I'm heading to St. Barth's in May. I'm flying via Atlanta to St. Martin, arriving at 2pm. I'm trying to book a flight with Winair to St. Barth for that same day. My hotel suggested the 3:10 pm flight, but after reading some of the posts about the SXM airport immigration, I am worried that 1 hour is cutting it too close. Thoughts?

Based on our experiences (particularly w/Win-Air) we routinely spend the night in SXM both coming & going to avoid any problems. Just a thought, once you hit island time, schedules mean little.

We are spending some time in SXM before returning home. We've already booked hotels, etc for St. Barth, so too late now to change plan on way in. There's a 4:10 flight on Winair and there's the ferry at 5:00. There will always be some risk and I never expect things to work out perfectly. I've experienced island time in other regions, so we are OK with things being flexible, but I'm just trying to make the smartest decision to help minimize any risk. Thanks!

I would do the 4:10pm. If several international flights arrive at the same time as yours, the immigration lines will be long. What time does Winair ask you to check-in? At least an hour right? I just booked a flight with them (going somewhere else) and they're asking me to check-in 90 minutes before flight time.

what day are you arriving?
Saturdays are particularly busy at the SXM airport.
Do you have to collect your luggage?
I would aim for the 4:10 PM
the 3:10 PM flight does not give you enough time.

...& make sure you have something in writing Re: your Win-Air reservations, they are not the most adept, well, at anything.

Go with one of the VIP agencies.

Premium IV should have you checked into your Winair flight before you arrive, so you should able to go gate to gate.

If your inbound flight is delayed they will rebook you on a later Winair flight, or even switch you to another airline if necessary.

www.premiumiv.com