Am I taking a chance going to Maho Beach?

[Sandyrella]

There will be 6 ships in port that day, including the Oasis of the Seas, Carnival Dream, Celebrity Solstice, Sea Princess, one other(?) and us, Emerald Princess.

 

I know that not everyone gets off the ship but assuming they do, we are talking about 17,000 people in port.:mad:

 

We booked this cruise because we had never been on Princess and had never been to St. Maarten. We really wanted to go to Maho Beach to watch some of the planes come in but now I am very worried about traffic. I was hoping to go there as soon as we disembark, until about 2:30 when some of the large planes are due to arrive and then head back to the port area for shopping, beach or whatever.....:rolleyes:

 

If we leave Maho at 2:30 and sail at 6:00, is there any possibility that we won't make it back?? I've heard terrible things about traffic here but can it be that bad?:confused:

[Karysa]

Actually 2:30 would be a good time to leave Maho beach for traffic reasons. There is a bridge where the yachts enter and exit Simpson Bay Lagoon, plus the airport traffic after the big planes arrive and just the regular and tourist traffic on an island that is only 37 miles big must be taken into consideration. Unfortunately, most of the big jets land between 1:30 and 4:00 so you will miss most of them if you leave at 2:30. But really if you can see one or two land and take off you will have experienced the Maho experience. Personally, I would make sure that I was on the otherside of the Simpson Bay bridge by 3:30. That way I would know for sure that I could walk the bottleneck section between the bridge and the turn to town and then catch a taxi to the port.

[L_T]

You should be fine, however, you are visiting at a high activity time for bridge openings. There is the Heineken Regatta the first of March and lots of vessels will be passing in and out. If you like boats, take some time to explore the lagoon area.

 

http://www.heinekenregatta.com

[MDSue]

It only took us about 30 minutes to get back to port from Maho- even with a ton of traffic I doubt you would have any worries if you stayed a little later. The planes are great to watch!

[Sandyrella]

Thanks all!

 

Another question...since we have never been to St. Maarten, is it worth spending the whole time at Maho Beach and then trying to get back on time or should we do a tour that stops at Maho Beach instead...something like Bernard? I really wouldn't mind trying to squeeze in some time to see more of the island.

 

Aaah...decision, decisions:p

[Kikkycat]

I was very happy with our decision to tour with Bernard on our first time to St. Maarten. We learned a lot about the island, and saw as much as we could squeeze in. Maho is cool, but I don't think it's a great all-day destination, unless you're *really* a plane buff. The beach itself is not terribly exciting. We're going to be in St. Maarten for our 2nd time in a little more than a week, and plan on going to Maho for 2-3 hours, having some beers and lunch and watching planes. I am a huge plane fanatic but don't plan on spending the whole day there.

[cruzwpj]

When I found out the Regatta will be starting on Mar. 5, our day in St. Maarten, I got more excited to be able to see all the boats, but this will makes for huge crowds. Does anyone have any suggestions, we have been before to the island but not to watch the planes? I am thinking of taking our time getting to Maho Beach, have lunch and since most of the big planes don't come in until afternoon, hang out there for 2 or 3 hrs and head back to the ship. Thanks for any ones help.:o

MyVal

[Kikkycat]

Myval, you asked a question in the title, but not in the body of your message. But the answer is - no, the water taxi does not go to (or from) Maho Beach at all.