Maho Beach

Ship excursion versus getting a taxi/minibus at the port to Maho Beach, which is the best to do?

Ship excursion versus getting a taxi/minibus at the port to Maho Beach, which is the best to do?

The latter worked for us 2yr ago! I'd been wanting to get there every time we were in at SM, and finally managed it!

The minibus/taxi option will always give you the 'flexibility' option and as long as you're aware of travel time/sailaway then you'll be good!

Personally speaking I would research arrival times beforehand as IMO it can be a little underwhelming with little aircraft arriving - that said I'm ex RAF and civilian military so I'm used to more than most as far as getting close to airliners go!

Enjoy your day out!

Take a taxi. It will be cheaper and you can stay as long or as short a time as you want. There will be multiple taxis available at both ends of the trip.

Ship excursion versus getting a taxi/minibus at the port to Maho Beach, which is the best to do?

We do the bus, at $2 per person, each way. This way we can stay at the beach as long as we want.

We use the bus too. Very easy to do.

Thanks folks :-) Lorna

Jumping on this thread because I have been wondering the exact same thing. I thought about booking through Royal but I definitely like the $2 bus fare... SOLD! Does anyone know where we can get Guavaberry Colada's? I've heard Guavaberry Rum has a stand set up at the port and a store in town. I would really like to have a real one. I've had them here in the States but I now the real deal will be amazing.

Last time we were at Maho, in March I think, it was nothing like it used to be. The airport was barely repaired and flights in were minimal. The Sunset was rebuilt, not much more though. The beach was empty. It was sad.

BTW - the Guavaberry rum is available in the port area. Free samples too.

BTW - the Guavaberry rum is available in the port area. Free samples too.

Awesome! Thanks!

We do the bus, at $2 per person, each way. This way we can stay at the beach as long as we want.

Where do you catch the bus? Is it near the taxi stand? Would much rather do that on our next trip.

We catch the bus in town, behind the courthouse on Back street.

Look for what looks like a VW minibus with a handwritten sign in the front window that says "Maho".

We catch the bus in town, behind the courthouse on Back street.

 

Look for what looks like a VW minibus with a handwritten sign in the front window that says "Maho".

It's about 1/2 mile walk into town.

Ship excursion versus getting a taxi/minibus at the port to Maho Beach, which is the best to do?

Two years ago the only ship excursion I could find that visited Maho Beach was a Snorkel/Maho Beach boat excursion.

You couldn't swim to the beach, you could only see the planes from the water or the boat. Would not do it again.

Go by yourself and remember returning with more than an hour of time to spare because there could be a lot of traffic on the way back to the ship.

Last time we were at Maho, in March I think, it was nothing like it used to be. The airport was barely repaired and flights in were minimal. The Sunset was rebuilt, not much more though. The beach was empty. It was sad.

Well I can tell you two weeks ago the beach was absolutely filled with people and was like a great big party! The main terminal at the airport still has plywood sheets over windows etc but plenty of commuter jets and a couple of bigger ones landed during the 2 hours we were there. We hung out over by the Driftwood Cafe, less crowded over there!

The RC excursion charges $69 per person. The taxi was only $16 per person round trip. The excursion includes a guided tour as you drive out there, but I think the talkative taxi driver we had probably gave us a better guided tour along the way LOL.

You have to walk into town to catch the bus, the day we went it was so hot out that it was more than worth paying $16 for door-to-door service. And the taxis pretty much come continuously so you don't have to worry about having to wait for one. Our driver also told us when the last taxi would be picking up (it's based on the schedules of the ships in port), in case we were wanting to make a full day of it.

Have a great trip!

We catch the bus in town, behind the courthouse on Back street.

 

Look for what looks like a VW minibus with a handwritten sign in the front window that says "Maho".

It's about 1/2 mile walk into town.

If you don't want to walk to town you can always take the water taxi into town. It is $7.00 to ride all day and a very short walk to Back Streer to pick up the bus.

Yup, bus is the way to go. If your not sure where to find it, ask a local. We asked someone and she went out into the street and flagged it down for us.:)

We have done the taxi a few times...but make sure you have plenty of time to get back to the ship. On our last time to Maho there was a bad accident on one of the roads we were traveling on and traffic was backed up all over the place. The taxi driver knew we were going to be cutting it close, so he pulled over in someone's front yard, called another cab and walked us between the houses to another road where another cab picked us up to take us another route. LOL at 1st my wife was kinda worried that this guy was pulling a fast one on us, but all was good and we got to see more of the island as he took us the other way to get back to the ship.

Like that G-Rum..

The only reason I suggest people take ship sponsored tours is because it is the only guarantee you have that the ship will wait around for your if you run late or something happens.

We were there on the 5th and it was a perfect day! Several were swimming and there is now also a pool people can use. The restaurant has expanded and is the perfect size, good food, good drinks, good service with decent prices.

We didn't stick around for the larger planes as we had a toddler who needed a nap.

Since we had a group of 14 we took the shuttle service for $16 pp round trip.

We were there last week. We always just take a taxi. It was $40 one way for 5. You pay for the round trip at the port, they give you a wristband and you just grab any available one when you leave. The beach was packed!

We were at the Sunset Bar and Grill by 9:45am, stayed until about 2:15. It was about a 30 minute ride though it can be longer in the winter when there are a lot more ships and people in port.

The bigger planes (Jet Blue, Air France, Delta) arrived between 1 and 2 pm, some smaller ones almost every 20 minutes or so between 10 and 1.

We have done this a number of times and find it very easy.

mac_tlc

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Well I can tell you two weeks ago the beach was absolutely filled with people and was like a great big party! The main terminal at the airport still has plywood sheets over windows etc but plenty of commuter jets and a couple of bigger ones landed during the 2 hours we were there. We hung out over by the Driftwood Cafe, less crowded over there!

 

The RC excursion charges $69 per person. The taxi was only $16 per person round trip. The excursion includes a guided tour as you drive out there, but I think the talkative taxi driver we had probably gave us a better guided tour along the way LOL.

 

You have to walk into town to catch the bus, the day we went it was so hot out that it was more than worth paying $16 for door-to-door service. And the taxis pretty much come continuously so you don't have to worry about having to wait for one. Our driver also told us when the last taxi would be picking up (it's based on the schedules of the ships in port), in case we were wanting to make a full day of it.

 

Have a great trip!

Thanks for the report.:)

FYI: RCCL charges no where near 69.00 just for a ride to Maho. Maybe that's one that includes boat ride/snorkel or something.

We have went several times, and always rent a car from the port area, and drive ourselves to Maho and back.

taxi or bus for sure