My wife and I and two 20 year twins (they turned 21 while we were in St. Martin) spent 9 nights on the island from June 4th thru June 13th. This was our 6th trip in 9 years to the island. The beaches and restaurants keep us going back.
Travel: We flew first class from Newark to SXM without any hassles, on time going there and coming home.
Accommodations: We spent the first two nights at the Summit Resort. This was the first time we have stayed here. We had two rooms (upstairs and downstairs) overlooking the water. The rooms are very clean, but I think need a little updating. It was comfortable here and I think I would definitely go back. We met Chloe and Teri and they are incredibly nice people, we enjoyed their company. Chloe has cats running all around her bar and restaurant which our daughter loved. Down towards the water from the Summit Resort we frequented a cute bar called Deep Blue. The owners are very nice and the bar had free Wi-Fi. We met the owner of The Wharf restaurant and bar here, as he lives here. His name is Elvis, came from Staten Island, used to own Deep Blue, and had a few drinks with him over the two days of our stay.
The next 7 nights we rented a villa near orient beach in the “Les Jardins De Orient Bay” neighborhood. The house was up on the hill overlooking Orient and Pinel. In the past, we have either rented a villa in Terres Basses or the Dutch side of the island. This year, we wanted to try something different and stay on this side of the island closer to Orient beach and Grand Case. The villa was nice and clean and had a very nice smaller pool but probably would not return. Although we love Orient Beach, we like what the Dutch side has to offer as far as nightlife.
Ok so here goes.
Wednesday, June 4th: Rented a car from Leslie Bruce from Kenny’s again. Very nice man and will continue to rent from him in the future. Checked into the Summit, went to the pool and met Chloe and Teri, swam and had lunch and a couple of beers. We then showered and ventured down to Deep Blue, where we met Elvis and decided to have dinner in his restaurant this evening. I don’t remember what everyone had at The Wharf, but it was very nice inside sitting on the water for our first meal in St. Maarten. Went to Atlantis casino afterward for a little while.
Thursday, June 5th: Had breakfast at the Kissing Fish and then spent the day at Baie Rouge. The water was very calm this day (can be very rough). Had lunch at Raymonds and enjoyed the day. For dinner, we went to Temptation, had a usually great dinner, and spoke with Asha and Dino for quite some time, as the restaurant was not very crowded. They are very nice people and Dino suggested a few restaurants for us to go to while on the island.
Friday, June 6th: Moving day! Checked out of the Summit, said our goodbye’s to Chloe and Teri, fed a few cats, and made our way to the other side of the island. We stopped at Zee Best in Simpson Bay on the way for breakfast. I didn’t have very good directions from the owner of the villa we rented, but had a good idea where it was, or at least, where the entrance of this neighborhood was. He supplied us with the code to enter the gates, but the address wasn’t very clear. Well, we drove around this neighborhood for about 30 minutes, when fortunately, we ran into him close to his villa as he was driving out. He left the key for us under the mat of the front door and we were in! We unpacked and laid by the pool and had a few drinks until dinner time. Tonight, we decided to go to Spiga where they still do the 1 for 1. We’ve eaten at this restaurant before. It is not on the water and can be very hot at times. This evening, we were lucky, as the temperature was very mild and had a nice breeze. The restaurant was very good and like the fact that they hire security guards to help park and watch your car.
Saturday, June 7th: We made breakfast in our villa and set out to go to Le String on Orient. Le String was closed, so we decided to go to Brice Paradize. Chairs, umbrella, and 1 drink were $8 a person. We came here every day that we went to Orient, the chairs were very comfortable and the people working there were very fun and appreciative. For lunch, we finally were able to go to Baywatch. Being from Jersey, Andy greeted us with “what exit on the parkway do you live”, we were home. Andy and Cheryl are two of the nicest and funniest people in St. Martin. Adrian and Cheryl waited on us every day and the food and service are second to none in St. Martin. We went there for lunch every day we went to this beach. (About four times) We had everything from “Mussels ala Andy” to “Beer battered Shrimp” to “Cesar Salad’s (I had a Philly cheese steak 1 day also), everything was great. Greeted with kisses from Cheryl every day (and 1 day from Andy!), it was one of the highlight’s of our trip. Andy, Cheryl, and Adrian were kind enough to pose with the kids for pictures, although I think they may have enjoyed at as much as we did! Andy suggested a couple of his favorite restaurants and we decided to take him up on one this evening. We went to Bajatzu in Maho, this was a great find for us. Interestingly, we all ordered the filet mignon. This was one of the best filet mignon’s I’ve ever had. Service was excellent and the restaurant is right across the street from Casino Royale on the second floor and I will go back here again and again. (Better than the filet I had at Temptation, sorry Dino!) Went to the casino afterwards, playing Let it Ride, and my wife and I both hit full houses! Nice!
Sunday June 8th: Breakfast in the villa and back to Brice Paradize for the day on Orient. My daughter and I rented jet ski’s this day (she did 3 other days) and was great fun. Lunch at Baywatch again. For Dinner, we went into Grand Case to Fish Pot. Not very good and would not return, the place was empty and the wait staff seemed pissed that it was so.
Monday June 9th: Today we took the ferry over to Anguilla to our favorite beach (not in St. Martin) to Shoal Bay East. I cannot explain in words how beautiful this beach is. My wife and I escaped the kids for about 45 minutes to take a walk northeast from Uncle Ernie’s around the bend, and we were the only ones’ on the beach and in the water. It was truly special as it seemed we were the only one on the island. Great moment I’ll never forget. The water is crystal clear as in a swimming pool, unbelievable. If you get a chance, take the ferry and then cab over, it is well worth it. For dinner, we stayed close and went to the café at La Plantation. I don’t remember what everyone had, but it was surprisingly very good. (and close)
Tuesday June 10th: The twins 21st birthday! Breakfast in the villa, Orient Beach for the day, and of course, Baywatch for lunch. The kids loved Mario’s Bistro so much from the year before, we (they) decided to reserve a table here on the water. This was our most expensive dinner on the island and it was well worth it. Can’t remember which casino we went to but we had fun.
Wednesday June 11th: Breakfast in villa and then we decided to go to Dawn Beach. The water here was just so-so, similar to what you would find in Aruba, kind of cloudy. But, it was a beautiful day and the .75 caribs at Mr. Busby’s helped the situation. We went to Beau Beau’s for lunch and it was very nice with the breeze they have overlooking Dawn Beach. Went into the Westin to check out the casino, but was not very impressed with it. Too bad, very close to the Orient Beach area, but the casino sucks! This evening we went to L’Auberge Gourmand. My wife and I have been here many times in the past, she was here with her parents in 1982! It is always very good, but the euro vs. $ is killing us! The hosts are very gracious and it was a very elegant dinner as usual.
Thursday June 12th: Guess what? Breakfast in the villa and off to Orient and Brice Paradize and Andy’s Baywatch for lunch. This evening we went to Peg Leg Pub in Port de Plaisance greeted by Sean and he remembered us from last year! This experience was great and turned out to be my daughter’s favorite restaurant! (Thank god,on the last day) Sean goes out of his way to make you feel at home, I highly recommend this restaurant. Went to the Princess Casino afterwards and back home to Orient.
Friday June 13th: Well Friday the 13th? No problems here. We ate breakfast at the Safari Grill in Orient Village and then went to the airport, after dropping off our cell phone, which we rented from the queen of sxm, and delivered by Leslie. The flight was on time and we were back in our home in Jersey by 8:00PM.
Some observations:
No crime, although I was worried about it
So much construction on the Dutch side, not sure how the infrastructure will handle it. ( We were thinking of buying something here but will not until these things are settled)
French side still doesn’t carry American tv (you get tired of watching CNN!)
We were in Aruba in Feb, and the beaches here are so much nicer than Aruba, there’s no comparison.
Beaches, People, and Food will always keep us coming back to this special place.
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