We will be cruising to St. Martin on Wednesday. We enjoy skipping the ship excursions and venturing on our own. We were thinking of taking the public bus around the island...how safe/easy is that to do? Some destinations we've read about are Marigot, the Butterfly Farm, or possibly a beach (they're not great for snorkeling we've read). Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

I have read that Orient Beach is nice...how is the snorkeling there?

I can tell you one thing with regards to the public buses (essentially vans), they will stop at nearly every telephone poll along the route to pick up local people going about their day. I know...I've been stuck behind them enough. You will spend a lot of time stopping and going, stopping and going.

To save time, I would suggest hiring a cab driver for the day or renting your own car. If you rent a car, you will have to go to the airport to pick it up and return it, so that will take up time with the traffic, as well.

Therefore, I would honestly suggeset hiring a cab to be at your disposal for the day. I've just gone over this with friends who are going to be in St. Maarten on a cruise next month. My suggestion to them was to scope out and talk to several cab drivers in Phillipsburg and see which one you feel most comfortable with (some are more friendly than others, but they are all safe), and go from there on negotiating a price for the day.

Unless, of course, you want to go the rental car route and see things on your own which is also advisable, but will take more time out of your day with taking the car back and forth, not to mention having to navigate the island on your own. It's fairly easy and doable, but the car rental pick up and return will take some time with traffic and the distance to and from Phillipsburg (rental are by the airport).

The bus is still doable, but just be prepared to spend a lot of time on it with the stops.

Thanks so much for the detailed reply...it's helped a lot!

actually if you are coming on a cruise , you can rent cars directly at the cruise dock and return them there.
Statia's idea of hring a cab driver is a good one though.
you might want to see the Butterfly Farm or the Zoo as well as the French side.
the cab drivers are quite knowledgable and will point out interesting spots to you

Barbara, I have friends arriving the island on a cruise next month and they want to rent a car, but all I've been able to find are agencies who rent at the pier, yet you still have to go to the airport to pick the car up and return it.

Can you tell me which agencies allow you to pick up and return the car at the cruise terminal?

Thanks.

statia
now I am confused.
I thought there were 3 or 4 who would do that. maybe I am wrong. Let me do some research.
In the meantime, did you try Budget? I know they have an office there. the number is 5430431, I think.

there also is one called Panoramic
Cruise Port Office - Pointe Blanche # 20, Sint Maarten, N.A.
all I have is an 800 number for them though
1 866 639 9062

But I'll see if I can get some more info for you
Barbara

Thanks so much Barbara. I checked Best Deal and one other (can't recall which one now) and their websites stated that they had offices at the cruise pier, but you had to go to the airport to pick up and return the car.

I'll look into Budget and Panoramic. Thanks in advance for any other info you find.

Having visited St. Martin 3 times, I must admit there is not that much to see. It is a place to relax but can be The duty free aspect is nominal savings on selected items.The butterfly farm is not worth a visit, in my opinion.
Orient Beach is nice but if you are interested in snorkeling St. Martin is not the place.
Maybe a 3-4 hour cruise line tour with a 1 hour stop in Phillipsburgh/Marigot would be sufficient and easy though a little more costly. A van taking 10-12 guests is preferable to a bus carrying 30 cruise line passengers.The car rental with the insurance package which is worth taking plus gas will be $75+ for a compact from Budget or Hertz. I find Hertz a little more expensive,$10-$15 but more reliable.

Statia
I checked.
Panoramic does rent from the dock. here is their web site.
http://www.panoramiccarrental.com/

Thanks so much, Barbara. I'll pass it on to my friends.