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ST Maarten suggestion please


Neesa

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Our visit in August is here from 0800-1800. Would like a Beach type day to include two teens (16) I am looking for other then a Royal excursion.  

What have you done that you would do again and recommend? Resortsforaday.com is limited & Jaital.com has a few. Is there anything or anywhere else? 

Thanks so much!

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We took a suggestion from here and walked the 10 minutes to Great Bay Beach.  Rented 4 loungers & 2 umbrellas for $30 close to the water.  We had access to plenty of alcohol on the ship so we got soda & waters (5) in a bucket for $10.  Delicious lunch from the restaurant right behind us delivered.  Total of about $120 with tips for the day for 4.  It was also very close to shops so we could go back & forth as we pleased.  Really enjoyed the day.  There is also a water taxi at the port if you don’t want to walk. $7pp each way.

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On 3/25/2022 at 4:08 PM, Floski said:

Grab a taxi (you should be able to find one before your cruise) and head to Orient Beach or some other awesome spot.

It's not expensive, and there are bars/restaurants right there at the beach.

If you are traveling with kids be advised Orient Beach has a clothing optional section. 

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2 hours ago, Snotarni said:

We connected with an ATV company and had a 6-hour tour of the island... it was great!  Splash in the Sun was the company.

Did you just make reservations with them directly?  

Thanks so much for this post.  My wife & I picked a beach excursion but it's far away and not something we really wanted to do.  This sounds like a lot more fun.

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2 hours ago, TheWoerners said:

Did you just make reservations with them directly?  

Thanks so much for this post.  My wife & I picked a beach excursion but it's far away and not something we really wanted to do.  This sounds like a lot more fun.

Yep... I think we were able to do it online...  We did the 6-hour tour with a single ATV.  It was really a great way to see both sides of the island.

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On 3/28/2022 at 10:28 AM, Toby said:

If you are traveling with kids be advised Orient Beach has a clothing optional section. 

Hmmmm, now that's an excellent question.   I've seen topless (wow!) on the "clothing" side

so it's very possible that they may be exposed.    Perhaps somewhere on the Dutch side may

be better for kiddos.

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We just got back from a cruise on the Oasis and St. Maarten was our least favorite...At least Orient Beach.  (We enjoyed the horseback riding)  It was an RC excursion.  Our tour guide treated us like children and she acted like a drill sergeant.  We were harassed constantly on the beach for a massage, hair braids and selling their stuff.  NOT what we wanted or expected.  And yes, there were quite a number of topless women.   In the past, when I cruised to SM, we did a zipline excursion which was a blast, but nothing was offered like that this year from RC.  This was my husband's first cruise and SM was a disappointment.   Following this thread for future suggestions...

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And St Maarten was our favorite stop!  No excursion just a quick walk to Great Bay Beach.  Very friendly people, great spot near the water.  Vendors but not at all pushy, close to shopping food delivered from the restaurant behind us was delicious.  It was a pretty darn perfect day.  Total cost for four with food, non-alcoholic beverages, loungers & umbrellas $132 with tips.

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3 hours ago, Pooch said:

And St Maarten was our favorite stop!  No excursion just a quick walk to Great Bay Beach.  Very friendly people, great spot near the water.  Vendors but not at all pushy, close to shopping food delivered from the restaurant behind us was delicious.  It was a pretty darn perfect day.  Total cost for four with food, non-alcoholic beverages, loungers & umbrellas $132 with tips.

Will have to try that next time!!

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Google Rainforest Adventures in St. Maarten, Fantastic zip lining, slide. Do the whole thing.  Catch a cab early before the cruise ship buses show up. Not offered by Royal but others. Be back by noon and enjoy the beach afterwards. You can see the whole island from the top of the mountain. Great time particularly if you have kids. Makes the zip line in Labadee look lame in comparison..

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On 3/25/2022 at 10:18 AM, Pooch said:

We took a suggestion from here and walked the 10 minutes to Great Bay Beach.  Rented 4 loungers & 2 umbrellas for $30 close to the water.  We had access to plenty of alcohol on the ship so we got soda & waters (5) in a bucket for $10.  Delicious lunch from the restaurant right behind us delivered.  Total of about $120 with tips for the day for 4.  It was also very close to shops so we could go back & forth as we pleased.  Really enjoyed the day.  There is also a water taxi at the port if you don’t want to walk. $7pp each way.

Do you know the name of the restaurant and the name of the vendor for beach chairs/umbrellas? First time going in a few weeks. We plan on doing what you guys did. Thank you!

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No, but he was a (please forgive me for the description but) fairly short, bowlegged gentleman.  Probably the fourth or fifth vendor we encountered.  Don’t know why I stopped for him but glad we did.  Orange loungers close to where the jet ski vendors beached.  The beach continues for a long way after that so there are many such vendors.

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I haven't booked anything yet, but I have thought about either renting a taxi for a day or a private tour company so that we can "choose our own adventure".  There are four of us and we would like a combination of sight-seeing, beaches, shopping and a nice lunch. Viator has a pretty large selection of things to do.  We did one our their tours on Roatan and were happy with their service.

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