klt
Reged: 04/13/03
Posts: 24
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For the past several years, we have passed through
St. Martin on our way to our vacation on St. Bart's.
This year we decided to give St. Martin a try instead.
We found the island every bit as enjoyable as St. Bart's.
The two are different of course. St Martin is a French
"Caribbean" experience. St. Bart's is a French "continental" experience.
The cuisine, the beaches, and the hospitality are equal on both islands.
Now we have two favorite vacations spots.
The nice thing is that St. Martin comes at a
25%-35% discount. (If those kinds of things matter.)
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 andynap
Reged: 10/24/02
Posts: 12074
Loc: Philadelphia
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Good for you. SXM is a very nice island with excellent beaches and great dining. A little crowded maybe but you are on vacation so who cares. Plus you can fly direct fom many locations- no waiting.
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Andy -
St. Barts- where no day is ever the same and one day is not enough
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Island Visitor
Reged: 12/19/02
Posts: 10396
Loc: Retraité
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Interesting perpective. Merci. Question for andynap:
If we stayed at St Martin, I assume we would stay on the French side. Do you like hotels (La Samanna, for instance) villas or condo-villas like Turtle Cay above Orient? Is the Orient Beach area too crowded? Are there preferred areas to stay?
We may add a couple of days to a St Barts trip before too long and stop over in St Martin.
Merci.
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klt
Reged: 04/13/03
Posts: 24
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We stayed in Grand Case. For info on hotels and
restaurants see: http://www.grandcase.com.
L'Esplanade Hotel and its sister, Le Petite Hotel,
are the Grand Case standouts.
The Orient Beach area does look like the upscale Jersey
shore. (My wife said it remindered her of Long Beach
Island).
But for real "over the top" fun, there is not place like
Orient Beach!
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Mike R
Reged: 05/26/03
Posts: 15651
Loc: Stinson Lake - New Hampshire
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upscale Jersey Shore????..isnt that an oxymoron??..what makes a Jersey Shore beach upscale?....one that actually DOESNT have medical wastes washng up on the shore and a barely above the minimum standard acceptable fecal coliform count???....
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karma is a beautiful thing at times
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Steve_in_STL
Reged: 02/01/03
Posts: 283
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IV, trust me on this, La Samanna is for you. Steve
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Island Visitor
Reged: 12/19/02
Posts: 10396
Loc: Retraité
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Steve: I found La Samanna in the guidebooks YEARS ago. And I was VERY intrigued. But it gets very uneven ratings. Because of this, I never really know what to believe on the other sites. In this site, I feel like folks tell it like it is.
La Samanna intriques me but it is fairly expensive and with the uneven reviews it gets, maybe I better just play it safe and settle for St Barts.
sigh.
(hee hee hee)
Edited by Island Visitor (05/02/04 10:43 AM)
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klt
Reged: 04/13/03
Posts: 24
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Just to set the record straight,
over the past several years, New Jersey has poured millions of dollars into beach clean-up and restoration.
They have one of the the most agressive water quality programs in the country.
The state can now boast the cleanest water on the entire East coast.
Believe it or not, those are the facts.
They had to do it. Tourism is the third largest industry in the state.
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Mike R
Reged: 05/26/03
Posts: 15651
Loc: Stinson Lake - New Hampshire
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well thats nice to hear...I have many fond memoroies of times spent on the Jersey Shore before it became what it became....
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karma is a beautiful thing at times
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klt
Reged: 04/13/03
Posts: 24
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Mike,
Please visit again.
Try Spring Lake, Rumson, Cape May or Long Beach Island.
They are all great places.
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Mike R
Reged: 05/26/03
Posts: 15651
Loc: Stinson Lake - New Hampshire
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oh I still go back often......I'll be there in a few weeks on my way to SBH....my oldest daughter lives in Point Pleasant Beach....just too built up for me.....I lived in Spring Lake in 1977...loved it....great town
Edited by Mike R (05/02/04 02:05 PM)
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pdiddy
Reged: 01/06/04
Posts: 44
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I liked it alot. Sits on a beautiful, isolated beach. The restaurant has incredible views. Billy Graham checked in in front of us and turned around to introduce himself. While you are right that it is expensive, if you are going to go to SXM for a few days, you owe it to yourself to stay there.
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