EDIT. Okay I've relented and taken the time to post a few pics! December 2006 Trip Pictures

This was our 4th trip to SXM. FYI-I did a VERY poor job of taking pictures this year, but I’ll include a few.

We rented the same villa that we were in last year, Villa Pointe des Fleurs, which is just above Devil’s Hole near Baie Rouge. You can rent this villa from most of the villa rental companies that rent in SXM, but we have always used CaribbeanWay. They have provided us with great service, and are really good about keeping in touch via email.

Great example… there was a new villa on Baie Rouge this year called La Reve. They had REALLY powerful spotlights on the beach at night. Two of them were aimed so that they shined right up at our villa. These things were so bright, they actually cast shadows in the pool area when we had the lights off. So I emailed Ryan at CaribbeanWay and said it wasn’t a HUGE deal, but if he had any contacts with La Reve we’d appreciate it if they would re-aim them. I had a return email the following day saying that he knew the property manager, and that night they were re-aimed. Now THAT is great service! <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Joy.gif" alt="" />

BTW we had wifi access all week at the villa (except Sunday when internet all over the island was down) and used Skype to make phonecalls home all week.

We used Kenny’s Car rental for our cars again, and he was right there with the usual flawless service!

Okay, now for the trip [color:"red"]highlights[/color] <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Joy.gif" alt="" /> and lowlights <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/cloud.gif" alt="" />!

Highlights. Not really in any particular order except for the first 2, and I couldn’t decide which was the best between them!

Daysail with Ian Martin Ian's Flyer. What a great day with a great host! We left from the dock at Buccaneer Beach Bar at 9am and sailed to Prickly Pear. When I say ‘sailed’ I mean it too. We were under power just to get out of the bay, then he cut the motor until we got to Prickly Pear. We had great wind and you can help sail as much or as little as you like. He has excellent music and two fishing poles rigged on the back of the boat. We hooked a few fish throughout the day. We brought one in, but I can’t remember what it was called (maybe someone else in my group will chime in). Ian cooked that one up for lunch for us along with a HUGE plate of ribs and chicken, green salad, pasta salad, etc. Wonderful lunch! It was really windy and choppy at Prickly Pear, so he suggested that we try Sandy Island. This turned out to be a great decision as the water was MUCH calmer and we were the only boat there! As an added bonus we hooked a Mahi Mahi on the way over. Unfortunately we weren’t organized enough to get him in but it was very comical with Ian yelling orders at all of us. We got him all the way up to the back of the boat (really a beautiful fish), and he flipped off the hook. After that, I learned what a gaff is, how to use it, and where it was stored on the boat. Sadly we didn’t hook another, so I never got to show off my newfound skills! The snorkeling at Sandy Island was surprisingly good with a decent variety of fish and live coral. When we got back to anchor off the beach at BBB, we sat on the boat and had a few drinks with Ian and Roger (first mate), and watched the sun go down (although I'm not SURE that the sun is what Roger was watching <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Grin.gif" alt="" /> ). This was the deadly part of the trip for me, as I felt obligated to say “yes!” every time Ian said “Another drink, anyone?” Fortunately I think for the most part I was only REALLY annoying to the people in my villa. Although Neil at Buccaneer and Colin at the Red Piano Bar and most the people at Sunset Beach Bar might disagree!

Dinner at Tabba Khady. I feel that I should really get the thesaurus out to find enough descriptive words for our night here. I guess I’ll just start with WOW, and go from there! Everybody (7 of us) got something different and we all absolutely LOVED what we got. I had the red snapper and it was wonderful. Honestly its really hard to describe the dining experience there. First of all, everything on the plate is edible (decorations included) and it is all arranged beautifully. We had appetizers, and no one wanted to share because even though you figured everybody else had something good, you didn’t want to miss a single bite of what you had! OH, and the fried plantains!!! Holy cow, I could have eaten an entire plate of those. Then dessert and coffee, Scott swore it was the best cup he’s ever had (and he’s a connoisseur being from the Pacific Northwest). We REALLY, REALLY wanted to come back for another dinner here, but just couldn’t figure out a way to fit it in. What’s funny is that when we talked about going back, almost everyone said they wanted to get the same thing because they liked it so much! If you think that the best dinner to be had in SXM is in Grand Case, you are really missing out. The drive over to Oyster Bay is WELL worth it!

Party at Los Gauchos This is the BEST way to start off a week on the island. We get to see friends from last year and meet lots of new ones. Liesa provides a ridiculous number of appetizers and they are all very good! Then there are ½ price drinks, door prizes, and really cool nametags. It just doesn’t get any better! Many thanks to Kathy and Vicki for putting this together again!

Baywatch party Thank you, thank you, thank you to Andy and Cheryl and the crew for making this soooo fun! I have no idea how many people were there, but they were all hilarious and loads of fun to watch. I have to admit that I stayed pretty low key (=sober) at this one since we were going sailing the next day. I think everyone liked their nametags (I had no idea that there were so MANY places to wear a pirate eyepatch!), and all the ladies looked very regal in their tiaras!

Happy Bay We spent most of one day at Happy Bay. We brought a cooler of drinks and snacks and chilled out. We even had some entertainment via ‘the dude in the bush’ I can imagine that if you were there as a couple, this could be a little disturbing, but there were 7 of us, and we thought it was really funny. Besides if you come back from vacation without a good m*st*b*t**n story to tell…was it REALLY a good vacation?! LOL!!! The best was Josh acting as the “play by play” announcer.

Tour of the Island We had 3 SXM newbies with us, so on Saturday we did a roundy round of the the island, tasting ribs and BBC’s. It was a GREAT time. We found the best ribs and conversation to be at Gutside, and the best BBC at Kali’s on Friars Bay. They also make a great BBC at Buccaneer!

Gutside restaurant Don’t miss this place on your next trip! It is on the road on the way to Friar’s Bay. Richard is not only a fabulous cook, but is a great philosopher and will keep you entertained for your entire stay there. He has incredible ribs and also makes a MEAN cheeseburger!

Only a couple of lowlights <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/cloud.gif" alt="" />

Blue Ocean Friends rented snorkel gear here and when they went back to return it, they were closed (this was at 4:00 on Wed). When they went back to return it the following morning, the gal charged them an extra day because it was supposed to be back on Wednesday! No amount of chatting, or explanation that they attempted to return it on Wednesday made a difference, including saying that we would never rent there again. This place is in the shopping center in Nettle Bay. I’d rent elsewhere. My friends only went there because it was close to the villa.

Thai Garden On the road between Nettle Bay and Marigot. My friends Josh and Casi were really intrigued by this place so they went one night with Anne and Hannu (also staying in the villa). The WHOLE evening was really bad. Service was deplorable, the food was not worth the REALLY long wait, and they were extremely disappointed. I think Hannu is writing up something in detail to post here.


What a great trip! I love traveling with a group of people, and I love having friends on the island when I get there. I think we’re headed to an AI in Jamaica next year, but we’ll be back!!

PS I don't have time to post photos right now, so I'll try to do it soon. Sorry!