Royal Islander

Exploring several other options on this trip. What is the difference at RI between La Terrasse and La Plage? The location seems perfect. I heard the units are very clean, but older. TY

La Terrasse is a rooftop resort and has 75+ suites. Beautiful pool and gardens. There used to be a bar near the pool but I do not know if it is currently open.

La Plage is beachside. It has 120+ suites. Beautiful pool and gardens area. It has a bar & restaurant that is open for 3 meals per day or used to be. There is a lobby bar, but it was not open on our last visit.

We have spent 10-12 visits at La Plage and it is our favorite place on the island. Breakfast and lunch were always quite good. I cannot speak to the dinners as there are a number of restaurants in the area within a short walk and we took advantage of them instead.

If given the choice, take La Plage. Location is excellent for both. Have not stayed at LT in a while, and LP is older but was so well done it is kind of "classic" and I hope they don't ever update too much.

I remember hearing somewhere that if you're staying at one of them you have access to both resorts/pools, but not if you're staying in the other......?

When we first started going there, if you resided at one of them you had access to the other as well as the big pool/exercise facilities at the Sonesta. On our last stay, access to the Sonesta was restricted due to their AI policy.

I would assume that if you are at either RI property, you still have access to the other but that would be a better question for management. The properties used to use different colored pool towels so it was easy to see who is from which resort.

The beach is public.

Pool bar at LaTerrase is open in the afternoon. Both are nice.
Beach is open to both. Pools are restricted, but activities (pool aerobics) are open to all. La plage units have an oven, LaTerrasse units do not.

There are some differences between La Plage and La Terrasse

Both have recovered post Irma damage. La Plage has more units and is entirely timeshare of which several are rented to the public or guests.
La Terrasse is a mix of individually owned private condos and timeshare. There are 76 units of which 42 are now individually owned. There are a few units still owned by the Maho group. Most of these are rented but in different ways.
La Terrasse is quieter. Both have private pools which are only used by the residents of the building where the pool is located. And they are monitored by the color of towels. Someone mentioned about water aerobics. Only persons staying in La Plage are allowed to participate. I am familiar with management as I am an owner of a unit at La Terrasse. Individual owners of units at La Terrasse can rent to anyone and you can find those on sites like VRBO or Airbnb. By the way, because more than half the units are owned in La Terrasse, some do have ovens and some do not. All units have cooktops and kitchens. My unit does not have an oven but I do have a very large air fryer so you can see it varies per unit.

The restaurant, Tortuga, located at La Plage is open to the public for any meal breakfast lunch and dinner.. the pool bar at La Terrasse, is operated by Jesus daily from 2:30pm to 7pm ish.
If you have a car, La Terrasse has underground parking which you can obtain a pass for $30 a week. Guests at La Plage can also get a parking pass. Both pools are beautiful. Anyone interested in watching Airplanes or crazy people at Maho Beach will get a much better View at La Terrasse.

Both are good options to stay.

Drphilsxm

LaTerrasse residents can definitely go to water aerobics. I have been doing it for years and have recruited other LaTerrasse people to participate.

In the past, L a Terrasse guests were allowed to participate.
I had guests turned away last week.
I contacted Elmira Kroesk who offers that service at La Plage. She is the one that does the water aerobics. Elmira also operates her own business inside La Plage lobby. I was told by her and by Nina of Royal Islander Management that La Terrasse guests could not participate anymore. We as owners and residents of La Terrasse have seen several changes over the last few years.
I would say to verify that you can participate, you need to contact Elmira who is in the lobby of La Plage to verify you can do it. She is the one that does it but she does not make the rules they are done by Royal Islander management.. this was as of last week.

Drphilsxm

I just talked with Elmira. The distinction according to Elmira is that it is exclusive to timeshare members. I will be back in SXM in a couple weeks and talk in person with the administration and management to clarify what that means.

Drphilsxm

Been to both.

Definitely more private and quite at La Terasse. the pool bar opens at around 1400.

Much larger pool and 3 times more people at the La Place pool. plus Tortuga is right there so more traffic there.

DrPhilsxm, please check your PM.

As I am an owner, I was always allowed, but I'd never seen anyone turned away. But I haven't been back since the week after Thanksgiving. I'll be back on March 25th, so I'll have a chat with Elmira.

Thanks for the info, Doc.