st martin

[herrbeeb]

we are cruising the easterm magic 6/26. i am planning st thomas/st john on our own but i need some help with st martin.

the tentative plan is as follows: dds (16 and 12) and i will kayak with the excursion. afterward we will return to dock/ship and meet dh and ds (14). after lunch we plan to return to st martin and finish our day at the beach.

1. where does the ship dock?

2. is it a deep water port or are passengers tendered?

3. if tendered how long is the trip to the dock?

4. has any one done the kayak excursion?

5. how long is the trip from the dock to orient beach, what is the best method of transportation and what is the cost for a family of 5?

6. does anyone recommend a beach other than orient?

7. is marigot worth the trip for sights or shopping? how long is the trip from orient to marigot and marigot to the ship?

8. is phillipsburg better (or worse) for shopping?

shopping is not a high priority only if there is time. i mainly buy clothes or local arifacts not jewelry or large, ie, shippable, items.

thanx in advance.

 

[TheWog]

herrbeb -

Wog again. The ship docks probably about a 1 minut walk away from the main shopping area. If you look out to sea from Land it is to the left. It takes about 5 -8 mins by water taxi to get to the main area. There is a small shopping complex right as you get off the ship. I saw one ship anchored and two others with us, RCI and Princess, at the pier. If you have a verandah, watch as you dock. It was very interesting. We also saw a car with someone's luggage as the Grand Princess was docking and delivered it on board. Imagine 3 days no stuff. Sorry, I don't have the answers to your other questions,except there is a beach at the airport where the planes come in really low. Heard it is really cool, but kind of loud as you would imagine.

There is a picture of Great Bay beach on the other thread started by piperG. It is a nice picture of the beach. [St. Maartern Beach at the Port ]

 

[RebeccaLovesDisney]

We went to Orient beach on our own. We got a taxi at the port, which was actually a van. I think it took about 30 minutes each way to get from the port to Orient. It is a beautiful beach, but I'd also be interested in opinions on other beaches in St. Martin.