Review on Bernard (SXM Tours) ~ 9/26/06

[LuvMyVette]

A group of us went on Bernard’s Tour on September 26, 2006 and had a fantastic time. I contacted Bernard by e-mail a few months prior to the cruise to obtain some information regarding the tour, cost, payment, etc. Bernard contacted me immediately and answered all of my questions. Since I was pleased with his response as well as the positive feedback on Cruise Critic I booked him. Members from the Cruise Critic thread joined us and we had a fun filled day. Originally, we had seven couples in our group but due to space in the van, a couple went with Bernard’s partner, Victor, which worked out very well.

Since all of us were friends from the thread it was very straightforward to work on the logistics of our tour and Bernard accommodated all of us.

Our tour was from 9am to 5pm and consisted of stopping at the following places:

Great Bay ~ Scenic area.

Rima’s ~ Store, which had a great selection of bathing suit cover-ups, island shirts, souvenirs, etc., and was reasonably priced.

Oyster Pond Bay ~ Scenic area.

Baie Lucas ~ Scenic area.

Le Gallion ~ Scenic area.

Orient Bay ~ Scenic area.

Orient Beach ~ For 1.5 hours of swimming. Beautiful beach and great view.

Maho Beach ~ To watch an American Airlines plane arrive and see smaller planes take off.

Simpson Bay ~ Scenic area.

Philipsburg ~ Two hours of shopping.

Bernard drove us through Marigot and other areas as well. Since Marigot is very expensive for shopping we excluded it and preferred to spend more time shopping in Philipsburg. Bernard asked if we were interested to watch a plane arrive at Maho Beach and of course we loved the idea since several of us did want to witness that. We had to sacrifice some time at Orient Beach but it was well worth it.

When it was time to shop in Philipsburg, Bernard stayed and took us back to the pier when anyone wanted to go. The latest we had to meet Bernard was at 5pm since we had to be back on the ship by 5:30pm. Bernard did walk us over to a jewelry store (Alpha Jewels) in case any of us were interested in purchasing jewelry. He highly recommended this store and they had a very nice selection with good prices. The owners were not pushy and were geared to make a customer happy.

Our group had a lot of fun and Bernard joined right in joking around with us. He answered all of our questions, was very informative about the island, took group pictures of us, made sure we were having a good time, etc. I highly recommend him to anyone that prefers to go with a private operator rather than with a cruise line excursion.

Bernard’s van is new, air-conditioned, has a microphone that he talks into so people in the back can hear, has space for beach/shopping bags and can accommodate ten to twelve people comfortably. Bernard is a very good driver as well.

Personally… I highly recommend him. Bernard answered all of my e-mails which contained several questions that myself or members of the group had in a timely manner. He was very professional, a lot of fun and always eager to please. His payment was in cash and did not require any down payment prior to the excursion, which was a huge plus for all of us. The cost was $30 per person and it was well worth it.

If you are interested in booking with Bernard or have questions, his e-mail address is info@sxmtours.com. Bernard’s website address is: http://www.sxmtours.com.

[howiethedog]

We were on this tour as well! St Maarten ended up being our favorite port and we think it was in great part due to Bernard. He was fun, full of great information and very accomodating to all of our requests and desires. Don't hesitate to book Bernard for your time in SXM. You will not be sorry!!

[cruissett]

:) My husband and I were also on this tour given by Bernard. It was our 4th visit to St Martin and the first time we ever got past Phillipsburg, and were we glad we did.

Bernard was there to pick us up, right on time, and off we went. He gave us full explanations about the French and Dutch sides, the money used, employment factors, why so much building is being done on the Dutch side, as to almost none on the French side answered all our questions and supplied so much other information. The sights were well presented, he was happy to take group shots of us, and never rushed the tour in any way. The stop at Maho Beach was fun, but when the AA jet came in for a landing it was truly awesome!

I would highly recommend anyone booking a tour with Bernard, in fact, if we ever get back to St Martin, you might just see us on this tour again.

[Kelfly]

What is the minimum/maximum number of guests on his tour? I am looking for something rather small...

[LuvMyVette]

Hi Kelfly:

I just sent Bernard an email since I'm not sure how small of a group he takes. How many people will be in your group and what day will you be in St. Martin?

 

Thanks!

[Jan_In_Maine]

Its so nice to hear some positive reports on Bernard - we have him booked for the end of the month. I always write a detailed review for the boards, so I will also add my thoughts to this board when we get back.

 

I am really looking forward to visiting - Jan

[LuvMyVette]

Hi Jan

Nice to run into you on the boards. How's everything in Maine? Hope you are doing well.

I hope your tour with Bernard will be rewarding as ours was. Tell Bernard that Trish from Explorer says hello.

 

St. Martin was absolutely beautiful and it was one of my favorite ports besides Labadee.

 

Have a fantastic cruise and enjoy!

[Jan_In_Maine]

Trish - I will make sure I say hi for you. I am so looking forward to this new adventure - it is starting to get cold in Maine ... and rainy, it is beginning to feel like winter. It will be nice to have warmth and sun.

 

We too really liked Labadee, so I'm sure that we will really like St. Martin, everything I've read has talked about the beauty. Jan

[crisp1]

Glad you all had a good time- I'm surprised that this hasn't been pulled yet ( we are not supposed to make recommendations for independant tours, only respond to requests for info).

On our tour ( Victor)we did much less shopping- his van is a mirrror image of Bernards- maybe they bought them at the same time

Seas the day

[Kelfly]

Hi Kelfly:

I just sent Bernard an email since I'm not sure how small of a group he takes. How many people will be in your group and what day will you be in St. Martin?

 

Thanks!

 

There are only 2 in our party, we'll be in St. Martin on Wednesday, November 15. Please post what you find out about group size. Thanks!

[LuvMyVette]

Diane & Nancy ~ Thanks so much for posting, it's greatly appreciated.

Jan - I hope you'll enjoy St. Martin as much as I did. I was there in 1991 and it's amazing how much it has changed over the years. A lot of development on both sides of the island but it's still very pretty. The scenic areas we went to were beautiful. I hope you'll have a great day.

Hope the summer was good for you this year. The hard part is getting through the winter and they can be brutal up there.

Enjoy your cruise and have a great time!

Chris ~ Thanks for posting as well and glad that you had a good day with Victor. So sorry that you didn't stay with us but it seems that you had a lot of fun as well thank goodness.

Kelfly ~ I did receive a response from Bernard. Private tours are more expensive so not sure if you are still interested. I suggest to send him an email, let him know that there are two people in your party and wait for his response. Not sure if he has other bookings that day. Good luck and I hope it works out for you.

[Arizona Laura]

Would appreciate any further feedback on Bernard's tours.

Looking to use him on tour next yr if details work out.

Says he would customize our tour.

Need to see how many he accomodates.

I was suspicious with same posting from LetsParty and Thorhillcruiser about Bernard.

Thanks Laura

[LuvMyVette]

Hi Laura:

I have no clue who Thorhillcruiser is.

The best thing to do is to contact Bernard via email with all of your questions. Also indicate the number of people in your party and where you would like to go. He will get back to you. Private tours (basically with a smaller group) are more expensive. It depends on the group of people in your party.

Hope he's able to help you out.

 

Sea ya!

[Sunshine101]

What time did you all go to Maho??

[Arizona Laura]

How does Bernard reserve a group tour?

Making plans with him but will not hear back till tomorrow.

No one wants to give credit card info.

Thanks for reply...Laura

[LuvMyVette]

Sunshine ~ We arrived around 2pm and the plane was a half hour late. The busy time is during the afternoon. Also depends on what season you are visiting the island. In September, the tourist season is slow since many people don't want to travel during Hurricane Season. The tourist season there will pick up in a few weeks and then there will be more flights arriving.

Laura ~ Send Bernard an email and let him know the date, ship you'll be on, how long you'll be in port, how many people in your party and if there's anywhere specific you would like to go to. We paid in cash and that was a huge plus for us since we didn't want to give the credit card information to anyone. Payment is made at the end of the tour.

Good luck and happy cruising!