Mosquitos in st. Martin

Has anyone heard about ships into st. Martin because of the mosquito borne virus that they are currently having? We leave Sunday on the silhouette and we are supposed to be in st. Martin on Wednesday

who told you that? on board and walked all day, not one bite.

We just got back and no signs of slow flyers at all, It did rain for ten minutes..

Only bug I saw around was the German ship Meit Piffer II, on one side, and two other ships the NCL epic, maybe they brought them over :D

A lovely street to visit.

That is a rain smear. it came down heavy.....

I saw an article about this virus in the Miami Herald today. If you check the CDC website or the US State Dept website under traveler warnings for St. Maarten/Martin, there's no mention of this.

However, if you check the CDC website for travel warnings for "clinicians", it does mention the threat of Dengue Fever in association with that island.

DH and I will be on the Reflection in a few weeks. We've been to St. Maarten/Martin before. In view of the report today in the newspaper, we decided to just stay on the ship. In fact, DH may not even venture onto the deck!! Maybe we're being over-protective. But there's nothing there we really need to see anyway.

I haven't seen anything else with regard to cruise ships docking there.

A google search found this: http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2013/12/18/255216192/trouble-in-paradise-chikungunya-outbreak-grows-in-caribbean

I have to say, I'm not thrilled to hear that right before travelling there. On the other hand, there are a number of worse diseases that one could catch in the world. Probably not worth stressing out about too much. Off to buy some insect repellent!

I can't count the number of times I've been to St. Martin (the most recent being less than 3 weeks ago) and I've never seen one mosquito. Of course I'm not there from dusk on.

I can't count the number of times I've been to St. Martin (the most recent being less than 3 weeks ago) and I've never seen one mosquito. Of course I'm not there from dusk on.

Sorry to tell you this, but we just came off the Eclipse on November 30 and were docked in St. Martin. My husband and I both were bitten by mosquitoes. We have been there many times, but this is the first we've encountered those darned critters. Remember that not all mosquitoes carry this disease. We seem to be okay.

Sorry to tell you this, but we just came off the Eclipse on November 30 and were docked in St. Martin. My husband and I both were bitten by mosquitoes. We have been there many times, but this is the first we've encountered those darned critters. Remember that not all mosquitoes carry this disease. We seem to be okay.

SO tells where you went in st mateen to get bitten. I bet you went to the French side?:D

Personally, I've never run into mosquitos on any of the islands other then when doing a rain forest tour (bring repellent and a rain parka if you're doing a rain forest tour).

Exception to this is when we've stayed overnight on an Island when doing a land based trip. We stayed on St. Thomas a few years ago and were warned to avoid the beach at dusk, or later, or to use insect repellant. I also know people who have stayed on St. Maarten who mentioned the mosquitos became an issue in the evening.

We were there a few weeks ago for a day and I did not notice any bugs at all. However, several people we were with complained about having a bunch of bug bites the following day.

There is now an official alert on the CDC website about this virus. It advises travelers to wear long sleeves and long pants and to use insect repellent.

Seems it's best to stay in open breezy areas since mosquitos have fragile wings and don't fly well in the wind. Also to avoid being out after dust.

We will be taking along OFF Deep Woods for Sportsmen which comes in convenient 1 oz. spray containers.

LuLu

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Just in SM yesterday and didn't notice an issue. Our sunscreen has built mosquito protection and that may be why

We've been to St. Maarten/Martin before. In view of the report today in the newspaper, we decided to just stay on the ship. In fact, DH may not even venture onto the deck!! Maybe we're being over-protective. But there's nothing there we really need to see anyway.

 

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Unbelievable.

In view of the report today in the newspaper, we decided to just stay on the ship. In fact, DH may not even venture onto the deck!! Maybe we're being over-protective. But there's nothing there we really need to see anyway.

QUOTE]

Hope that DH doesn't run into anyone on the ship with the common cold.

Chances of getting Noro from another person onboard would be much greater I'd think , than being bitten mid day by a specific mosquito carrying a specific virus on any Carib Island.;)

The only thing DH said was that he will keep his clothes on at Orient Beach!

"Hope that DH doesn't run into anyone on the ship with the common cold."

ME, TOO!!!

And I'll be bringing my Clorox wipes and Lysol, too.

"Hope that DH doesn't run into anyone on the ship with the common cold."

 

ME, TOO!!!

 

And I'll be bringing my Clorox wipes and Lysol, too.

Better use them several times a day after the room steward cleans things up with his filthy rag from the rooms he was just in. Maybe clean the whole ship too all day, or don't ever touch anything..........:rolleyes:

DH and I will be on the Reflection in a few weeks. We've been to St. Maarten/Martin before. In view of the report today in the newspaper, we decided to just stay on the ship. In fact, DH may not even venture onto the deck!! Maybe we're being over-protective. But there's nothing there we really need to see anyway.

If this is what you want to do, I think you're making a good decision. I know others are poo-poo'ing this but you know what you are comfortable with and what your health status/concerns are. Do what is right for you!

I am a mosquito magnet. I'd be staying on the ship, too. Actually, I don't find the need to get off in most of the Caribbean ports any more. They are overcrowded, over-priced, and not relaxing like they used to be. I rarely cruise the Caribbean for those very reasons. When I do, it's a ship vacation for me.

Enjoy your cruise - your way!!!

Better use them several times a day after the room steward cleans things up with his filthy rag from the rooms he was just in. Maybe clean the whole ship too all day, or don't ever touch anything..........:rolleyes:

I have an idea...let's not ridicule others for how they choose to react to information. After all, no one is rolling their eyes at the people who choose not to consider/heed warnings. Everyone can do what they want. Some one staying on the ship has no impact on anyone else. Just like some one choosing to get off the ship has no impact on anyone else.

How sweet it would be if everyone just said "rock on with your decision! enjoy your cruise!" and respected each other's decisions!

If you had ever had this disease you would not make fun of those a bit afraid to get off the ship. The DH had dungue fever from a cruise to Belize. He had horrid joint pain and fever for weeks in his mid 40s from it. I was truly afraid he would never recover fully but after about 6 weeks slowly improved. We still cruise but are careful now. Since we were in St Martin 2 weeks ago I would have wanted to skip our excursion had I known about this. You can not be afraid of everything - this is true - but with our experience we are more cautious now.

Beach4me: What wonderful words. 100% agree!!

Cruiselvr04: Also 100% agree ("You cannot be afraid of everything"). As a fellow exerciser of caution, I will vouch that, for me, this is always a prudent decsion. Glad DH has recovered!

I hope the mosquito eradication measures being taken by the St. Maarten gov't have the desired effect to reduce the transmission of the virus. Worst case scenario: if there are many more cases of disease and St. Maarten gets lots of bad publicity, cruise lines could start announcing itinerary changes that drop stopping there.

We were just in St maartin last week with the NCL Gem. I wasn't looking for them, but I honestly did not see any mosquitos. Saw some tiny bugs flying around. I would call then knats. But no mosquitos noticed. We did a good long bus tour around both sides of the island.

Jim

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), St. Martin has been put on a health alert after several cases of chikungunya were identified. Chikungunya is “a viral disease that is rarely fatal and is transmitted to humans by infected mosquitoes.”

As of December 10, 2013, the WHO confirmed two local cases on the French side of the island, four probable cases and 20 suspected cases of chikungunya. Another report from the U.S. Center for Disease Control (CDC), which has issued a travel notice to its citizens, claims that as of December 12, 2013, 10 cases of the disease have been identified in people on the French side.

The WHO reports that chikungunya symptoms include: “high fever and headache, with significant pains in the joints (ankles, wrists), which can persist for several weeks. The symptoms appear between four and seven days after the patient has been bitten by an infected mosquito.”

There is no vaccine for chikungunya and medical institutions recommend using caution by keeping covered (long sleeves, pants, etc.), using insect repellant and avoiding areas where mosquitos breed. Read the full stories here and here.

Was in St. martin on Dec 17. Wasn't aware of the misquito issue before we left. It wasn't mentioned on the ship. We spent the day on a boat driving around the island, in the water, and on the beach. Neither of us noticed misquitos or got bit while we were there. I am usually a misquito magnet. Not saying you won't get bit down there, but it didn't seem like an issue to us.

St. Martin has always had a bad mosquito problem. I have vacationed there for more than 20 years. At night, we sleep in a bed covered with netting. We use bug repellant. We still get bitten. While the problem is worse at night, there are still mosquitoes eating during the day. I would pay attention to the CDC warning. Cover up, wear no fragrance except repellant with DEET.