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Jan 5th, 2026
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Posts: 131
Joined: September 2003
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The "Old San Juan" dinner paradox
Lucía
Yesterday at 10:09 PM
I am spending two nights in OSJ before flying home. I have read all the Top 10 lists (Barrachina, Marmalade, St. Germain, etc.). I get it. Those are the famous spots.
But I have a rule: I don't want to eat where the tourists take photos. I want to eat where the line cooks go after their shift ends or where the sommelier takes his wife on a Tuesday. Bonus points if the menu is handwritten and in Spanish only
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Am I crazy for staying on the ship during St. Thomas?
AprilRat
Yesterday at 09:01 PM
We are doing an Eastern Caribbean loop on a large Royal Caribbean ship next month. Itinerary: Nassau, Sea Day, St. Thomas, Sea Day, CocoCay.
I have been to St. Thomas (Megan's Bay) twice before. I love the island, but I am looking at the port schedule: there will be five Oasis-class ships in port that day. I have heard Charlotte Amalie becomes a literal wall of people.
I am considering just staying on the ship to have the pool, the empty hot tubs and the quiet buffet.
Will I regret missing the island completely, or is the "ship day" experience when everyone is off the boat better than fighting 15 000 other tourists for a taxi?
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Last Day
fabila
Yesterday at 12:27 PM
Today was the last full day of our vacation. The weather was a bit unpredictable, with heavy rain passing through about every two hours. Thankfully, it never lasted long, so it didn’t disrupt the day too much. In between the showers, we were able to spend time on the beach and by the pool, and when the sun came out, it was strong and warm.
Since it was our final day, we kept things relaxed. We started the morning with breakfast at the yacht club, which was a nice, peaceful way to begin the day.
We skipped lunch and took it easy for most of the afternoon. For dinner, the eight of us went to Roma, where David had made reservations for the garden area just outside the entrance. It’s one of our favorite spots to sit, especially with the comfortable weather we’ve had all trip—no humidity. The restaurant was packed, and there was a steady line of people waiting to get in, so having a reservation made all the difference.
Dinner was excellent. I ordered the chicken cutlet Parmesan, which is usually one very large piece—but this time, it came with two. It was more than I could finish, though I gave it a good effort. It was served with a small side of penne pasta and tomato sauce, a simple but satisfying combination.
Throughout the trip, we noticed several places were consistently busy. Even spots like Roma required reservations, and we saw people reserving seats at the bar. Our friends went to Jax several times—when we joined them the first time, we were turned away due to the wait. The next time, we made a reservation in advance. They mentioned that on one visit they had to sit at the bar, and on two other occasions when they booked ahead, the only available reservation times were 6:00 and 6:15. One evening, Captain D’s Rib Shack was especially crowded, with a long wait both when we passed by and later when we returned. Despite it being after the Easter break, several restaurants were clearly still bustling.
Tomorrow we’ll be up early to pack and head home. It’s hard to believe the trip is already over. I’m grateful for the time we spent here and the memories we made. Hopefully, we’ll be back again next year.
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Awesome Music At D's Tonight
Whale Tail
04/18/2026 11:57 PM
If you are on island right now and close to D's Beach Bar you should get there.
My wife has a FB friend that broadcasts live music from SXM so we can watch here in Canada
Tonight at D's The Real Deal with Ronnie Santana and Lee Hardesty Rodrigo Froes are performing.
Their special guest for their 2nd set is Omari Banks the son of Bankie Banks.
Dam I wish we were there.
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$600 Airfare Difference. Punta Cana vs. Curacao. Is the extra flight time worth it?
Chards
04/18/2026 07:47 PM
I'm planning a long weekend (4 nights) in late April. I have two options on the table:
Option A: Punta Cana (DR). Direct flight. $380. Resort looks average.
Option B: Curacao. One connection. $980. Smaller boutique hotel.
I've heard Curacao has better snorkeling right off the beach and less of a "mass tourism" feel, but $600 is a lot of money for 2 people.
For those who have been to both in the last 12 months: Is Curacao actually $600 better than Punta Cana right now regarding safety, water quality, and food prices? Or am I paying for a flight connection?
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Club Orient Resort
NudeinNorthFL
04/18/2026 03:24 PM
Is Club Orient Resort ever going to come back to life? I’m guessing no. I visited in late 2024 for the first time since pre-Irma. Not only is the nude beach a lot smaller, the damaged buildings are an eye sore, the rebar sticking out of the sand cut my foot, but the vibe is just different. The new Perch is fine. Plus the nude walks down the entirety of the beach are gone (not looking to discuss the legality). I guess everyone has a phone in their hand now so that may just be a sign of the times. It would be great if somehow the resort could be revived and become self-sustained again, where you never needed to leave the resort for your vacation. I know it’s likely just a dream and time to move on.
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Trip Journal- winding down
fabila
04/18/2026 11:38 AM
We managed to enjoy much of the day outdoors, though it was interrupted by several heavy bursts of rain throughout the afternoon and evening. We’ve definitely experienced more rain on this trip than in previous visits, and for April, it felt unusually frequent.
With our trip winding down, we have just one more day before departing on Sunday.
After spending a few hours onsite, we stopped by Maho Pharmacy, then I picked up a large coffee and a pain au chocolat at The Deli. The total came to $8.50—$3 for the croissant and about $5 for the coffee, which felt a bit steep. Both were decent, but nothing particularly memorable.
We returned to relax by the pool for a while, took a short break, and then headed to the Driftwood Boat Bar for a cocktail, where we split an order of chicken satay. [Not the best photo of the chicken satay because I took a video and then I had to do a screenshot from the video]From there, we made our way to D’s Beach Bar before getting ready for dinner. Two more heavy downpours passed through before we left, but fortunately, our timing worked out. We headed down Airport Road toward Welfare Road after 7:00 p.m., avoiding any traffic.
The four of us had dinner at The Greenhouse, where I was especially happy to see a basket of Johnny cakes placed on the table. I love their Johnny cakes, and in recent years they haven’t always been available when the kitchen is busy, so it was a nice surprise. I had hoped for prime rib but realized it wasn’t one of the special nights (typically Monday and Thursday). I remembered being able to order it on other nights in the past, just not at the special price, but that no longer seems to be the case—the manager confirmed it’s only available on those designated evenings now.
David ordered the barbecue rib combo, which included a half rack of ribs, a smoked chicken breast, with two sides. I chose the stuffed grouper with a generous amount of creamy garlic sauce also served with two sides. It was a generous portion—more than I could finish. I enjoyed the sweet caramelized plantains, and the tossed salad was fine.
We also shared the bang bang shrimp as an appetizer. One of our friends ordered the full rack of barbecue ribs with fries, and the other had the coconut chicken.
All in all, it was another great evening spent with friends.
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Trip Journal - day?
fabila
04/17/2026 12:07 PM
The day started off with lots of sun and a steady breeze which continued throughout the day.
Mike and I have a standing lunch date whenever we’re in Sint Maarten, and this time we chose Mario’s Bistrot at The Cliff in Cupecoy. The setting is really lovely—open-air, stylish, and upscale without feeling stuffy.
Mike ordered the Cubano burger, slices of flavored pork with bacon, melted cheese on a sesame roll with fries. I chose the bento box (which changes regularly). Mine was $32 and included shrimp tempura, a crabcake, shrimp ceviche, tuna tartare, duck nachos, and two fried tempura sushi rolls.
Everything was fresh and flavorful, and I was extremely satisfied with both the variety and portion size. As always, great food made even better by great company.
On the way back, we stopped at the Sweet Shop behind Sunset Beach Bar. For a fairly sized shop, they have a smaller selection then I’d expect for a storefront size—cookies, a few pastries and croissants, macarons, and ice cream—it’s was not an extensive bakery case.
I picked up a chocolate almond croissant ($7.50) and a chocolate chip cookie ($3.50). For comparison, the croissant is about $3.50 at Zee Best, so this felt pricey. I didn’t realize until I got back to our unit that the cookie was very hard—otherwise I would have said something at the time. I put it in the fridge and may try to revive it with a quick microwave later. Treated myself to a pair of costume jewelry earrings at Beach shop next to sweet shop.
Overall, a really enjoyable lunch and setting, I’d skip the Sweet Shop next time.
There’s usually a point late in our vacation when we say we’ve “hit the wall.” That was tonight—we were just tired, a little too full, and had a bit too much sun, so we decided to stay in.
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