Can anyone recommend a fun and relaxing boat & snorkel trip. What is the best way to reserve a spot on the boat (links).

Swaliga II gives you three stops on a power cat with a stop for lunch and free flowing drinks and snacks if I remember right. Your certain to have good snorkling given the three different locations. I've been on some trips that only went to one place and if seas weren't good you ended up spending the money just to party. Nothing wrong with a good party but you can do that on terra firma and we had our heart set on the snorkling.

Check out the Random Wind. Very low key - not a party boat - but open bar, lunch and a lovely day with several stops for snorkeling.

Elaine,

Tell me you're not home already.

For those who have never done the Random Wind, I agree with Elaine totally. It's one of the nicest days I've spent on the island. Over the years we've chartered the boat for the day a few times but when there's been just the two of us we've signed on for the daily open sailing trips and I have to say - both ways it's a very enjoyable day. They keep the numbers small and are very comfortable with kids on the boat. Either way, you just can't go wrong on this sailing day.

But on another note, the Swaliga II is also a great power cat for a good day of snorkeling.

Respectfully,

pat
:-) :-)

Since we have done the Swaliga and had a great time we might want to try the Random Wind. Do you know a link to get more information?

San Diego,

Try:

www.randomwind.com

They were redoing their website but this should still work.

I can only say, again, we've done probably 15 different boat trips over our 34 or so years of going to SXM and this is the only trip we've wanted to do over and over again in the last ten or so years. If you don't have a large enough group to consider the private day charter, they only take 12-15 maximum guests on any day in their regularly scheduled sails so it tends to be a very personalized trip either way.

Respectfully,

pat
:-) :-)

Yes Pat, we're back - and crying about it.

We always take the BlueBeard to Prickly Pear Island. We love the trip. Great snorkeling and a lunch on the island. Plenty of pics on our site below.

~~ Once you've slept on an island, you'll never be the same ~~
2008 St Maarten Pics

A to Z Guy,

The Prickly Pear trip aboard the Bluebeard is another fun trip - a little more active than the Random Wind, though. The snorkling off Anguilla is very good so either would be great choices but it basically comes down to the atmosphere you're looking for and the type of boat you want. Your pictures are great, by the way.

Respectfully,

pat
:-) :-)

Hey Pat,

What is the best way to book the Random Wind?
We have never tried this trip and also have never snorkeled on Anguilla.

~~ Once you've slept on an island, you'll never be the same ~~
2008 St Maarten Pics

I'm not Pat but,Random Wind

Augie;

I am an agnostic dyslexic who questions if there really is a dog.

Az Guy,

Boy!! Am I ever slow!! Just realized what Az stould for - duh!!

Anyway, Augie's given you the link for Random Wind - and the sight is very representative of the way they run their trips. We usually either contact Martin direct or book through our activities director at The Towers, depending on who, how many, when and what, etc.

We've done a bunch of snorkel trips to Anguilla on many different boats - Prickly Pear and Sandy Ground are both pretty good choices but in honesty, it's been a while now since we've done these trips so I wouldn't presume to say who's best or what the charachter of the different trips is. IMHO, and I'm not much of a snorkeler, but you can do some pretty good shore snorkeling at many of the Anguillan beaches and locations.

A trip to Anguilla is nice anyway you do it but I'd give RW a try just because it's a nice day and a little different than many of the other boat trips available.

Depending on what and how you book and the weather of the day you go out, they used to leave from Kimsha/Simpson Bay and head out past Burgeaux (sp?), up past Maho, Mullet, Cupecoy, and up the coast past Grand Case to Creole Rock for a stop for some snorkeling, then another stop in or around as you come back down to Happy Bay/Friars where you can actually swim into shore if you chose, and then back down to LaSamana's beach area where they anchored and you have another swimming/snorkeling opportunity if you were so inclined. It's a much more intimate day than some of the bigger boats and while the lunch isn't nearly as elaborate as some, it's very good and more than enough food and drink for any of the groups we've been with.

IMHO, it's another of those 'to each his own' kind of days. We love it but that's our kind of atmosphere while others might want something a little more rowdy. Nothing right or wrong with either one but more a matter of what suits you. We loved the idea of really sailing on a real masted sailboat (ketch?) as opposed to all the catamaran trips we've done. Can you tell I also don't know much about boats beyond the fact I enjoy them?

Respectfully,
pat

:-) :-)

Thank you - Thank you

~~ Once you've slept on an island, you'll never be the same ~~
2008 St Maarten Pics