Catamaran Sail - St. Maarten or St. Kitts

We are looking to take a catamaran / snorkel excursion on either St. marten or St. Kitts. Does anyone have a recommendation on which island is best for this activity? There will be 6 in our group with two of them being ages 8 and 9 so we aren't looking for a party boat. I would appreciated suggestions and recommendations.

Thanks

For SXM we'd highly recommend Golden Eagle -

sailingsxm dot com

We are looking to take a catamaran / snorkel excursion on either St. marten or St. Kitts. Does anyone have a recommendation on which island is best for this activity? There will be 6 in our group with two of them being ages 8 and 9 so we aren't looking for a party boat. I would appreciated suggestions and recommendations.

 

Thanks

If you don't care which island you do this in then I would suggest leaving St. Maarten for the beach day. I prefer the beaches of St. Maarten/St. Martin to those of St. Kitts myself. Mullet bay beach and then the 15 minute walk over to to Maho beach to see the planes landing and taking off would be my suggestion for your group. Perhaps a day sail to Nevis from St. Kitts would be a possibility depending on your time in port.:)

I'll piggy back on this, but say Orient Beach for St Maarten and a catamaran sail to Nevis from St Kitts.

For a beach day on SXM I would much more prefer a nicer beach like Friar's or Happy Bay or even Bay Rough. Orient is ok for wrinkle-watching.:p

The cat to Nevis with lunch on Pinney's Beach is a nice day, or there are nice beaches on St Kitt's as well.

But for the original request we'd look at the Golden Eagle on SXM - excellent crew, kid friendly, and great lunch.

I'll piggy back on this, but say Orient Beach for St Maarten and a catamaran sail to Nevis from St Kitts.

Agree with you on this! Love the catamaran from St. Kitts to Nevis! :)

LuLu

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For a beach day on SXM I would much more prefer a nicer beach like Friar's or Happy Bay or even Bay Rough. Orient is ok for wrinkle-watching.:p

 

The cat to Nevis with lunch on Pinney's Beach is a nice day, or there are nice beaches on St Kitt's as well.

 

But for the original request we'd look at the Golden Eagle on SXM - excellent crew, kid friendly, and great lunch.

Bay "Rough" is where my DH and DD nearly drowned back in 2006. Terrifying few moments for us. ( Baie Rouge ;) but you are not wrong either). Can't recommend this beach for children anymore. I went back with DH around 2010 for the afternoon and kept counting the little heads of other peoples children every time one of those crazy waves appeared.

Unless you rent a car OP I wouldn't recommend any of these beaches for a cruise stop.

I agree that the Golden Eagle on SXM is a great day on the water. As for beaches, St. Maarten over St. Kitts on this one many times over.

For a beach day on SXM I would much more prefer a nicer beach like Friar's or Happy Bay or even Bay Rough. Orient is ok for wrinkle-watching.:p

 

The cat to Nevis with lunch on Pinney's Beach is a nice day, or there are nice beaches on St Kitt's as well.

 

But for the original request we'd look at the Golden Eagle on SXM - excellent crew, kid friendly, and great lunch.

Love that spellcheck! Yes Bay Rouge is a beautiful bay and definitely worth a visit. Sorry to hear you had a close call years ago karysa, indeed any beach can be dangerous during sea swells and some are more open than others but BR is a nice beach to enjoy for us. Friar's and Happy are even nicer beaches but further away and so a longer taxi but oh so worth it. I would not waste my time with Orient or Maho unless you are looking for a busier vibe like on the ship and packed in like sardines. We stayed at OB and could enjoy the beach after the cruise ships left but we went to the other beaches during the day.

We love the beaches of St Kitts too, and would choose the GE if looking at a daysail.

Love that spellcheck! Yes Bay Rouge is a beautiful bay and definitely worth a visit. Sorry to hear you had a close call years ago karysa, indeed any beach can be dangerous during sea swells and some are more open than others but BR is a nice beach to enjoy for us. Friar's and Happy are even nicer beaches but further away and so a longer taxi but oh so worth it. I would not waste my time with Orient or Maho unless you are looking for a busier vibe like on the ship and packed in like sardines. We stayed at OB and could enjoy the beach after the cruise ships left but we went to the other beaches during the day.

 

We love the beaches of St Kitts too, and would choose the GE if looking at a daysail.

My kids loved Maho when they were 9 so I think Maho is a great choice for the OP who is traveling with an 8 and 9 year old. I also would not recommend Baie Rouge for children of that age either. Our daughter was a strong swimmer and 12 1/2 when she was taken under along with her father. She later continued swimming lessons and became a lifeguard. Thank goodness our 9 year olds were up on the sand when this happened. I personally would not visit any of the 3 beaches that you recommended by taxi as I think that they are too far/remote to take the chance on a taxi on a cruise day. Also the last time I went to Happy Bay, in July of 2013 there were several nude adults. Many parents of 8 and 9 year olds are not comfortable with this so I think that it needs to be mentioned.

Bay "Rough" is where my DH and DD nearly drowned back in 2006. Terrifying few moments for us. ( Baie Rouge ;) but you are not wrong either). Can't recommend this beach for children anymore. I went back with DH around 2010 for the afternoon and kept counting the little heads of other peoples children every time one of those crazy waves appeared.

 

Unless you rent a car OP I wouldn't recommend any of these beaches for a cruise stop.

 

I agree that the Golden Eagle on SXM is a great day on the water. As for beaches, St. Maarten over St. Kitts on this one many times over.

Is the Golden Eagle Ok for people that don't snorkel? Are you able to touch bottom? Is there a restroom on the boat?

My wife and I are planning our trip on the valor next year. We are thinking the catamaran trip on st. kitts and the pirate tours on st marten. We don't have kids, so our interests may be different than yours as we are looking for a fun time but just a thought.

Is the Golden Eagle Ok for people that don't snorkel? Are you able to touch bottom? Is there a restroom on the boat?

Yes no need to snorkel to enjoy this day, the crew pampers you, yes to bathrooms. May be over 5 ft in some spots.

Is the Golden Eagle Ok for people that don't snorkel? Are you able to touch bottom? Is there a restroom on the boat?

I have only been on the Golden Eagle Catamaran around the island not the powerboat so I can not comment on that one. There was a bathroom on the GE catamaran. If the snorkeling is at Creole Rock then the water is around 13 feet deep so no you can not touch. To be able to touch at Long Bay I would have had to swim closer to shore. DH couldnt touch there either. The time that I was on the GE I found the crew to be excellent and accommodating. No issue if you want to stay on the boat while the others snorkel.

Yes no need to snorkel to enjoy this day, the crew pampers you, yes to bathrooms. May be over 5 ft in some spots.

They are very patient with new snorkelers and you wear flotation vests too.