What are best things to do on Eastern

[DIScruisers4]

We are going on the Eastern Magic with a few other families. What are your suggestions for the best things to do while at St. Maarten and St. Thomas. We all have children ranging from ages 4 to 8. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

 

[BaileyEvanH]

We went to Coki beach two years ago with a 6 and 8 year old. We got there early before the crowds hit--we even packed our own lunch from room service. They people sold us dog biscuits 4/$1.00. The kids went in knee deep and were able to hold the bone under the water about 2 inches and the fish came swiming and nibbling at the biscuit. The kids were fascinated and still talk about it today. Oh sorry, Coki beach is in St Thomas. We left when the crowds hit and were able to enjoy and almost empty ship for the afternoon. Have a great trip!

 

[Joel110]

If you have a few aviation fans, the Sunset Beach Bar is awesome. The bar is located on the beach at the end of the St. Maartan runway. The 747s literally fly over your head about 40-50 feet before touching down on the runway that's just on the other side of the fence. Then, when they take off, locals stand by the fence to get the windstorm created by the engines. It's a rush. My BIL is a pilot for Southwest airlines and thought it was a definate highlight.

There's usually a KLM 747 and a Air France Airbus 380 (both are huge 4 engine planes) landing between 2 and 3, then they takeoff between 3:30 and 4:30.

A couple of caveats:

• A drawbridge in Phllipsburg goes up at 5:30pm everyday and traffic at rush hour is awful. If you're driving yourself, I'd definately advise on heading back to the ship by 4pm. The ship "all-aboard" time is at 7:00pm. We waited for the 747 to take off and then got stuck in traffic waiting on the drawbridge. We were panicking because by the time we returned the rental cars and boarded the ship, it was 6:50pm. A taxi may be an option for those not comfortable driving, as they could drop you off right at the dock w/o hassle of checking a car in.
• As with the whole island, topless bathing is allowed. We only saw one topless woman on the beach at a distance and discreet, but we had 6 kids with us and felt that the bar was very family friendly and the food was great. I was very concerned because their website advertises "Free drinks to topless women" and hypes the few who do it with pictures, but a friend of ours who lives on the island with her two kids said they go all the time and outside of spring break or late evenings, it's not that common, especially during the day when there are families present.

Here's a photo:

 

[musicgirl]

At St. Martin, we went to Dawn beach. It was a short taxi drive. Taxis are easy to use and there is a set price. Dawn beach was beautiful and you can snorkel here.

Also, the water taxis ($5 pp all day, unlimited) that are right at the dock will take you straight to Great Bay beach. There are jet skis, water trampoline. It looked beautiful and we really wanted to go in the afternoon, but we were too tired after Dawn Beach in the morning and lunch back on the ship.

The first stop at Great Bay beach also leads straight into shopping!!!!!

At St. Thomas we did an awesome excursion, Capt. Nautica (speed boat ride and snorkeling). I'm not sure what the age requirement is though.

 

[babsnabbs]

HOLY MOLEY!!! That's an awesome photo.

 

[Dreamer04]

We're booked on the Anguilla Dolphin Excursion for St Maarten. On St Thomas, DH is playing golf at Mahogany Run and the kids and I are looking for aa beach. I heard Coki Beach gets crowded, but the water is really clear. Magens Bay beach is beautiful, but the water is cloudy, I heard.
I've also heard good things about Sapphire Beach.

 

[Joel110]

HOLY MOLEY!!! That's an awesome photo.

It's even more awesome in person. Unbelievable. They'd never let people that close to a 747 in the states with today's 9/11 security concerns.

 

[chasbos]

Joel110 - great picture! We spent a week at the Maho in 2003 and just loved the planes landing and especially taking off! My kids were entertained by them the whole week and we just had to be on the beach by 2 p.m. every day!

 

[WDWLVR]

Coki Beach and Coral World in St. Thomas are right next to each other and very easy to get to by taxi. There are also plenty of taxi's to take you back to the ship or you can make arrangements to be picked up at a certain time by the driver that takes you there.

A short walk from the ship in St. Thomas is paradise point. It is a tram ride up to a small shopping area. Great views from up there and you can get some awesome shots of the ship.

In St. Martin the shopping district is just a short water taxi ride away and there are beaches right there as well.