Trip report Nov 15 – Dec 3
Per Carols request, here is our trip report. This done with respect and thanks to all those that post on this site including trip reports, the information gathered improves the quality of our trips. This is past due but mostly written while on island and traveling.
Commentary (spewage)
Pick your battle – We are not rich, although our trips are definitely on a different scale than when we first went in 2003. We have to pick our battles with the check book and where we want to spend our money. By nature from the way we started our travel life we have a thrifty tendency so we pick where we spend the money. We were going to stay on Orient but for $700 plus less we were at the Flamingo, that $700 covered most of the first class cost on US Air so it was a trade off. At times we live big with nice dinners and in balance at times we eat on the cheap. MJ likes to work out in the morning and then likes to eat breakfast soon after so breakfast in the room works well. The frying pan is brought since our last trip we did not find non stick frying pans at the places we stayed. Of course there ended up being non stick fry pans during both weeks at the places we stayed but now with the frying pan vs. the air bagged bottle we have another memory.
Battle of the Bulge – My grandfather fought in this, I gained 10 lbs this trip so now I get to battle the bulge. My battle will be easier than what he went through.
Travel – I booked US Air in March and due to schedule changes by the time we left we were on our 17th itinerary and they would no longer post it on the web which caused a bit of stress considering that they would not notify me of the changes so I would have to call to find out about them. It took me a long time to get them to understand that I was not going to probably make a 45 minute connector coming back through customs, I could go on and on and pretty much already have. With that said, everything ended up on time and we certainly would not complain about the service and seats we had. First Class is the way to go considering how long it takes. We did end up having to stay in PHL on the way back but we are used to that, in all our trips we have only made it back once in the same day. One bag delayed coming back from PHL but was delivered the next day, no issue other than the damaged frying pan that lost to the liquor bottles packed in air bags by Gulmohars.
Lodging –
Royal Islander La Terasse – opening night for one night. Did not originally plan on making it down for this night so we had this reserved for Katie figuring it would be close to food and fun for her. It was cramped for all three of us but it worked for the night.
Flamingo – For the first week we got a two bedroom, two bath, two kitchen, two laundry unit in the Beach building which is the smaller building on the water. Check in and check out at the Flamingo was better than previous trips and we were able to get half our unit early so it worked nicely. We enjoyed our stay here. We got this unit for $1k off of redweek.com.
Atrium – Second week which is an every other week 1 bedroom unit we purchased this last year off of ebay for about $950 including this years maintenance and closing cost. Could use some updating but we still enjoyed the unit. The front desk and service is only rivaled by Belair and the Sea Place (yes, not a great place but has great service). Also had free internet hook ups in the room which is nice for us. We enjoyed our stay here.
Marys Boon – Always wanted to try this place and this trip we ended our trip here. The cost is high and they could use some updating to justify the rate but the beach there was fantastic, it was the nicest beach we had this trip with the water clear and the sand soft. We had no desire to go anywhere once we were there. The staff was excellent, and we really enjoyed the place and visiting with some of the other guest. We had lunch there as well and it was excellent. I would say that the plane noise would possibly become a factor but not a huge one.
PHL Airport Marriott – Not a bargain but could not be easier. If you ever want to complain about drink prices, a margarita here is $12. Food was good, Seattle beat the Eagles(no real surprise) that day so we enjoyed ribbing the Eagle Jersey wearing crowd. The rooms were very nice and the beds comfortable, worked well.
Car – We were treated very well by Michael at Unity once again. This time we got a near new Yaris, I like the newer cars with the electronic security. We spent a total of $60 on fuel over the two plus weeks thanks to the good mpg.
Shopping – Hardly any shopping done on this trip. Got some ideas and enjoyed visiting Deepti at DK Gems. Our biggest purchase was liquor at Gulmohars, we ended up purchasing about 19 bottles. We brought back 13, Katie brought back 3, and we drank three while on the island.
Food- We got groceries at both the Maho Food Market (?name) and Grand Marche near Phillipsburg. Beer, water, mixer, breakfast makings, some lunch items and snacks. We also picked up one freezer type bag which we pack beer, snacks and other beverages for the day trips to the beaches. This is easier for us than bringing a cooler and works well for places such as the hotel beach, happy bay or other non-serviced beaches.
Lal’s – We list first because this is where we go the most. Love the food, Lal, the music and the price. It was our first meal and since we did not leave until 3:50 we checked in at the airport and then went to Lal’s for our final lunch. Go see Lal.
Jimbo’s – Kind of did a bit of searching for the best burger, Jimbo’s was a front runner and we went there twice. I like medium rare and they not only use good meat both times I had the burger it was nice and pink in the middle. Other items we had to eat were good as well, but the cocktails were a different story. The Mojito’s are ok, not great but ok. The Margarita’s are nothing more than awful. On the second trip we just went with the basic beer and cocktails which were ok. We like the place so that is why we go back, the music and food is pretty good.
La Veranda – Car was blocked in so we stayed local to the Flamingo and tried La Veranda. It was happy hour so we went with hot wings, deep fried mushrooms, ribs and Margaritas at 2 for $7.50. All was ok, nothing to bring us back but we were stuck local that night.
Baywatch – It has all been said, nothing much new to add, same great service and food we all are used to. Ribs fall of the bone, grouper sandwich is MJ’s favorite, clams ala Andy were excellent, prime rib fantastic, and everything else we had was excellent. Did not go there as often as we would have liked, seemed to be that the wind would pick up each time we went to Orient so we stayed more on the Dutch side closer to our place.
Pineapple Pete’s – This is becoming one of our favorites joining Lal’s, Baywatch and Hidden Forest as the places we will make every trip. Service and food is great.
Tequila’s – Stopped by several times for cocktails and a chance to bs with Augustus, also had some nacho’s and other snacks while there.
Hidden Forest – Once for lunch and once for dinner. The lunch bill was $101 with the exchange, a bit much for lunch regardless of the fact it was fantastic. The wraps were off the menu so I admit we were disappointed for lunch. Dinner was simply fantastic, our favorite dinner on the island. MJ had a Banana Leaf Wrapped Snapper that was incredible, Katie and I both went carnivorous with the Steak with Portabella Mushroom. I still stand by that it is the best steak on the island. We also had Jalapeno Goat Cheese with bread and a large Duck Salad to go along with the two bottles of wine. The exchange rate was murder but that was not going to stop us from going there at least once for dinner. It did keep us from making several trips to Hidden Forest or trips to Grand Case or Marigot.
SSBB – Once for lunch, waves were crashing up to the road so we did not sit on the beach at all. SSBB is SSBB, no other like it and it is what it is. We like it.
Dingy Dock Bar – Went there for lunch, had to try the ribs others have talked about. They are good but not in the league of Andy’s at Baywatch but are good. Love the place and hanging out there, and love the draft Carlsberg.
Toppers – Went there once for dinner, and it was good. The brisket was different than the last time I had it, it was more like what I would expect for brisket and it was very good. Drinks were good as well. The service was not good, and when we finally did get the check it stated that “gratuity was not included” yet it listed it as a line item in the body of the bill. Major, no. But after having sub par service it was irritating at the time.
Peg Leg – Only once for appetizers for happy hour, excellent value.
Picantes while on the beach – We stayed at the Atrium our final week so it was easy. To our surprise the beach service was fantastic and the burger was the best we had had on the island. The ribs were also excellent as was the chicken sandwich. All was at a fair price, burgers were $9 and beer was $2 noting that we would bring a lot down ourselves and they did not mind.
Tijuana Yacht Club / Liberty Inn – We walked by once one night and ended up at Toppers, walked by again and almost went to Lee’s but decided to give it a try. The prices were so low it was hard to believe it could be good but it was very good. We had a Colorado and a Hawaiian Burrito, about $8.50 each. The cocktails also were excellent. We do basic cocktails in our room and on the beach so in the evenings I seemed to crave Margaritas and Sangria as well as other featured type cocktails. The margaritas used a bit of real orange would be my guess, did not taste like a mix at all, best we have had on the island. The Sangria was also very good and tasted fresh, both were refreshing and that is what we were looking for. They had a good staff that provided good service and they seemed to be having fun. We will go back.
Anguilla – Took a day trip so Katie could see the St Regis since she was to interview the next week with a company that did engineering on the place and with a person who spent two years on site at the project. It was very nice, and we enjoyed the slight tour of the island by taxi before going to Gwen’s on Shoal Bay. Love Gwen’s and that section of beach. We just hung out all day and until the scheduled time to pick us up to return. It was a nice day, worth the trip and expense for us.
TTOL Parties – We went to both Bruce’s Baywatch Bash as well as Belairs event at Los Gauchos. We enjoyed both and really enjoyed chatting with the people we do not get to see enough. Still feel bad that we did not muster up the energy to get back to Orient to hang with Sugarae, John and the gang but it is the kind of regret that will get us back to the island to see them again.
Worst part of all, we may not get back for an entire year. We will be in Cancun in mid January and then we will have Katie’s college graduation along with a couple of other trips that are not as much fun as SXM schedule. We may get a week here or there before Thanksgiving next year so after hearing about Bruce and others just jumping on a plane and heading down and how jealous we are of that we may end up hopping on a plane to Hawaii for a week just to give it another try. We will have a lot of new variables to work with once Katie graduates, from the money we presently spend on it to what city she ends up in. That is what makes life an interesting adventure.
Cheers,
Todd and MJ
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