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Next island to visit Megannsamuel 7 hours ago My wife and I have visited Saint Thomas and Saint Martin and we are looking for our next Island to visit we would like something comparable what is the next spot we should visit.

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Made It Home Whale Tail Yesterday at 10:36 PM This trip was our longest visit to the island for a 5 week stay. Why is it that when you get home from vacation you are so darn tired? This year was our first time staying as owners of a timeshare at SBR and it couldn't have gone better. Lots of friends there and a lots of restaurants close by. Thank you Leagle49!!

We actually finally branched out a little bit and tried 5 new eating establishments, in addition to all of our regular favorites, which are hard not go to every visit. Some were really good and some not so much. We went to Catch 21, Lagoonies (couple of times), FeestCafe, Bovin and Pelican Beach Grill.

Now Carol, you know that I love me a good cheeseburger

and the winner is: Orange Fever, followed by a very close 2nd from Catch 21.
The best fries on island are from The Tap and Still. Yes Carol, they come in a paper bag and you fill out your order form with a pencil at your table. Carol, bite the bullet and get yourself a bag of fries

The flight home was on time and was a smooth flight back. Departure was a bit of a problem. We were seated in the first row and a young man came down the jetway in a hurry and straight to the forward washroom to hurl for a little bit. His mother said it was anxiety. The passenger was eventually seated and the washroom was cleaned. Upon arrival in Toronto people were getting their carry-on baggage down and the flight attendant announced to stand to the side as the young man would be first one off the plane. It took the emergency personnel awhile get to and attend to the passenger.

Now this is the good part!!
While all this was taking place I kept looking at the open door of the cockpit. Then the Flight Director said to me "Do you want to go up to the cockpit and say Hi". Well I"ll tell you this is what it's like to feel like a "Little Kid Again". So off I went to the cockpit and said Hi!! and the flight crew were very friendly and turned the instruments lights back on. Wow!! Then I asked the pilot where the steering wheel was

He pointed to a fist sized joy stick on the armrest. Wow!!

Also I do have to say that I did see The Jetway Jesus perform a another miracle

We were surprised to see a semi-senior couple get wheeled into the gate area, who we know from another resort on island. Now, no offense to seniors because that's who we are. We all have our aches and pains as we age. We know that first hand. As a matter of fact, we offered help to the passenger right beside us throughout the flight as he was bandaged from thigh to ankle from an injury he experienced the day before. But I know that this couple have no trouble getting into and out from the pool to loungers and then on to the pool bar and then a restaurant or shopping on Front St.
Hallelujah!!

Another Great Vacation In The Books.

I added a couple of pics from take off and only 1 streamer of Sargassum that I could see.

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Few questions for our upcoming trip... steve74 Yesterday at 12:59 PM I hope everyone is well! We are headed down for a few weeks in the 2nd half of May, and I'm hopeful that you all have some thoughts on the following:

1. We really like grabbing a ball in Kelly's Cove (Norman) because it is calm in there in the summer and the snorkeling is pretty good. We also like Long Bay, VG for similar reasons (we cook on the boat these nights). I've always wondered about Little Harbour, Peter, but I recognize that most of the boats are charter boats and they rear tie to the shore. What are your thoughts on this anchorage? Also, we are comfortable anchoring after 10+ charters, but we have never rear tied. For those who have done it, is it worth the effort? Last, with all the charter boats in there throwing scraps overboard, I wonder if there are large baracuda in there under the boats. My wife and daughters don't like it when they are right under the back of the boat, so this would actually affect things for us.

2. How is the restaurant in the new Peter Island resort? I saw Matt's notes about staying on the dock, which is appealing. However, it would add to the experience if the restaurant is worth it that night. We like good food, but we are turned off by overly expensive prices. For example, Wonky Dog is not cheap, but it is totally worth it to us. We also love Hendos. However, we are not a $100 per plate family.

3. Last, we typically go in the 2nd half of June. However, due to my daughters' summer activities, we are moving the trip up a month. I realize the weather is difficult to predict, but what has your experience been with weather and crowds in late May if you have visited during this time of the year?

Thank you so much for any replies!
Steve

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Damaged car rental Megannsamuel Yesterday at 08:10 AM I rented a car from budget. After returning i was told we were good. Now they are trying to charge me $500. Is this normal for this rental place.

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Day 7 and 8 eilandmens 03/28/2026 09:35 PM Same old, same old from morning to late afternoon, beach time and G & T on patio. Went to Palapa for dinner. As you probably know it is a pretty setting -low light tropical feel. Had a 7:30 PM reservation, got there at 7:21PM. Was told to take a seat. At precisely 7:30PM on the nose, we were led to seats. I thought a bit pretentious, but I guess that is their thing. There were a number of empty seats. A small matter. I ordered Jack Daniels on rocks and got Jack Daniels Honey. Too sweet for me, sent it back for regular JD. My wife ordered lobster thermador and I ordered rack of lamb. I asked if they were lollipop ribs, and the waiter assured me they were not. But they were. I am done ordering rack of lamb in St. Maarten. They are always lollipop ribs. Tasty but small. My wife’s lobster was deemed good.

Friday repeat the routine, for dinner we went to Greenhouse. Always, wholesome food not fancy but consistent. The wait staff were fun to deal with, a pleasant evening. My wife ordered French dip and I ordered a Ruben. Both were good. I had two of those big Heineken glasses of beer. A good night.
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Little J Shawarma Manitoulin Island Girl 03/28/2026 07:24 PM I inquired via email with Little J Shawarma and they responded within 3 hours stating they are open every day, except Wednesdays, and hours are 12 noon-330pm and 5pm-1030 pm. Abe's youngest son has taken over as chef.
This place has always been one of our favourites and we eat there several times during our 7 week stay.

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Suggestions on SJU to EIS flight louismcc 03/28/2026 07:23 PM We're coming in mid-July on what will be, I think, our 16th Moorings charter. Maybe we're in a rut, but it's a helluva nice rut!

Our flights are on Delta to SJU and I'm inclined to use Island Birds like we did last year. However I thought I'd get feedback on puddle jump options to EIS. Cape Air would be my first choice but they're expensive and flights don't mesh well with our Delta flights, especially on the return home.

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Lot of rain last night RatmansWife 03/28/2026 11:46 AM Much needed for our cisterns. Don't know if it was related, but the late American flight from Miami was delayed until this morning, which means the early flight out is also delayed.

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Lot by Belair StMartinFan 03/28/2026 12:43 AM Someone asked earlier about what was happening by Belair Hotel. I noticed today that there was a large scooper there and saw a truck that seemed to be hauling in dirt. There were mounds of dirt that appeared to be dump truck loads. I looked as if they are dumping fill from some other construction site. Haven't seen any coverage about construction since that announcement about some big project a few years ago, but it looks like they are doing work to get the lot ready for something.

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Three Favorites and a Nooby StMartinFan 03/28/2026 12:37 AM Since our first week on the island has basically involved spending our days sitting on the beach at Divi, about the only thing I can share are restaurant experiences!

We’ve already visited three favorites:

Chesterfields. The restaurant was quieter than usual but the food and service were as good as we've come to expect. My husband had the grilled snapper, my daughter had escargot and she and I split the seafood pasta, which was more than enough for the two of us. I appreciate that they always include a vegetable with their dinners, and enjoy their cooked carrots, which are large chunks of carrot, not something you see often as a dinner accompaniment.

The Palms: How can you not enjoy a place where a waiter and the owner greet you with hugs! A stop here is a must every year so our daughter can get her goat curry fix, I had the tasty shrimp curry, and love the Trinidad roti that accompanies it, something I've never seen anywhere else. We eat Indian food often and like that cuisine’s roti, but The Palms is a unique experience. My husband had the Drunken Ribs and we snagged the last piece of the Bailey’s cheesecake. I highly recommend the cheesecake, too. My daughter has a Palms baseball cap that she bought years ago and brings it along every year so that gets us a really warm welcome. Judging from how full they were both inside and out, we're not the only ones who make a stop there.

Yacht Club: We do manage to tear ourselves away from the beach to hit the Yacht Club for breakfast and the bridge opening. My daughter said her Norwegian Benedict with the smoked salmon and dill sauce was excellent and I had the pancakes with rum sauce. They were fine, but think I'll have to go back to the Eggs Benedict next time.

New to us:

Pardon My French: We'd been reading good things about this restaurant and were eager to try it. We liked the ambiance and had great service, but weren't as excited about the food. My husband did the prix fixe 3 course meal and his salad with goat cheese was excellent. He thought his steak with pepper sauce was kind of boring. If you want a plain piece of beef (he upgraded to the rib eye), it will probably be to your liking, but he was disappointed in the pepper sauce. It wasn't as flavorful as he's had other places. My daughter liked her cheese ravioli with walnut sauce. They were tiny little ravioli squares and the sauce was tasty. It was interesting served sprinkled with fresh radicchio.

I was disappointed in my meal, but maybe because of what I ordered. It was described as pasta with lobster tail, cherry tomatoes and asparagus in a white wine garlic sauce. I expected a plate of pasta with a light white sauce with pieces of lobster, tomatoes and asparagus. What I got was a plate of a red colored “stew” that seemed to have small pieces of fish (hard to tell for sure because of the red sauce but the texture was like fish), tiny round circles of asparagus (I think) and some other mystery ingredients plus a small amount of wide pasta pieces stirred in. It was topped with a dry looking lobster tail and three short spears of asparagus and a couple of cherry tomatoes. I couldn't identify what the flavor or seasoning was supposed to be, and it really didn't enhance the lobster. I even asked our waiter if I'd gotten the right dish because it seemed so odd and he assured me I had. (They had some sort of fish soup on the menu so wondered if they’d somehow given me that topping but I was assured I had what I'd ordered.) I’m still perplexed at how the dish I got and the menu description could be so far apart.

We had crème brûlée and the chocolate mousse for dessert. Both were tasty but they suffered a bit in comparison to similar desserts we had a couple of days ago at Bistrot Caraibes. Bistrot's dessert presentation is so spectacular with the fruit garnishes, their large chocolate name plate and other touches that Pardon's seemed hohum. Probably not really fair but when you're on an island with great French food the standard is set pretty high. We also go to Moullin Fou often and I'd rank them as a better French restaurant on the Dutch side.

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