I personally would not consider an AI on St. Martin because one of the big draws for us is the food. That being said, a friend of mine recently stayed at the Sonesta AI in Philipsburg. I tried to talk her out of it but she felt it would give her the kind of vacation she wanted. She loved it. She did take my advice and rent a car and see the island and had some meals out. She had gotten a great deal and the cost was not much different than somewhere else where the food wasn't included. She made it sound so great that I told her I might try it for a girls long weekend away when she comes back.

As far as the villa option goes, we have rented all over the island for many years and have come to love the Cupecoy area best. We love the French side but our vacations always require some work time and we found the internet service to be much more reliable in the Cupecoy area than at the villas we rented all over the French side. There is also American TV on the Dutch side if that is at all important to you. The vast majority of villas on the French side have very limited TV to watch if you get a nasty day. There is no traffic in the Cupecoy area and it is very close to the border of the French side. If you are looking for a villa on the water there are several in Cupecoy at Shore Pointe and there are lots of lovely condos at the Cliff. All are oceanfront. We found our rentals on VRBO but there are many sites you can find rentals on.

Whatever you decide to do, enjoy!!