Have just returned from St.Martin and thought I could perhaps offer an update. We travel there twice a year and have been doing so for 20 years. We always stay on the French side; this time Nettle Bay Beach Club, next trip it's L'Hoste on Orient Beach. The island definitely was not as busy and car rental agencies were willing to bargain. The hotel also gave us an upgrade to ocean-front deluxe suite...so ask, it doesn't hurt. One of the more popular restaurants in the Marina, Brasserie de La Gare is closed, but we were told it would be re-opening in about 2 weeks. A new one to try..on the waterfront opposite the harbourfront marina is Le Plongeoir; great food at reasonable prices and very busy with locals; make a reservation as we saw people turned away. The new West Indies Mall is now full with tenants; check out Hediard, L'Occitane, Oxbow (clothes) and New Man. Also a great shop upstairs selling items from Provence. Oriet Beach was still beautiful and overall, we thought the island looked cleaner.

Hi X - I believe we've corresponded via direct email last fall. Good to hear your vacation went well. We leave for St. Martin in 3 weeks and are booked into the Hotel Mont Vernon. As I mentioned, the package included 4 days car rental per week and 4 dinners off the resort (we're there for 2 weeks), so now this deal is making some sense if you say that the island is a little quieter and the car rental people are willing to negogiate a bit. <BR>My husband has been on some scuba message boards and has read where people have just come back from this H.M.V. and they said the food was great and other than the brutal trek up the hill from the beach, there were no complaints (we've already booked an ocean view suite).<BR>So that my husband can take advantage of the great scuba on Saba, it looks like we might fly over and stay overnight there....so the question is, if we use the car rental to drive down to the airport, is it safe to leave it there-assume that as long as we've not left anything in the vehicle obviously, it's safe to leave it?

If you leave your car at the airport, I wouldn't worry too much.....the airport is guarded and gated. Just remember that you'll have to pay the 24 hr. charge. If you're not comfortable with that arrangement, leave your car at MV and take a taxi to the airport! When you arrive in SXM ask the parking lot attendant what the overnight charge is....and check out the difference.<BR>Good Luck!<BR>xoxoxox<BR>Contessa

Thanks Contessa for the tip on the overnight charge - apparently it's around $20 for the cab ride from MV to the airport, so will have to check out what the overnight parking charge is at the airport. Anyone know what that is by the way? <BR>

Which airport are you flying from: Julianna (the main airport) or from Grand Case which is less than 10 minutes from where you're staying ???

Why not turn your car in and let the rental company be responsible for it while you are gone. When we were there they were ready to please. We rented a car to go to the Sunsail base and stores. When we were ready to go to St Barts they picked the car up and had it back when we returned with no extra charge. Try that with Enterprise.

The last time I parked at Juliana Airport (about a year ago), the charge for a 24 hour period was $1.00. I honestly don't know if they've changed it, but it's far more affordable than in the US. I've left a vehicle there overnight before with no problem, however, I'd discuss your intentions with the rental company.<BR><BR>Debbie, you'll love Saba. The island is charming and the diving is great. If you aren't going underwater with your hubby, spend the afternoon shopping and dining in Windwardside. Do you have plans for overnighting? If not, I can highly recommend both Queen's Garden Resort (pricey), and The Cottage Club (moderate).<BR><BR>Have fun!

Hi - thanks for all the info. I think we will be flying out of Juliana airport - my husband is trying to arrange the tickets right now. He's just got confirmation from Sea Saba who booked us into Juliana's place in Windwardside - have read some recommendations on this place on a dive site, so we'll go with it.<BR>I was reading in the Fodor's book about the lace available in Saba and so have already made my plans to wander around the village and meet the people and do some light shopping while he's scuba diving. The two tankers will keep him busy for around 4 or 5 hours and that's okay with me.<BR>Since the rental is included for only 8 out of the 13 days we're there I think we should just cab it from HMV and leave the rental for when we're back on St. Martin.