St. Maarten with 2 ships in port... busy or not?

[MiaS13]

So on a St. Maarten weekday with 2 ships in port... how busy will it be?

[Karysa]

So on a St. Maarten weekday with 2 ships in port... how busy will it be?

 

To me that would be perfect. Enough people but not too many.

[Fblack]

On my Eclipse cruise a few weeks ago we had 4 or 5 ships in port including NCL Epic, and a Disney ship. It never felt too crowded in town.

[realproperty]

what is your alternative? We were there last Wednesday, Oasis and two others were in town. Imagine your favourite shopping mall on a busy day. Get out of town, fast. Visit Marigot, or a beach. Phillipsburg is commercial and busy and hardly authentic Caribbean.

[MiaS13]

what is your alternative? We were there last Wednesday, Oasis and two others were in town. Imagine your favourite shopping mall on a busy day. Get out of town, fast. Visit Marigot, or a beach. Phillipsburg is commercial and busy and hardly authentic Caribbean.

 

Well, my issue is that I want to do all of those things... so if I lose a lot of time with traffic, it might not be possible. Just trying to have realistic expectations :rolleyes:

 

Actually, funny you should mention, I don't mind my favorite mall, even on the busiest day... DH on the other hand... LOL. At least I know to expect traffic going there and back, and crowds in the meanwhile...

[gtaylor]

Nothing to worry about.

 

gary

[jcumming]

Two ships is practically deserted.

 

I have been there with 4 monsters at the dock and had no trouble picking up a car on the pier even though I didn't have a reservation.

[Blanes]

So on a St. Maarten weekday with 2 ships in port... how busy will it be?

 

 

Hopefully not as busy with five ships in port which is what we will have in April !!

 

Planning to take a taxi to Marigot and leave about 12.30pm for Philipsburgh and water taxi back to the ship. Can anyone tell me if this is feasible given that over 13,000 people will be on the Island.

 

Thanks

[Ocean Boy]

Two ships is a very slow day for St. Maarten. If you are looking to buy anything on the island, bargaining for good pricies tends to be much better on a slow day as there is less competition. Even taxi drivers are more likely to negotiate pricing with you.

[jcumming]

Planning to take a taxi to Marigot and leave about 12.30pm for Philipsburgh and water taxi back to the ship. Can anyone tell me if this is feasible given that over 13,000 people will be on the Island.

 

 

As long as your ship is leaving later in the afternoon you will have lots of time in Phillipsburg. One time when I was there the water taxi lineup was quite long and lots of people were walking back to the ship. That takes about 15 or 20 minutes. The little bars on the pier get really busy late in the afternoon as people don't want to be stuck somewhere on a hilly highway with a perfect view of their ship leaving the harbour. :)

[TOlson70]

We were there in February with two ships, it was not bad at all.

[Joaljoe]

We were just there last month with 6 ships docked. It was quite busy but not overwhelming ( for me at least). The lines for the water taxis looked bad but went pretty fast...you'd be surprised how many people they can fit into 1 taxi.

 

With only 2 ships, you won't have any problems at all. :)

[Putterdude]

With only two ships in port it should be a dream.:)

[loribel]

We are meeting friends from another ship and want to know if anyone has a restaurant suggestion to meet closest to the port?

[gtaylor]

We are meeting friends from another ship and want to know if anyone has a restaurant suggestion to meet closest to the port?

 

A simple suggestion from an earlier post. They're on the Boardwalk in Philipsburg, minutes away from the ship, even walkable, if you'd like, and everyone knows where they are.

 

 

From personal experience, I would have two recommendations.

 

If you're looking for a hip/happening place on the Boardwalk, consider Taloula Mango's. We've eaten there twice and the food was fine, and they (at least used to) offer this.

(click)

 

 

 

For a much more Island Traditional take, I have to recommend the Pasanggrahan. We've stayed there twice and love the bar and the restaurant. Say hello to Ole.

 

gary

 

[unforgettable]

Two ships in St. Maarten is not a problem. We were there last Thursday (St. Patty's Day) and we were one of two ships in town on the same day. After visiting St. Thomas the previous day along with pax from five other cruise ships, it was a real pleasure. Relax and enjoy - St. Maarten is a beautiful island.

 

If you're looking for excursion options, you may want to consider booking a custom tour with Joyce Prince - she's FABULOUS! I'd highly recommend her to anyone visiting the island.

[ciera123]

We have Joyce booked for our June 10th and can't wait to see St Maarten. Serenade of the Seas is the only ship in that day! :)

[the2ofus]

Only two ships may seem like a slow day in St. Martin, because the foot traffic in town is less. However, you still need to be cautious about making your all aboard time. The roads between the Dutch and French sides of the island can become clogged with traffic in the afternoon, and road construction is an unpredictable part of the equation. Being on a ship's tour may offer some help in these cases, but don't count on it.

[the2ofus]

I second the recommendation for Joyce Prince. She gave us a great tour several years ago. My only suggestion is to be sure your group is in agreement on what you want to see and do. One person in our group wanted jewelry and was very particular in her tastes. Joyce directed us to several good quality stores in town at the beginning of our trip, but the rest of our group was less interested in shopping and wished we'd had more time out in the countryside and on the French side of the island.