Wow, three weeks for your first trip!! I'm envious!!

As far as trips to other islands, I confess I am not up to date on what the Covid requirements are to visit other islands. PRE Covid, I would have the following observations with regard to near islands that one can visit for a day or a single over-night.

Pinel is part of French St. Martin, so it's the easiest to get to. Just take a ferry from French cul de sac, which are scheduled approximately every hour or so. When I say "ferry", I basically mean an overgrown dinghy.. There are some great restaurants there, a lovely view of St Martin, you can walk over to the other side of the island. A really nice 'beach' day, with a different view. No difference now with Covid.

I guess I should put Tintamarre and Green Key in here also. Green Key is the small island you see immediately in front of Orient Beach. No scheduled trips there. If you're athletic, you could kayak over there. Nothing much to see, except some great snorkelling there and some turtles. Tintamarre is the large island off in the distance, behind Green Key off of Orient. Tintamarre is not accessible except by one of the many boat excursions that go there. Often the boat will stop at Green Key also. Many of the boat excursions have lunch on Tintamarre (on the boat). Great snorkelling there, and a lovely deserted island, with some abandoned ruins to see on the opposite side. No difference now with Covid.

Anguilla has always been a popular day trip from St Maarten or St. Martin. Most people take the regular ferries from Marigot, which leave on a regular schedule. Anguilla has breathtaking beaches, and you can see some of the spectacular resorts that dot the island's beaches. Many of the boat excursions also have trips to Anguilla, that include lunch either on the boat or at an island restaurant. Anguilla, as of now, I'm pretty sure you have to have a Covid test to enter, within a certain period of time. Perhaps 2 days? Not sure, so that can be a negative to going there right now.

St. Barts is the vacation paradise of the rich and famous from France and elsewhere around the world. You get there via scheduled ferry from Marigot or from the Dutch side, or by small plane flight. If you have a tendency to be seasick, you may want to opt for the small plane flight, either from the Dutch side airport, OR from the airport in Grand Case. Look for a totally FRENCH atmosphere, beautiful people, amazing food, and high prices. I honestly don't have any idea what the Covid protocols are to get to St. Barts now.

The other fairly popular day trip, or possibly a one or two overnight trip, is Saba. Saba is totally different than any of the other islands, very laidback and unspoiled. There are basically no beaches there, but spectacular scuba diving, amazing views, and a hike up it's tallest peak, which if you are lucky and catch a clear day, you have the most amazing views. If you enjoy totally getting away from it all, it might be somewhere you might consider for a short overnight stay. Again, I have no idea what the Covid protocols are to get there now.