St. Maarten: Bernard's Tours?

We booked the SXM Island Rout II - 9 am to 2:30 pm. It says that we'll go to Iguana farm, the french and dutch border, Oyster pond over looking the island of St. Barths, Orient beach to swim and eat, Marigot to shop, Maho beach to see the planes, drive t hrough Simpson Bay Marina and to Harold Jack HIll for a view of Simpson Marina, Airport and Anguilla.

Has anybody done a tourn with Bernard's tours? If so, is it worth it? I put $20pp deposit down, but i just wanted to make sure not to waste a day vs $80. ;p

Thank you in advance!!!

Not a waste!

We booked the SXM Island Rout II - 9 am to 2:30 pm. It says that we'll go to Iguana farm, the french and dutch border, Oyster pond over looking the island of St. Barths, Orient beach to swim and eat, Marigot to shop, Maho beach to see the planes, drive t hrough Simpson Bay Marina and to Harold Jack HIll for a view of Simpson Marina, Airport and Anguilla.

 

Has anybody done a tourn with Bernard's tours? If so, is it worth it? I put $20pp deposit down, but i just wanted to make sure not to waste a day vs $80. ;p

 

Thank you in advance!!!

I have used Bernard myself twice and recommended him 10 times to others ( As a cruise agent) - all LOVED him... can't go wrong with Bernard!!!:cool:

We've done Bernard's tour numerous times over the years, they are great!!!

Yes, go and have fun. We are going on our third tour with Bearnd's in Jan 2018. Awesome tour and tour guides. PS Look out for the " RUM PUNCH" it will get you...

My group of 10 did Bernards about a month ago. Because we were such a large group, we had our own van so it ended up being a private tour. It was excellent. We only did tour 1 (same tour as you, minus the Orient beach stop). It was supposed to be 9am-1pm. We had the island tour, the planes, stopped at the French side to eat/shop, stops at various photo ops. Our driver David was awesome. He gave us the option to get dropped off downtown for shopping, or just back at the port. We have all been to many Caribbean islands, so to us the shopping is more of the same, so we opted to go back to the port. We still had 2 1/2 hours before all aboard, so he asked if he could take a detour back to the port to show us the interior of the island and more obscure spots. Of course we said yes, and that worked out because we got some really great photos that we otherwise wouldn't have gotten. Overall, great tour and I would highly recommend Bernards!

Well worth it. My wife and I enjoyed our tour with them.

Oh great! I was starting to worry as I haven't seen much, if anything, on them - so this helps tremendously!!! Thank you!!

We head a great time with Bernard. There were only four people on our tour so it was great and private. Remember that they go by island time not ship time so verify what time it is or you will be an hour late. That is what happened when we went. There were only four of us because the others ended up there an hour later. So keep the time in mind.

Oh great! I was starting to worry as I haven't seen much, if anything, on them - so this helps tremendously!!! Thank you!!

You need to go over to the Ports of Call board for St. Maarten, where you'll find hundreds of threads dealing with Bernard's Tours. Here is the result of a quick search: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/search.php?searchid=104344127

We booked the SXM Island Rout II - 9 am to 2:30 pm. It says that we'll go to Iguana farm, the french and dutch border, Oyster pond over looking the island of St. Barths, Orient beach to swim and eat, Marigot to shop, Maho beach to see the planes, drive t hrough Simpson Bay Marina and to Harold Jack HIll for a view of Simpson Marina, Airport and Anguilla.

 

Has anybody done a tourn with Bernard's tours? If so, is it worth it? I put $20pp deposit down, but i just wanted to make sure not to waste a day vs $80. ;p

 

Thank you in advance!!!

Have toured with Bernard twice in 2009 and 2015 he and his guides are awesome you can't go wrong

We head a great time with Bernard. There were only four people on our tour so it was great and private. Remember that they go by island time not ship time so verify what time it is or you will be an hour late. That is what happened when we went. There were only four of us because the others ended up there an hour later. So keep the time in mind.

Thank you!! I am actually really paranoid about that very fact!! The email says to meet at 8:50 am in theparking lot - that obviously is 8:50 am ISLAND time - what time will that be on the ship? I feel dumb even asking that - but i want to be sure I dont miss it!

St. Maarten is on Atlantic Standard Time year round and does not observe Daylight Savings Time. So from March 12 to November 5, 2017, ship time and island time are one and the same.

Rent a car or jeep and go around on your own.

St.Maarten is very easy to drive.

The rental agencies are right next to the dock and it is less expensive than a bus tour.

We do it every visit.......

St. Maarten is on Atlantic Standard Time year round and does not observe Daylight Savings Time. So from March 12 to November 5, 2017, ship time and island time are one and the same.

Rent a car or jeep and go around on your own.

St.Maarten is very easy to drive.

The rental agencies are right next to the dock and it is less expensive than a bus tour.

We do it every visit.......

Hi do you recall the name of the car rental agency? Do you book in advance or just show up? Thanks

We (my husband, my parents and I) did Tour I a couple of years ago and we thought it was a very good value and an enjoyable day.

Here is my review with pictures, if you're interested: http://susancrow.blogspot.com/2015/05/celebrity-summit-day-6-st-martinst.html

Hi do you recall the name of the car rental agency? Do you book in advance or just show up? Thanks

We never rented a car in St Maarten, but I believe Hertz is right at the pier.

We highly recommend Bernard's tours!

Now I am really confused. LOL I emailed Bernard as well he said "That correct we are one hour ahead of ship time to better understand the meeting time. We will be meeting you half hour after your ship docks so you wont have any problem with ship time and island time." Forgot to mention that we cruise this Saturday!!!

To. E honest I'm a little unsure myself. When we did it in November it was an hour earlier. 9:30 island time was 8:30 ship time. With daylight saving time I'm not sure.

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We used them last year when on my son's college graduation cruise. We ALL loved our experience - from oldest to youngest. St. Maarten has never been one of my favorite ports of call although I've ended up visiting it many times on cruises. Touring with Bernard's gave me an entirely new perspective. Well worth the money.

We used Bernard's two years ago in St. Maarten, and booked the whole van for 6 of us. It was the best! They will take you wherever you want, and stay for as long as you want. We stayed at Orient Beach for 3 hours and skipped the shopping. My family still talks about the French Bakery. We will be going back June 2018, can't wait and will use Bernards again.

Have used Bernard four times. You won't be disappointed

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Hi do you recall the name of the car rental agency? Do you book in advance or just show up? Thanks

They have 4 companies all right next to each other.

We just show up and find the one with the lowest rates.....

Bernard's is the best tour company on the island. Ask for tour guide "Mailman"....:cool: