andrew_broadfoot

My wife and I visited St. Maarten for the first time in October and enjoyed our stay tremendously. We would like to goo back again next year for a little longer and perhaps stay on more than one island during our next vacation. I enjoy photography and my wife likes to relax and just take in the scenery. Here are a few questions.

1. Will we get bored of Saba in no time or is there enough to do there to occupy us?
2. Is there good snorkeling and beaches there?
3. is it as expensive as St. Barthelemy?

We felt very safe in St. Maarten so hopefully it will be as safe.

RoamsAround

There are NO BEACHES on Saba.

You'll need a boat to access the few good snorkeling spots around the island. It is more of a diving destination rather than a snorkeling destination.

It is not as expensive as St. Barts.

There's many interesting things to see and do Saba if you like hiking and "nature".

It is one of the safer islands.

It is not a typical "tourist" island.

TPAYT

Not much to do on Saba. A few hours was more than enough for us.

How about Anguilla? We loved this place. Shoal Bay Villas is a bit less expensive because it's older but we have never had a balcony right on the sand like we did here.
http://sbvillas.ai/
Of all of our many, many years going to the Caribbean we took our best sunset photos on the beach at SB Villas.

How about renting a condo, apartment, or cottage thru www.VRBO.com ? St. Bart's & Anguilla can be expensive but with an apt. you can do breakfast, lunch, snacks, etc. and just go out for dinner. At SB Villas the view was so great from our balcony that we actually had dinner at our place twice. Totally unlike us to do that. They had a huge grocery store and nearby wonderful take out meals.

St. Bart's is the most expensive island we've been to, but it's oh so charming and has some very cute cottages for rent that could cut down on the cost.

BellaClaire

It's easy to get to both! Why not spend a few days on spectacular Saba..the hiking, views, people are wonderful! then spend a few days on Anguilla! That is what I would do in a heartbeat!

andrew_broadfoot

Wow! Thank you everyone for all the wonderful input. It gives us some stuff to look over for our next vacation.

doug_stallings

If you're not a diver, then 2 or at most 3 days there is more than enough for Saba. As others have said, it dies not have a beach. Anguila is a far better choice, but while it as truly great beaches, the snorkeling isn't that great.

andrew_broadfoot

Thanks Doug! So would snorkeling be better on Saba? I'm starting to feel that we may split time up between Saba and Anguilla.

doug_stallings

Most of the dive companies also run snorkeling trips, so I think they can get you to the best places, even if you can't do off-the-beach snorkeling (that's just not possible there).

BellaClaire

Saba truly is magical......You can climb mt scenery one day....go snorkeling...enjoy the little town called The Bottom...you won't regret staying there....and Anguilla is fabulous..most beautiful beaches....

andrew_broadfoot

Thanks again everyone. Looks like you can either fly or boat to Saba from St. Maarten. If I read the pricing correctly it appears that a single round trip ticket costs a little over $300.00? I plugged in two passengers but the totals seem misleading. It appears the taxes are as much as the airfare. Perhaps boating would be cheaper.

Odin

Taxes that are as much as or more than the airfare is common these days.

RoamsAround

Going by boat from St. Martin to Saba will cost you more a lot than the airfare and you'll be crossing quite a bit of open water (about 26 miles) - the one-way trip will take about 2 hours to 2.5 hours by power boat and about 8 hours by sail boat. It will be a "lumpy" passage. Scrap that idea and fly.

BellaClaire

I took the ferry from Pelican to Saba by Powerboat. It was a bit choppy, but the boat breezed through it. I enjoyed the ride. The price per person like 75.00 rt. We took the boat called The Edge. Try emailing [email protected]

BellaClaire

Here you go.... http://www.stmaarten-activities.com/...hp/trips-tours

Daytrips Wednesday through to Sunday
Depart 9am from Pelican Marina in Simpson Bay (Check in 8am)
Depart 3.30pm from Fort Bay in Saba.
$80 for adults
$40 for kids ages 2 to 12.

Port Fee $12pp when departing St Maarten
Saba Lunch and Tour Package $35pp

One way from St Maarten $55 pp + $7pp port fee
One way from Saba $55pp + $5 pp port fee
Kids are half price.

Traveler1542

Andrew, I've been to Saba several times, not just day trips but have stayed for a week at a time. There is plenty to do if you like hiking and just soaking of the charm of the island. Its extemely safe, everyone knows everyone, they don't lock their doors. Stay in the town of Windwardside, there's several hotels, Juliana's also has apartments or you can rent cottages, some have private pools, none are overly expensive. There's only one road and its aptly named "The Road". Yes you can fly or take one of the ferries, I've done both. The flight is just 12 minutes to/from SXM and is a hair raising ride for some, its just a small 19-seater turbo prop and the Saba runway is incredibly short, one of the more challenging airstrips...so for landing you're basically heading straight into a mountain then a hard bank left at the last minute...take off with brakes applied they wind up the engines full power then let go and get shot off a little bit, at the end of runway you drop down a little before gaining altitude. Its exciting to say the least The small airport is like waiting on Grandma's front porch for your plane You can fly one way and ferry the other if you like, I've done that too. All the restaurants have their thing each night so you learn where to go for what each night. There's two small grocery stores in Windwardside and a liquor store, dive shops, etc. For snorkeling as others have mentioned you go on a dive boat, there's no beaches. Saba is a big rock, high in elevation you usually don't need a/c and there's no bugs or mosquitos really. Saba is a unique place, there's nothing else like it in the Caribbean, so definitely worth a trip there, more than a day trip! Everything is really well kept too, just a beautiful charming place.