Our third port on this southern Caribbean cruise was St. Maarten — a repeat stop for us, since we’d visited on our cruise four years ago. Of all the ports we revisited on this trip, St. Maarten felt like the one that had changed the most since our last stop. And after a private tour that covered a lot of familiar ground, we came away with some strong opinions about how we’d do this island differently next time.
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Why We Booked a Private Tour (Again)
After falling in love with private touring in Mexico City, we’ve made it a habit to book private tours when we can, rather than joining a big group excursion. The pitch is always the same: a private guide can customize the day to what you actually want to see. To book a private tour of St. Maarten, check out Viator.
We told our guide about a lunch we’d had on our last visit at a little French cafe right on the beach in Grand Case — a town on the French side known for its food scene, with restaurants literally steps from the sand. It was one of our favorite meals from that first trip, and we hoped to recreate it.
Here’s where things got a little lost in translation. We mentioned we’d love to try more authentic food, but weren’t sure the timing would work with our half-day excursion. What we probably should have said was something more direct — like asking for a recommendation in Philipsburg, near the cruise pier, instead. Alternatively, we ended up eating lunch in Marigot at 10:00 AM, even though we drove straight through Grand Case at what would have been a normal lunch hour. The restaurant we loved wasn’t even open yet.
Was our guide just working within the time he had, or steering us toward a spot he preferred? Hard to say. He was friendly and the tour was fine — just not the best private tour experience we’ve had. In hindsight, touring St. Maarten this way is a tough assignment for a guide: you’re basically driving the island’s perimeter and hitting the same stops everyone else hits.
Maho Beach: Come for the Planes, Not the Sand
Our first stop was Maho Beach, probably the most famous beach in St. Maarten thanks to its spot right next to the airport runway. Planes come in low enough that you can watch them land from the sand — we caught a JetBlue flight along with a smaller inter-island plane.
A few notes if you’re planning a stop here:
- It’s not a big beach, and there isn’t a ton to do beyond the plane-watching novelty and the bar/restaurant right there.
- We visited in summer, and it was noticeably hotter than our usual winter Caribbean trips — not exactly beach-lounging weather.
- Don’t climb the fence. We watched someone try it while we were there. This isn’t an exaggeration for effect: people have died from jet blast at this beach. It’s not worth it for a photo.
Marigot: A Town That’s Come Back to Life
From Maho, we headed to Marigot, the main town on the French side of the island. Last time we were here, back in 2022, Marigot felt like a ghost town. We wandered up and down streets lined with boarded-up businesses, and the food stalls we’d read about were all closed. We assumed it was pandemic fallout — businesses that hadn’t reopened yet.
This time was a completely different experience. The area was bustling, food stalls were open, and there was clearly a lot more going on. It was genuinely nice to see the recovery, and it made us appreciate the island more than we had the first time around.
This was also where our lunch plans got a little lost in translation. We’d told our guide about a meal we’d loved on our last visit at a little French cafe right on the beach in Grand Case — a town nearby known for its food scene, with restaurants literally steps from the sand. We mentioned we’d love to try more authentic food, but weren’t sure the timing would work with our half-day excursion. What we probably should have said was something more direct — like asking for a recommendation in Philipsburg instead. Instead, we ended up eating lunch in Marigot at 10:00 AM, even though we drove straight through Grand Case a little later at what would have been a normal lunch hour. The restaurant we loved last time wasn’t even open yet.
Was our guide just working within the time he had, or steering us toward a spot he preferred? Hard to say. He was friendly, the tour was fine, and our lunch was tasty. In hindsight, touring St. Maarten this way is a tough assignment for a guide: you’re basically driving the island’s perimeter and hitting the same stops everyone else hits.
After lunch, we walked through the Marigot Market, which, if we’re honest, is mostly the kind of container-ship trinket stalls you find at a lot of cruise ports. But it’s worth a walk-through, because we found a genuine gem: a jeweler selling handmade pieces crafted from reclaimed materials — old copper wiring, reused piping, that kind of thing. She walked us through the origin of each piece as we browsed, and we left with a one-of-a-kind necklace we wouldn’t have found anywhere else.
Orient Beach: The Low-Key Spot We Missed Last Time
From Marigot, we continued on to Orient Beach, which we’d somehow missed on our first trip. This ended up being one of the more relaxing stops of the day. There’s a stretch with beach bars where you can grab a drink and just settle in. We’re not big beach people, but even we enjoyed the low-key vibe here, hot as it was.
Orient Beach is also home to the island’s nude beach, just past the rock wall if you keep walking — something we’d heard plenty about on our first visit.
What We’d Do Differently Next Time
Having now done this same loop around St. Maarten twice, we’re ready to admit the “drive the whole island” approach has run its course for us. Next time, we’d rather pick one area and actually spend time there instead of hitting every highlight for twenty minutes each — whether that’s posting up in Grand Case, spending a full afternoon at Maho Beach, or something else entirely.
We also never made it to Topper’s, the rum distillery our guide mentioned early on — before lunch logistics took over the conversation and it got forgotten. That’s on the list for a future visit. To book your island tour of St. Maarten, check out Viator.
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