We're on the island now day tripping from the Dutch side. We started visiting St. Maarten/Martin in 2006, and we've stayed at Club Orient nine times pre-Irma. So we have at least a little perspective. Our observations and comparisons may be skewed by the fact that it's August, and all of our other trips were in mid-June.

The vibe at Club O now is definitely low key. No music or party atmosphere at Happy Hour. Much less conversation on the beach. The age profile seems to be the same as usual--dominated by late fifty-ish. We started coming to SXM when we were 57 (so now we're 73), and my wife pointed out that we're now the oldest ones on the beach. At least that's been true the last three days.. So the crowd now looks a lot younger to us!

As far as body hair goes, it seems there are more unshaven/unwaxed than in the past. But no one is going to feel out of place for that reason. When not staying at Club O, we've always left around 3:30-4:00, and sometimes umbrellas start coming down around that time. I did notice a new sign this year that the Perch Lite parking closes at 4:30 (and I think they chain the lot entrance then). But the beach is public and there's no closing time there.