The causeway (bridge?) is open and has supposedly lightened the traffic congestion through Simpson to Cole Bay somewhat. Not there so can't say from firsthand info but merely from what I've read and heard elsewhere it does sound like a big improvement if going to or from the airport from the French side of the island. Hope to find out firsthand in a few months. Re a lagoon water ta
Forum: The Friendly St.Martin Island Forum

Over all our timeshare years we only did one trade and I have to say, we were very pleased with our exchange. We traded a 2-bedroom SXM week for a 2 bedroom Barbados week and it was delightful. That said, the old rule of thumb was you could only exchange into what someone else had exchanged out of and you were supposed to get something similar to what you traded. I think, with all the point
Forum: The Friendly St.Martin Island Forum

Naomi, Thank you for sharing what have to be some of the most painful memories you will hopefully ever have to bear. I can't imagine the strength and fortitude it must have taken to survive all that and to come through with the obvious care and concern you had for all about you. I can feel your pain still through your written words. God bless and may you never again have to deal with
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I don't know why but I was under the impression, perhaps mistakenly so?, that Wyndham was out of the picture quite a while ago, no?
Forum: The Friendly St.Martin Island Forum

shawn, There is another thread asking for jeep info and Barbara has kindly given exactly the info it sounds as though you're looking for. Use her email addresses and send off some specific quotation requests and then make your choice based on what you specifically want and when you want it. Respectfully, pat
Forum: The Friendly St.Martin Island Forum

Gcc Wolverine, Trust me, on this, the moderators wouldn't have a problem with this type of question since it's but one of the many things this forum is all about. But for the record, Barbara got it right - we do use Lesley Bruce of Kennys Car Rentals and have twice a year for a lot of years now. We prefer a 'lovingly used' car as opposed to a brand spankin' shiny n
Forum: The Friendly St.Martin Island Forum

Gert, I hope you get lots of presents and eat lots of cake but do share some with your beautiful family...... Another year passes and we all hope and pray for a quiet and peaceful hurricane season throughout the Caribbean and the US, but at the same time we remember when and why this forum came about and we recall the invaluable resource it was for those who were trying to connect with the
Forum: The Friendly St.Martin Island Forum

We don't rent jeeps or jeep-type vehicles but I've read many who do rent them most frequently mention Unity car rental and give him glowing comments. Two things I do often hear about jeep rentals is they tend to be a little bit higher than your typical island car rental and you should probably check your credit card if you're planning to use its' built in coverage since some
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Thank you for those kind words, Bob..... I do remember the old forum here and so many of the issues it had back then but it's evolved back into what I think it was always meant to be when Gert originally offered it to all of us. This is a good place to ask a question and receive an answer without a lot of chit-chat and personalities usurping the threads. Don't get me wrong - th
Forum: The Friendly St.Martin Island Forum

Yes but not free. I think it was $12. per day or $60. for the week. Worked well enough for general use with the occasion outage. Don't know if that was The Towers or the provider but it was still good enough for me to do almost daily trip blogs over our two week stay there. I don't know if and/or when you're planning on being there but right now they're experiencing a ma
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It sounds like the Philipsberg Rib House which had it's main place of business for a while upstairs over something on Front Street.......yes? No? If its the same place, I think they were just down the block from Lynettes and Clayton's Sports Bar in Simpson Bay and had featured a peanut dipping sauce they served with the ribs that was very, very good.........
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Thank you, Neil.... And Annie, me too...... And I remember when: They built the paved road 'over the hill'.......... There was no La Belle Creole - in fact there was nothing at all on that stretch of road...... You rode around during the day to find some of the more remote dining venues and made your reservations by writing your name in their carte because most places did
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Barbara1 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > welcome home Pat.. the island misses you.. Thanks > for the trip report... sounds like you had a great > time..glad you could squeeze us in your busy > schedule. > always fun to see you and John.. ask John about > the joke he told Dee when we weren't listening > B, J told me abou
Forum: The Friendly St.Martin Island Forum

Well, I don't know if this will liven the site up or not, probably not, but we just returned Friday from two and a half wonderful weeks on St. Maarten. Carnival time is always an interesting time to be in St. Maarten and this year the added excitement of the 'swing bridge span' and it's arrival only heightened the excitement. We had strong breezes and nice temps and rain off
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SXMNorm Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Thanks for the report. Always fun to read SXM > experiences, especially when you have a long time > till your next trip. Awe, c'mon, Norm - every time I open a web-site you're back on St. Maarten - and then you try to tell us you're working.....even JD and Wendell aren't here that often..
Forum: The Friendly St.Martin Island Forum

Anonymous User Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > could be your standards are lower than most anon user Bob rob.... I generally don't respond to snarky comments such as yours but having just stayed three nights in Philipsberg I can only say there are some very nice places there and I'm really glad we did.
Forum: The Friendly St.Martin Island Forum

Welcome back, Andy. A lot of us are happy that Gert keeps this up and running and the moderators still work to keep it a good and responsible forum. I was particularly interested in one of your comments - most of us find Saturday to Sat. airfares to be higher than other days of the week - so congrats! Wherever you're coming from it sounds as though you've beaten the odds. And sh
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Tom and Denise, We're also Towers owners and are just back from St. Maarten and while DH didn't play, the course actually looked marginally better than it has for the past 4-5 years but probably still in the condition you saw when you walked it. The good news, while I don't have a clue about rates, I do know they have carts and there were a lot of people playing every day we
Forum: The Friendly St.Martin Island Forum

Barbara, Norm's made a great suggestion.....persue this if you can, B So much 'first hand' history is lost with every passing generation - it was the rare occasion when I could get my Dad to actually talk about his personal experiences and memories of his WWII service in the South Pacific but when he did, it was far more interesting than the lines we read in history books.
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I finally got around to reading your 'back in the day boat blog' and I think it's one of the best yet. All of us who 'think' we know St Maarten should take a few minutes and enlighten ourselves. Thanks to you and to the gardener for sharing these thoughts and rekindling other memories long forgotten.
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Tracy, With all due respect, I second everything Barbara, Dan. Anon, Elaine and Tom2 have already said. In almost 40 years of at least annual trips, I don't think I've ever had issues with the local women. Now that I think about it there was one but she had issues with her boss, too, so I didn't take that personally. I'm thinking that if you referred to them as '
Forum: The Friendly St.Martin Island Forum

CTH The golf situation at Mullet changes with the seasons and the amount of rain the island gets. At best of late, the course is playable and fun but not a golfing destination by any means. I'm not on the island and haven't been there since April (when it was being heavily played every day....) but I spoke with someone who was there within the last month and who played and said i
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Philippe, First of all, good wishes to you and your mate. I hope all is well with both of you. Secondly, and in an attempt to not turn this into a downward spiral, please know I wasn't disputing your knowledge or ability in putting this all out there, but if it were me, I would still consult a professional and recommend others to do the same if for no other reason than having someone
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Sal, If you already have an island business you probably have an island attorney and/or accountant. As good and as knowledgable as Philippe is, AND HE IS - HAVING BEENTHEREDONETHAT himself, wouldn't you be better off discussing all this with island professionals whose business it is to know these laws and who might be consdidered somewhat 'accountable' to you if bad info is giv
Forum: The Friendly St.Martin Island Forum

Bruce, I cannot speak from personal firsthand knowledge on this, but two things I've noted: 1. When my daughters' children were small, not all that many years ago, they left the seats in the car and had no problems. I guess car seats are not what the average island thief is looking for, but no guarantees on that one. 2. I know many here and on other sites buy or rent beach c
Forum: The Friendly St.Martin Island Forum

Going topless on any of the French beaches is okay. Going nude at Nettle Baie Beach Club beach (or patio)? Probably not, but hopefully an owner will speak up with an absolute answer. Enjoy your trip. Respectfully, pat
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Thank you, Dan. Respectfully, pat
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Dan, It's very pleasant here of late. There really are times when no news is the best news of all. I don't know why you saw fit to continue this SOB ~ vs ~ TTOL nonsense but omgoodness, can't we all just get along without any mentioning of 'other' chat sites in a negative manner? IMO, for what that's worth, it's childish and beneath you and it just ope
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I saw that, Norm....any ideas? That lady sure does get around......good for her!!
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It seems to me, Barbara, most of us are still here, perhaps with not too much to say and that's not always a bad thing, but the real question is, where the heck are you? Respectfully, pat
Forum: The Friendly St.Martin Island Forum