SXM Airport Info Please

After traveling to St Barth for many, many years we have been absent since the hurricane. We will be returning in a few weeks. If anyone has been down there recently or will be going there soon could you post a detailed description of transit procedures in the SXM airport. Any pictures you have would be great. We are not looking to pay a service to shepherd us through the airport unless the general consensus is that's now the way to go. We will arrive via JetBlue from JFK and we have booked a late afternoon flight on Winair. In the past right to the transit gate, ask for an earlier flight and off we went. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Merci..

The following is my June and September experience at SXM. Others may have had a wonderful time, or maybe a worse time than I did.


Arriving you will be put on a bus and driven the 150ft+/- to the big white tents. When you enter the tent, and you have carry-on only, immediately go to the right lane. In June there was a person standing there giving directions, I told them I was in-transit, no baggage to claim, St Barts Commuter, and they pointed to what is now considered the in-transit desk, which was just inside the tent to the right. I use St. Barts Commuter, their "desk" was just there in front of me and also another person asking me "which airline"... They gave me my boarding pass and pointed across the room to a door, which I went through. It put me in the large tent waiting room where I found "gate3" and waited for my SBC flight. Which in June, left early. In September I used Tradewinds to get to SBH from SJU. My feeling is that heading down to SBH is a much better experience than returning to SXM to fly home.

Returning from SBH to SXM in June and September was, about as much fun as a sharp stick in the eye. Off of St. Barts Commuter into the tent and there was no going through in-transit, even though I had no luggage and ticket in hand. Forced to go through SXM customs/immigration and out of the secure area. From there I walked (with everybody else) around the outside of the tents to the right to an outside check-in area, which was just an area with tables and airport employees directing you back inside the big tent to repeat check in, security, another boarding pass, and back into the big tent/boarding area/packed with people waiting area. This check in and security screen can take a while. There are several places in the tent to buy a cold drink and a sandwich. The tent can get VERY full, and rather warm.

Before Irma, SXM was no real issue in-transit. Going to take some time to get back to that.

Helpful description, Martin. Tourism to SXM isn't going to pick-up very fast with arrival / departure barriers like that.

Going through SXM was always a zoo going home. People were stuffed into that lower waiting room to board buses to the airplanes and it was definitely crowded and hot. I am thinking that although I have no desire to go to Puerto Rico, Tradewind must make for a much better arrival and departure. Can anyone comment on the departure situation in San Juan when you transfer from Tradewind to Delta? We are thinking of going that way if we are coming in 2019 to avoid the chaos in SXM for a change. Thank you!

cec1 said:

Helpful description, Martin. Tourism to SXM isn't going to pick-up very fast with arrival / departure barriers like that.

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That’s why we are bagging 2019.

We flew Tradewind this past May r/t SJU/SBH 1st time. Coming off the SBH/SJU flight someone from TW walked us to the AA SJU checkin & then on our own. Have to think DL the same, bit of a walk ? Next spring we'll do the SXM via AA to Winair since Winair with a small reissue fee is letting us use the unused tix that were for Nov. 2017 when we couldn't get to SXM. Probably last time via SXM with AA changing/cancelling flights as did again last week causing another WM reissue sans fee ! TW was fine, cool in waiting area & on plane. Didn't seem to have the deep dive over the hill at SBH either on a very windy lvg SJU & arrival at SBH. Same for return to SJU, windy.

We have flown with Tradewind both pre Irma and post Irma. Piece of cake both times- Tradewind even escorts you both ways without the VIP purchase. In their 'lounge' seating area, they have snacks, soft drinks and alcohol free of charge. Everything runs on time and people are courteous and seem happy unlike Win Air in SXM. In SBH, all of the airport personnel are very nice.

We've done Tradewind to Delta on the way home a couple of times. It's a very easy transfer, and Tradewind will escort you from customs to the Delta check in counter. From there, you go through security and head to your Delta gate. It's not a big walk. Delta seems to be the closest terminal to security. PM me if you need more info, but it is definitely the way to go if the numbers work for you.

Phil

davesmom said:

Going through SXM was always a zoo going home. People were stuffed into that lower waiting room to board buses to the airplanes and it was definitely crowded and hot. I am thinking that although I have no desire to go to Puerto Rico, Tradewind must make for a much better arrival and departure. Can anyone comment on the departure situation in San Juan when you transfer from Tradewind to Delta? We are thinking of going that way if we are coming in 2019 to avoid the chaos in SXM for a change. Thank you!

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Thanks everyone for all the great info. Tradewinds in not an option for us. It would seem that the return leg will be the most problematic. I generally leave at least a 3-4 hour gap between return legs, but this year I only have 2 1/2 hours due to the first SBC flight being at 12:00 with my JetBlue flight at 2:30. I would have thought this would be more than enough time but now I'm not so sure. My options are to change to a Winair flight at 10:00 for a bit more money, do nothing, or perhaps hire a service to escort us through the SXM maze. Does anyone have experience with using one of these services in the current airports condition? Will it save us time? If so, any recommendations?

Merci..

I used Tradewinds from SJU to SBH , first time, in September. Only because I got a deal on the cost. It was fantastic! But I cannot justify the normal cost f Tradewinds. Before Irma, I didn't mind the transfer in SXM............

That’s enough time to get through. You don’t need to change flights. We still use Premium IV to minimize the stress of unforeseen circumstances like my husband leaving our carry on bag on the airport bus, etc. Ha, ha.

We had no trouble in April upon arrival, landed in St. Barts only 30 minutes after landing in SXM. Coming back, the biggest frustration was the crowded tent and ALL of the restrooms were out of order with the doors open while workers plunged each toilet.

I feel bad for SXM. I guess they are doing all they can to recover from Irma and it’s hard to complain considering what they’re dealing with.

If you want to use VIP, get in touch with Vincent at Premium IV. He takes all of the stress out of coming and going.

MartinS said:

The following is my June and September experience at SXM. Others may have had a wonderful time, or maybe a worse time than I did.


Arriving you will be put on a bus and driven the 150ft+/- to the big white tents. When you enter the tent, and you have carry-on only, immediately go to the right lane. In June there was a person standing there giving directions, I told them I was in-transit, no baggage to claim, St Barts Commuter, and they pointed to what is now considered the in-transit desk, which was just inside the tent to the right. I use St. Barts Commuter, their "desk" was just there in front of me and also another person asking me "which airline"... They gave me my boarding pass and pointed across the room to a door, which I went through. It put me in the large tent waiting room where I found "gate3" and waited for my SBC flight. Which in June, left early. In September I used Tradewinds to get to SBH from SJU. My feeling is that heading down to SBH is a much better experience than returning to SXM to fly home.

Returning from SBH to SXM in June and September was, about as much fun as a sharp stick in the eye. Off of St. Barts Commuter into the tent and there was no going through in-transit, even though I had no luggage and ticket in hand. Forced to go through SXM customs/immigration and out of the secure area. From there I walked (with everybody else) around the outside of the tents to the right to an outside check-in area, which was just an area with tables and airport employees directing you back inside the big tent to repeat check in, security, another boarding pass, and back into the big tent/boarding area/packed with people waiting area. This check in and security screen can take a while. There are several places in the tent to buy a cold drink and a sandwich. The tent can get VERY full, and rather warm.

Before Irma, SXM was no real issue in-transit. Going to take some time to get back to that.



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THIS was my exact experience transiting SXM recently. Thanks Martin!

it would appear that if you arrive in SXM from a long haul flight transiting to Winair or SBC you take the "transit" line, however if you arrive on Winair or SBC transiting to the US, Canada or Europe they force you to do the walk.... ;(
FYI on my return experience, all but 1 of the toilets was broken. Don't drink a lot of water when transiting SXM seems to be the rule.

2 1/2 hours should be okay but as you said 'for a bit more money' change your Win Air flight so you and those with you 'won't worry and be happy!'

Last year we used Winair VIP going to SbH and on the return to SXM. We needed VIP going, but did not think they were necessary for the return. Does anyone have an opinion on the current status?

We were there last month. Arrived in SXM at 3:10. Flight to St Barts was scheduled for 4:15. Traveled on a Friday. Used Easyway-SBH because we thought we were short on time. Very good efficient service. We were at the gate by 4:10. As it turned out, the SBH flight was running about 10 minutes late. But that was ok. We had a moment to catch our breath.
We traveled home on a Saturday. Many more passengers at SXM! Flight from SBH at noon, flight from SXM at 2:50. We did not use the VIP service. Can’t really say if it would have been helpful. We had enough time. The whole experience is stressful - hot, noisy, and lots of people. The above post from MartinS describes it well. The key might be not to travel on a Saturday - if at all possible!

We are traveling down on a Monday and returning on a Wednesday in February, so we would appreciate information on the need for VIP services on going down and/or on returning. Any help will be appreciated.
George

GeorgeD said:

We are traveling down on a Monday and returning on a Wednesday in February, so we would appreciate information on the need for VIP services on going down and/or on returning. Any help will be appreciated.
George

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To me, getting ushered through the airport is a bonus with the VIP service. You probably don’t need it for a Monday and Wednesday for airport traffic, but here are three different times Premium IV helped me when I really just paid for the airport meet and greet...

1. Our family of 4 (2 young kids) got delayed in CLT and ended up in SXM at 9 pm vs the scheduled 2:20 pm. Premium IV already had a hotel in SXM booked for us, drove us there that night, picked us up the next morning and put us on the first flight to SBH. That would have been a headache to deal with upon landing without their assistance.

2. On another trip, Vincent of PIV, went to check us in at Winair for our return flight and our tickets had been deleted from their system without explanation. He fixed them before we even knew it happened. Crisis averted from us arriving at airport with no valid tickets.

3. On our most recent trip in April, my husband left a suitcase (the one with my good stuff in it!) on the airport bus. We realized it when we were going through the security bag screening. One text to PIV and they were on a mission to find it. Had it in my hand 30 minutes later.

I don’t hesitate to book VIP, just another layer of travel insurance for us.

Thanks Tiffany. That is a great response. Do you think the traffic is lower on Monday and Wednesday, which is why we booked that way??
George

We usually go Sat to Sat in early December, and Mon to Sun in March (kids’ schedules require the Monday travel). I guess the weekend is just a much more popular arrival/departure time with the limited number of people and flights coming in.

For our upcoming trips...in December, Sat to Sat, the plane is nearly full going and coming back. For March, on Monday, the plane is less than half full going down (PHL; praying they don’t cancel it) and nearly sold out coming back on Sunday.

The airport is nearly foolproof now with the way it’s set up, there’s just limited space to accommodate/process everyone. VIP will get you to the front of those lines, but we book it for scenarios we didn’t plan for like getting in after dark because of a delay, etc.