Just got back from 1 week in SXM. Very nice. Just wanted to reiterate some of the excellent advice I got from this forum, and add some other findings of my own. I wish I had read more before the trip, because there really isn't much good information to be found once you're there. The information we got on the island was either incomplete or slanted because someone was trying to sell us something.

- Definitely wear sunblock, because your skin will fry without it. But you do not need a "base tan" to avoid burns. I didn't get burned and I was pale when I arrived. I just put on some SPF30 every morning and that was sufficient. Do a google search on "base tan" and you'll find nothing but warnings about skin cancer!

- Wear insect repellant at night to ward off the "no-see-ums" (biting midges). I couldn't believe how small they were. You really can't see them. But the bites are real... even if they are not as bad as mosquito bites.

- Bring lots of cash, specifically $20 dollar bills since larger bills are often not accepted. I brought $1,500 and the two of us went through about $1,200. That includes a snorkel cruise to Anguilla and some jewelry.

- Food is definitely on the expensive side. I figured it would be, based on my previous visits to Hawaii and other islands. We were paying like $12-$15 for fish sandwiches. $25-$30 per person for a good dinner, $45+ per person for a fine dining experience. You can always go grocery shopping, but we were too lazy to get anything other than cereal and fruits.

- Drinks are actually not that expensive, compared to D.C. prices... $7 was the worst I ever paid for a cocktail. But happy hours are EVERYWHERE, you can get 2-for-1 at nearly any bar at the right time, and $0.50 beers at many joints. Women can get ANY drink for $1 on Fridays at Sunset Beach Bar.

- Wednesday seems to be the big night out on the island. Weekends are kind of sleepy. The hottest places to be are Bamboo Bernies (which is hard to find because it's behind a hotel that's under construction) and Sunset Beach Bar. Also Bliss, which is right between them, but they seem snooty and charge $25 cover on Wednesdays. Apparently the party rotates among these three places depending on the night of the week. Green House in P-burg is popular too but it's really not that great IMHO. Bamboo Bernies is 10x nicer, and women drink free on Wednesdays (though the lines at the bar are astronomical).

- Sundays are terrible if you want to do anything other than go to the beach. All the stores are closed, and many restaurants too.

- This may be general knowledge, but don't waste your time with the timeshare presentations. The gifts are not worth the time lost, especially if you are on a short trip. We took a $100 coupon for a cruise to Anguilla, but we still had to pay $74 out of our pockets because the trip cost $150 plus $24 in port fees. Also, I didn't know this but once you go to your first timeshare presentation with a specific company, your name goes into their system and they never offer you a deal as good as the first time. So only go if you are prepared to buy, otherwise you blow your opportunity to save. Timeshares actually make good economic sense if you fit the profile and the program. But my wife and I don't.

- The French side seems way nicer than the Dutch side in terms of sophisticated and well maintained areas. It just struck us as more beautiful because we didn't see as many run-down buildings and burned-out shacks in Marigot, Grand Case, or Orient Bay. But we actually spent most of our time on the Dutch side since that's where our place was.

- The Dutch side has all the casinos, I believe. Poker can be played in at least half of them, though mostly at night.

- Topless bathing is only on the French side for whatever reason.

- The jewelers in P-burg (well, everywhere) are very aggressive and often won't take no for an answer. I'm used to this but my wife just didn't seem to get it and didn't want to appear rude. I often had to drag her out of stores to keep us from being stuck talking to one sales guy for hours on end. BTW, for some reason 100% of the jewelry stores are run by people from India. The best deals are to be found in places that don't spend all their money advertising on the cruise ships and hotels. We bought our jewelry at Precious Gems International because the guy there, Danny, was honest with us, didn't push us at all, and went the extra mile to service our needs.

- The main local fish are mahi-mahi, red snapper, grouper, wahoo, tilapia, jumbo shrimp, and of course spiny lobster. We actually had a hard time finding good seafood places on our own but we enjoyed Lee's, The Wharf, Moulin Fou, and Chez Something-or-other on Orient Beach. We also loved the grouper sandwich at the Gingerbread Cafe at Bel Air, a wonderful little hideaway with gorgeous views of the ocean. A lot of places offered Alaskan king crab or Maine lobster but we were like, what's the point?

- As I posted elsewhere, we were able to get a car at the airport without a reservation for only $100/week. Worked fine and we got excellent service. Never left valuables in the car. We were told to get gas on the French side because it's cheaper, and it was.

- There are almost no stop signs or stoplights on the island! Just yield signs and roundabouts. I actually learned to prefer this traffic design. But you have to be more assertive to drive on the island. Keep it moving! And avoid the drawbridge in Simpson Bay.

- For a cheap snorkeling adventure, go to the Bel Air Beach (Little Bay) off P-Burg and pay Matthew at the watersport hut $10 to jetski you over to the shipwrecks. It's amazing! I should note that we used our own snorkels which we bought at CVS in D.C. for $10. But he could probably hook you up if you need snorkels.

- We also found a $15 snorkeling deal at Neptune Dive Center on Orient Beach. They took us on a powerboat to the Green Cay to snorkel on the huge coral reef for 90 minutes with their professional gear.

- Most of the coolest beaches are poorly marked. The trick is to take every exit off the main road around the island and just follow it to the end. You will discover all kinds of wonderful gems like Guana Bay and Dawn Beach and Galion Bay.

- Flamingo Beach Resort is a nice resort, and better than its sister property Royal Palm. It is more secluded and has better beaches. Having said that, it's not near much by foot... just the casino, a couple restaurants, and a convenience store that closes at 8pm. If I were to go back to SXM, I'd ditch Club Sunterra and stay at the Bel Air Hotel. Or I'd go to the French side for a much more upscale experience. That's just me. Flamingo is a perfectly okay hotel resort, but there really isn't much to do there, the rooms are just okay (even after renovation), the services are minimal (no wireless, one day of maid service), and the beach view of the airport is not my favorite. I definitely expected more.

Well these are just some of my random initial impressions. Didn't mean to write so much. Hope I didn't offend anyone with my opinions, I'm just trying to be honest in explaining what to expect as a first timer.

ChezJ