Anyone have specific recommendations for car rental.Private company is fine.Also any info on catering service for dinner would be welcome information Thanks.

there are at least 6 car rental booths at the airport.they all try to undercut one another to your advantage.hertz is there as well as locals.some of them will give you a peice of junk if you lrt them.make sure the car is new and dont accept anything otherwise.do not rent from sunshine car rental.a good price for a hyndai accell would be 160 to 180 per week.expect to bargain to get your best price.no info on catering,but with over 100 gormet rest.on the island i cant see any problems. <BR>

Just returned from St. Maarten. We arranged for a car rental through our travel agency before leaving for St. Maarten. We used Hertz. We rented for two weeks. The cost was $294 plus taxes - $317 per week for a 1998 Cia - not a real big car but the trunk is huge. I think you could do better by waiting until you get there. There are many car rental companies right at the airport so you could probably talk a deal with one of them if you don't mind that inconvenience. I will say Hertz provided us with a decent car and when we had a problem (one of the windows wouldn't go up - during a rain storm, of course - they quickly switched us to another car. If this is your first time driving on St. Maarten, be careful as the natives drive a little crazy. They do not hesitate to pass on curves and there doesn't seem to be any speed limit for them. The roads on the <BR>Dutch side are in poor condition with many large pot holes, but most of the roads on the French side are pretty good. Have a great time!

Hi Eileen, <BR> We just got back from St Martin. We rented a jeep from Hertz. I prefer using a large company because the cars from many of the local island companies are junk and you just dont know what your going to get. The Hertz location is right outside the airport and they pick you up in a shuttle about every 10 minutes. The prices depends on what you rent so Im sure they will have something that will fit your pocketbook. As for dinner..well you are in gourmet heaven. Make sure you go to Grand Case on the french side. But from there to the beach bars on Orient beach you will be impressed with the cusine. If you need specific recommendations just give us a shout

When we were there in Oct '97 we rented from a local company that had a coupon on the website. Got a Toyota Corolla (the Cadillac of island rental cars we came to learn) for $160 week. It was nearly new, great shape and there were no surprises when we turned it in. It was the very last rental car "booth" at the airport. Never leave anything, even locked in the trunk, in your car though, unless you can see it from where you are! We had a nylon bag with changes of clothes stolen from our locked trunk at Orient Beach. They were old clothes, too. Not a nasty lesson, at least.

We went and our travel agent booked the car through Budget. I'll say it was an interesting experience... <BR> <BR>They provide a free airport shuttle service, and will even wait if your flight is late. <BR> <BR>My best advise is to inspect EVERY inch of the car. I made great care to check the car before taking it, especially considering they hit three other cars just getting it out of the lot. Even with all the noted damage, they tried to ding us for $400 damage that was noted on the check out agreement. BE SURE TO KEEP YOUR RECORDS, as they had conveniently lost their copy.

We went and our travel agent booked the car through Budget. I'll say it was an interesting experience... <BR> <BR>They provide a free airport shuttle service, and will even wait if your flight is late. <BR> <BR>My best advise is to inspect EVERY inch of the car. I made great care to check the car before taking it, especially considering they hit three other cars just getting it out of the lot. Even with all the noted damage, they tried to ding us for $400 damage that was noted on the check out agreement. BE SURE TO KEEP YOUR RECORDS, as they had conveniently lost their copy.

We went and our travel agent booked the car through Budget. I'll say it was an interesting experience... They provide a free airport shuttle service, and will even wait if your flight is late. <BR>My best advise is to inspect EVERY inch of the car. I made great care to check the car before taking it, especially considering they hit three other cars just getting it out of the lot. Even with all the noted damage, they tried to ding us for $400 damage that was noted on the check out agreement. BE SURE TO KEEP YOUR RECORDS, as they had conveniently lost their copy.

As a former resident I can assure you that most of them are a great big rip off from every angle. many of the car jockies over time have stolen keys which are used to rob you of your possessions as you spend time on their glorious beaches. Ripping open the side windows is another favourite pasttime. Take nothing along with you if you are going to be away from your little white rental for any significant period of time.

I'm interested in finding anyone who has stayed at GREAT BAY RESORT in St. Maarten recently. What kind of condition were the rooms in? Does it seem like it has been renovated recently? Thanks! <BR>