 during the day. Needless to say, SXM is calling us back!

One thing I was curious to ask y'all, and I think I asked this a while back, but doesn't it seem that inflation hasn't hit the same in SXM?
20 years later, the rum punch at Driftwood is $7 and without shrinkflation, I saw that rum being poured!


The most indulgent meal at a popular restaurant in Antananarivo was for:
1 app, 4 entrees (including duck breast w fois gras!), 1 dessert and a bottle of Rhone.... for $110 USD!!!

(meanwhile, on Long Island last night, 1 salad, 3 entrees (duck breast) and 2 cocktails, $162+tip.



I dont think it's as cheap in SXM but it seems like it's....relatively cheaper than the states, no?
]


Well, we are booked for our return back during presidents week. D'atelier, L'Comptoir, Driftwood, Villa Royale....Im salivating....
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Return after 10 years ChunkyDunkin Yesterday at 04:13 PM Doing a month mid Oct to mid Nov. Staying Orient Village
Questions:
Is the dollar accepted at par with euro in the Orient beach bars and the “old” Club O beach chairs/umbrellas?
How about shops in OV?
How much are the chair/umbrella guys charging per day? Do they still sell the multi-day rental packets at a discount? cash or do they accept credit cards as in past?
Do you still grab open chairs when you get there or find the guys and request - Club O beach.
Is the Perch still there or a similar?
Can I bring my own libations or is that frowned upon? Staying within walking distance.
Is there a replacement for the old Baywatch which became Andy n Cheryl’s?
Thanks, Doug
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National Park discussion re granting luxury cruise line private access to The Baths Naxos 08/15/2026 03:29 PM Long time VG visitor here. After the Travel and Leisure article which “discovered” VG the parks trust is in negotiations with a cruise line for private access from 9-12 on 9 days during the season as well as raining the entry fee to the Baths to 10$ or more.
Closing it to the public has potential ramifications of monetizing the parks through the region and restricting public access.
The Trust maintained that revenue is needed. Just returned from Bonaire where there is a national park fee for visitors entering the marine reserve waters . Why not just collect a visitors fee?
Just my thought
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2027 Ferry Schedule?? ggffrr11 08/14/2026 12:10 PM Next Feb, mid week, we're arriving on the famed Delta: Atl to STT ~ 3:05 pm flight. In the past, I've always hurried to the ferry for the 4:00 pm Charlotte Amalie to Road Town venture. Trying to verify a "later (5:00 or 5:30) midweek ferry" back up plan. But some of the internet listings are from 2025. There will only be 2-3 of us / no private ferry $$ options. Any thoughts? thx, rrs
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Jet Blue fares timnboston 08/13/2026 05:13 PM From SXM there is only one non-stop flight to Boston, and that's on Jetblue - so I monitor the fare on Google fights. Since they have a monopoly, it's outrageously expensive ($1,000.00 give or take) but occasionally there is a price drop that makes it almost reasonable for the convenience. For the past couple of weeks, the fare has shifted by hundreds of dollars both up and down every couple of days, but always averaging out in the $10000 range. None of the other Jetblue fares have moved at all (all this if for January) I'm trying to understand what could account for such wild price swings on this one flight only. Anybody have any theories?
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Heads up everyone.. Manpot 08/12/2026 04:49 PM ..two blobs out in the Atlantic on their way west..one already red and one yellow..
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Getting around St. Martin calle313 08/12/2026 07:01 AM Hi!

We are going to St Martin for our first time in December (to Orient beach), and are staying for two weeks. We plan to rent a car for about 4-5 days in the middle of our vacation to get around and explore the island.
For the days that we don´t have access to our own car, what are our best options to travel to places nearby Orient, like Grand Case or Marigot? Maybe we want to shop at Super U (at Hope estate), or are grocery stores equally good in Orient?

Taxis - How much (roughly) is a one-way trip for two persons between Orient and Grand Case? Do we need to book before, or are there taxis available to just stop in Orient and Grand Case? How does the app "SXM TAXI" work, is it recommended to use it?

Busses - As I have read, there are private minivans that operate on both sides of the island. How often do they traffic during daytime and in the evenings? Are the marked in any way, so they are easily spotted? Where in Orient do they stop? Is it recommended to travel with them at all?

We appreciate any tips and suggestions!
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