14 ST. MAARTEN Attractions You Can't Miss! | FREE or CHEAP Things to do in St. Maarten
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 6 มิ.ย. 2024
- There are so many things to see and do in St. Maarten, it's hard to narrow down a list. These 14 activities are either FREE or CHEAP and are great ways to enjoy the island and see all of the sights in St. Maarten. Here are 14 free or cheap activities we did in St. Maarten and can recommend:
0:00 Introduction
0:37 ✔️ #1 Plane Watching at Maho Beach
1:29 ✔️ #2 Explore Philipsburg
2:16 ✔️ #3 Shopping
2:38 ✔️ #4 Go to a Beach
3:28 ✔️ #5 Snorkel
3:53 ✔️ #6 Sightsee Around the Island
4:37 ✔️ #7 Enjoy a Sunset at the Beach
5:11 ✔️ #8 Carousel Bar & Gelateria
5:50 ✔️ #9 Enjoy Drinks & Food Oceanside
6:22 ✔️ #10 Casino Show
6:49 ✔️ #11 Gamble or People Watch at a Casino
7:06 ✔️ #12 Watch the Cruise Ships
7:28 ✔️ #13 Pool Day
7:52 ✔️ #14 Island Sightseeing Tour
8:31 Closing
I hope these can be helpful for you if you're planning your own trip to St. Maarten in the future!
#stmaarten #thingstodoinstmaarten #stmaartentourism #stmaartentravel #freeactivitiesinstmaarten
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![Why You Should Spend a Day in Grand Case - [A Walk in St. Martin's Most Charming Fishing Village]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/VuA9KZJcTF0/mqdefault.jpg)
![Why You Should Spend a Day in Grand Case - [A Walk in St. Martin's Most Charming Fishing Village]](/img/tr.png)
Have you been to St. Maarten? If so what other free or cheap activities would you recommend?
All the beaches are free and each is very unique French side clothi g optional though. The lolo's (barbeque sharks) in the Gran Case are very good and inexpensive. If your staying more than a day take a day tour (4 hrs a vg.) with Happy Harold or any day tour gives a great look at the whole . A hike out to the Dutch Fort ruins outside Philipsburg is free and gives great views back the city. Shopping in Philipsburg is free unless you buy :)
@@brinn8539 great additional tips! I wanted to hike to the fort but we just didn't give ourselves enough time on this trip.
The hiking trail at loterie farm is free, with great view of the island at the top
Parotte Ville, not free but approx $5 per child and $10 per adult. Feed the many beautiful birds in the sanctuary, they will land on you or the food cup provided.
If looking for great live music find out if/where Dale Buchan Music is playing. He's awesome!
I live in sint maarten
Just a heads up for #6 -- specifically say something about it being a bus when you get on. I got on at a bus stop, the license plate said bus, and then the driver said it was going to be $20 each. I said "isn't the bus $2?", and he said "oh do you want to go as taxi or as bus". I was like "as bus..." and he said ok $2 then
Tip From Someone Who’s From Sint Maarten.
Bus fees are $1.50 for adults and $1 for children. The only time that you’ll have to pay more is if you’re going from Maho to Philipsburg (It’s $3.00 for adults and $2.00 for kids). Don’t let the bus drivers rip you off sometimes they like to do that.
Great tip, we asked how much it would be from someone else before getting on the bus. And confirmed with the bus driver before we got in.
I don't know about the bus driver's but i know the personal cabbies will we had 4 with us on our way back he saw a larger group of other people so he stopped and told us to get out so he could pick the larger size Group up we had to walk back to the Ship luckily it wasn't far
Senlly Thank you for being honest about it. Everywhere one goes..there are sketchy people. Luckily..usually just a few.
How much does it cost now in 2023?
These are great suggestions. I love catching the amazing sunsets. Sometimes I plan dinner around the time of the sunset and usually it is perfect.
Lovely views 😍 thank you for this!
Wow what a beautiful place! OMG those planes! What an amazing experience and great tips. Nothing better than a sunset on the beach right! Lovely video - Jo
Thanks so much - it was a great experience visiting and I love the island so I'll be back one day!
Maho Beach is definitely on our list! You basically outlined all my favorite activities from shopping to snorkelling, from casinos to pool and drinks! Really hope to get to visit St. Maarten one day. Great video!
Then St. Maarten would be a perfect place for you to visit!
Wow! Unbelievable colour of the ocean 😍😍 Another amazing video!
Thanks for sharing!
St. Maarten is my favourite island in the Caribbean. Great video. Thanks for sharing.
It's such a great island. I haven't been to all the Caribbean islands, but this is in the top that I have seen.
Like 4. Thanks for sharing such great video. Expecting more videos like this .
Thanks so much! Appreciate it.
Thank you so much for your advice !
Excellent blog. Keep it up.
Awww, the beach is just a perfect place to go, especially when they are so nicely equipped with chairs and umbrellas. The carousel bar looks like a fun attraction as well. I've never seen the inside carousel before! Gelato looks yummy! Thanks for sharing :)
👏The video is very good. Thanks for sharing!
Have a nice day.💕👍👍
Thank you very much for us to see beautiful places
Héllo , thank you for this great beautiful upload , nice beach , thank you for sharing i liked 52 ,
Stay healthy and have a magical christmas and happy sunday
thanks for great advices
Great advice and a great glimpse of St Maarten.
Thanks very much!
Great advice. Thank you for the video
Thanks for watching!
Great video. Thank you!
Thanks for watching
This was a great idea for a video. It’s fun to see some other suggestions besides the beach weather the planes take off and land. That’s the only thing I know about the destination so it was fun to see the town, the shops, the other beaches, the carousel, the gelato, food, and drinks and more :) some great tips and suggestions for what to do on the cheap.
Thanks! Not all travel has to be expensive, so I like to include some of the cheaper options. Plus, then I save more money to travel again later 😂
super film 😎😀
This video is so good 👍👍👍👍 ... I'm currently living in SxM and everything you said is right.....
Love your videos! A trip to the Caribbean is in order this summer! Thanks for the beautiful picture though!
I can't wait to get back to the Caribbean soon.
Wow Sint Maarten is so beautiful and nice. The blue waters wowww! And the nice pool. Never heard of this place before. Definetly putting this in our bucketlist. Thanks for ur useful tips. Would love to go here someday 🤗
It's such a great island, I really recommend it.
I live there
Would love to be there. Looks amazing. thanks for the tour
Happy to share!
Great video! Those beaches look gorgeous (and the airplane beach looks so fun!). It's good to know that bus is (ordinarily) a good option.
Thanks so much! It's a great island to visit.
This is that beach, I was wondering as I have seen it in Insta, great informative video. Keep making such wonderful video's.
There are so many beaches there - but the one that's most "known" is Maho Beach from the planes :)
Great Content 👍
Awesome video and nicely said, but don't forget the jet skis island tour, the movie theater, the pain ball games, the hiking (pic Paradis) , what else? ... I think you nailed it.
Wow what a magic place ! Generally we only see the airport landings but you went up and above. Amazing job
I had so much fun watching the take-offs and seeing people and things flying everywhere!!
I want to go back ASAP! Love St Maarten 💖
Me too, such a nice island.
Me three 🥰🌴❤️
... arrived for the day via cruise ship ... it rained buckets ... have to go back ... adventures await ... cruseships will return ...
Just booked my birthday trip to go here in September 🥳 this video was helpful, thank you!
Where are you from? And are you coming down to SXM for the first time ?
My birthday in September too. I'll be there for my birthday weekend :)
Gibbs Bay beach is a tiny, secluded, private beach with spectacular views! The Guard was very nice and let us go down and it was just amazing. Also, I had a lot of fun mural spotting. The murals are all over the island and so I enjoyed spontaneously stopping to take pictures wherever I found one! It’s a gorgeous island!
All beaches on the island are public btw
@@nicholask9791That’s interesting.
cant wait to go back! loved St. Maarten
It's a great island!
I LOOOOVE Sint Maarten!!! It’s one of my favorite places on earth! Did you explore the French side at all? It’s a really fun place to visit. Thanks for sharing.
No we didn't get to the French side, but I would love to go back and explore there. So lovely!
nice informative video
So want to visit here, great video. 🇯🇲🇯🇲
Thank you, it's a great island
Cool, St Maarten is so much on our bucket list, even more so after watching this video 👍
It's such a great island, hope you get there soon!!
Man I have see videos of those planes landing and take off. Pretty cool. This is a well put together video. Looks like I will be missing the beach this year.
Yeah that beach is really cool. We were lucky that we went before everything happened in the world. And thanks very much!
I want to go with my daughter in December 2021. Really hope things are pretty much back to normal by then. Love it down there
Life of Munchy here and I live in St Maarten 🇸🇽 💝💙🇯🇲
Great info, thanks for sharing? Do you remember which tour company you used? Headed out there in a week.
Oh yes! saw this beach video, really want to go there and take video and pic with place on top of us! haha
Yes it was such a cool beach to visit!
We stayed for a moment at that beach by the airport, but wow it was so loud. It rained a lot during our port stay, so we didn't get to explore as much as you did. Looks like I should return ;)
We are sooo jealous!!! We sooo want to go to the beach with the planes!! It looks like an amazing island, the colour of the water is stunning 💙 and the sunset at the beach...wow! That bucket of beer looked super refreshing 🍻
It's such a lovely island, I would love to go back again one day. I might try the French side on my next visit.
@@TheAverageTourist That would be great, but please take us with 😅
Lol, any time!!
@@TheAverageTourist 😅😅
A lot of great ideas! We're going for the 5th time in 2023 and taking our teenage boys (well, 20 and 16 by that time). We rent a villa and I love the idea of a pool day as an activity as our villa has a beautiful pool, view and it's a great way to cut down on expenses. I would add a day trip to hike over to Happy Bay. It is a beautiful beach and a really fun activity for the day. Pack a few Carib's and a lunch and sit under a palm tree and enjoy this gorgeous secluded beach with a beautiful view of Anguilla. People watching at Orient is another great "free" activity even though we end up spending money on a great lunch, drinks and water sports for the boys. Lastly, taking a tour of the island in the early morning ( I always rent a car for the week so it's not technically free) is my favorite part of the week! I LOVE seeing all the school kids in their vibrant different colored uniforms going to school each morning. Cheers! I appreciate the video.
Thanks so much! I'd love to rent a villa there, it sounds like a great way to vacation. And we enjoy mixing in some "slow days" into our itineraries. A lot of people don't think of just enjoying a day by the pool and relaxing as "something to do" but I do! Next time I'm going to try out Happy Bay and an early morning island tour. Enjoy your trip!
wow this place looks so neat! we would love to travel there some day! new subscribers here and love your videos!
Thanks so much! It's a great place.
My goodness, St. Maarten looks so beautiful. My wild dream would be to see those planes fly over the beach as well as take off. Planes fascinate us 😀 ooooh the shopping looks so awesome for souvenirs and I'm glad there is a mixture of beautiful beaches to choose from. So awesome to see all the great things to do there. Thanks for sharing these tips
It is such a lovely island and Maho beach was so cool to see the planes flying in and taking off. I would love to go back one day.
Heading to SXM in less than 2 weeks. Very good video. Might want to visit the lolo's in Gran Case . Good cheap food nice views.
Hope you have a great trip!
If you don’t mind me asking, how much was your travel and stay?
@@icool247 we own a timeshare in Philipsburg so our cost was minimal and our airfare was paid with frequent flyer miles
Normal air from NYC to SXM is 950 to $1100. Several nice resorts on Island I would suggest staying on the Dutch side as the French side is slower in recovery from the hurricane. Look in Maho or Simpson Bay areas. Enjoy.!
@@brinn8539 thank you !
Just knew that there's so many things to do in St Maarten, we love to stroll around shops and buy souvenirs and our daughter would love the carousel.
There are so many things to see and do. I'd need so much more time to explore.
Thank you for sharing my home land and enjoying it. But there more places to explore .
I tend to always get sucked into buying a tour package so it's good to know that there are plenty of affordable things to do. I totally want to watch the planes at Maho Beach but it does look intense! The beaches are gorgeous and clothing optional?! Thanks for the heads up. 😂 The gelato looks delicious. That's definitely something fun for the whole family! 😊
Yeah I usually buy a tour package too but this one I found before we went. The plane beach was very exciting. And not all beaches are clothing optional... we only came across that one 😂
You really thought of a lot of great tips. We have been considering a trip to St. Maarten next year and will definitely plan to utilize the cheap buses and check out the beaches you mentioned. And great tip on walking to the end of the beach to find the cheap beers. Who doesn't love cheap beers?!
I love St. Maarten. We went twice on cruises and then this year we stayed for a week. Glad you liked it and hope it can be helpful if you get there next year :) Maybe we'll see you there lol.
@@TheAverageTourist we have been twice on cruises as well, but would love to do a full week or at least a long weekend. I believe we have some cheap direct flight options from Florida, so hopefully we will make it down there post-Covid. Would be so awesome to see ya there!
@@Explorcation It's just not enough time on a cruise - but gives you a good idea whether you want to go back or not. Hope you get back :)
Mmmmm cheap beers
Loved this! I (Krystal) went a few years back and I missed so much! We’ll have to head back in the future to experience it all!
I would go back to this island for sure. So much to see and do. Next time I'd like to go to the French side.
I would like to go there. Good work
Wow it’s like a dream, love the shops around, amazing, thanks for a great share ❤️
Thank you! I love this island.
This is a very pretty area. I wonder how much time cruises allow here. Watching the planes take off and land would be cool. Snorkeling seems like a great idea here. I love beach sunsets. I'm sure they are spectacular here. The price is not bad for an island hopping tour. Sounds great! Thanks! Safe travels!
We actually went on two cruises here and we were in port both times from 8:00 am to 6:00 pm but by the time you got off the ship and had to be back on about 2 hours in advance it's really only about 7 hours (at least on the cruises we did). We loved it so we went back to spend a full week there so sightsee without a time limit. Thanks for watching!
We stopped on a cruise ship and rented a car. Picked up a cooler at the little convivence shop near the cruise port, filled it will beer and Drove around the island. We stopped at many beaches and watched the planed land at Maho beach. sunset beach bar has the flight schedule on their surf board. We made it around the island and back to the cruise ship in plenty of time! Highly recommend renting a car when on a cruise ship, you can see so much more!
Beautiful I did subscribe your channel. Enjoy the nice views
Thanks very much 😊
As someone who used to live in sxm, the French side has a lot of free things/places to visit! There is many free things to do overall in sxm, also the local bus is a great option to save money, is like a dollar or something, the beaches are basically everywhere and they are beautiful.
I can't wait to go back and explore the French side one day!
@@TheAverageTourist definitely! Is beautiful, there is a tourist area in the French side that for me has like a Europe vibe kinda 😊
Very nice island. I would go back.
Same here.
Was there about a year ago...unbelievable experience! Went up a hill to a lookout near Phillipsburg, because our tour guide couldn't get us to the French side (due to protests).
I loved it there. We need to go back and explore the French side more next time.
Going in three months can’t wait also a very good friend on mine lives there and I can stay there!😄
Thank you for the video. Where did you stay?
Thanks so much for the video!
I’m going to Saint Marteen , looking for snorkeling tours. Any company you recommend?
Thanks for promoting US.
Finding out that clothing was optional must’ve been quite the shock for you😄 the sunset shots at the beaches looked beautiful🌅 and a bucket of beers in the shade looks delightful!
Haha yes omg. We were walking down a set of stairs and I stopped in my tracks and told my husband "turn around turn around!" lol We didn't stay at that beach haha.
@@TheAverageTourist What beaches are not clothe optional? That would make us uncomfortable.
Mullet Bay Beach, Great Bay, Maho Beach are all good options. There are lots more too. Mostly the clothing optional ones are on the French side.
Unfortunately Carousel Gelato has closed and is now Toppers Rhum (tour is $25 I think for getting tipsy in an hour or two). The Carousel from the back was donated to PJIA and might be put in the departures lounge as an attraction when is fully reopened.
Just got back from our honeymoon there! So beautiful. Unfortunately found this after the trip but we did a lot of these naturally. #8 is Now Toppers Rhum but they still serve gelato. Would HIGHLY recommend Toppers. The carousel is being donated to the airport and will eventual be functional there.
Oh good to know!! I'll have to go back to see the Toppers Rhum place. Nice that the carousel is being donated rather than scrapped.
Nice
Jouvert Morning!!!
We went to St. John and St. Thomas on our honeymoon but never St. Maarten. Looks so fun and relaxing. The water is so stunning and turquoise 😍
It's a beautiful island. We've been there twice on a cruise and once staying on the island. St. Thomas is lovely too... never been to St. John before though!
@@TheAverageTourist I've been fortunate and been to St John and St Thomas many times. If you choose to go to St John, its mainly to do relax, spend time dining or at the beach. St John is no where as built up as St Thomas..so its way more laid back. St Thomas has more activities...but "to each, their own". Every Island has its thing.
Oh very interesting. I could go for some relaxation so I'll have to look into it or see if any cruises stop there for a day.
I love my island
The Casino is a good tip for us. Interesting to see you can see that performance for free. Pool day sounds like something you just have to do there, only I can't do it longer than 1 hour and then I am done with it. Guide is a good tip.
My husband is not into the pool day either - he's too pale to sit out so he prefers to do activities (but in the shade so he doesn't burn)
Just got back two weeks ago. We had been there a few times before the hurricane and decided it was time to go back. The island is back to its before-hurricane beauty. We have been to many islands, but I still think St. Maarten has the most beautiful turquoise water. Stayed at Ocean Point. Would highly recommend.
The water there is stunning. I agree, definitely among the best 👌
Oh good! I got married there 10 years ago and was so concerned about how it would recover after the hurricane. I'm so glad to hear it's recovered well.
Nice Video! So where can I find these buses? I will stay in Cole Bay Area and want to go
from there ti Maho Beach and also to Phillipsburg. Any ideas? Also where. can I find the tour thing. Thank you
We literally stood on the side of the road in the direction we wanted to go and flagged down the vans that said "bus" and just confirmed we were getting the "bus" rate and they weren't charging us like a taxi service.
Been there quite a few times. Love it there. Orient beach is one of those clothing optional beaches.... Just saying. It got pretty destroyed when hurricanes hit St Maarten a few year ago.
I love SXM, went there in 2019 as a solo female traveler. Had a ball, didn't see the carousel gelato when I was there.have to go back, took the bus everywhere I went. Everyone was extremely friendly.
Good to hear..did you feel safe ?? Did you meet other solo females?
@@minoritiesbecomenurses5735 unfortunately I didn't. But then again I didn't tell anyone that I was traveling solo.
Do you have the info on the guided tour?
How is the shelling there? Which beach has the best shells?
Good video but seems that you've missed a lot of main attractions of St Martin (Orient beach/bay and Red bay are ones of the best beaches, Pinel Island, Oyster Pond Marina ...)
I know Dutch St Maarten has the hustle-bustle of the island but St Martin isn't that big to make all of this within a few days.
Can't wait everything being fine again to enjoy travelling, you have to go back there😉
Yes sadly we didn't get to the French side of the island, and there was a lot of the Dutch side we didnt get to, so we will definitely be back to see more!
Nice video but the island has a French side : Grand Case, Marigot, Baie Orientale, Cul de Sac, Baie Rouge, Baie Netlé, Pic du Paradis (better panoramic view of all the Island) and Anse Marcel, visiting all these places is free. I highly recomend also to enjoy the French Touch that Saint Martin has to offer if you really want to know what SXM is = multicultural. Enjoy it :)
did you go to the french side of saint martin? did you go to anguilla?...
can you go spearfishing on The island?
during your stay what was the name of the resort you highlighted. they have a swimup bar.we have to have that at our resort.it is a great place to make new friends
We were at the Maho Beach resort.
What is the name of the hotel no.13?
I feel like moving to this island.
It's beautiful, so I can see why!
We visited St Martin in 2016 before hurricane Irma. We had a trip planned for Oct 2019 but cancelled due to unrest in the island....fires, etc from the locals on the French side of the island....We are looking to plan a trip now for this September. How did you find the condition of the island after recovery from the hurricane??
I visited in December, seems like something is back to normal. December is way too packed with tourist but other than that it was perfect. I live in Australia but St. Maarten is a gem.
Are there scooters to rent on the island
What sim cards they have down there
What (#14) tour company did you use?
Also, you can rent a small car for 50$ for the entire day inclusive of all taxes. Which is cheaper than the 4 hour tour plus it’s very easy to drive in St. Maarten !
You mentioned ending up in some clothing optional beaches which means you were on the French side. While you mentioned walking around Philipsburg on the Dutch side, no mention of walking around Marigot on the French side. When you're on the French side, you're actually in France just like being in Hawaii is being in the United States.
We did end up walking to the French side but only because we got a little lost! The Cupecoy beach is right on the border but technically still on the Dutch side so perhaps they were inspired by their French neighbours 🤣. Next time we will plan our trip for the French side of the island.
What is the company site you used for the sightseeing tour?
I found it through TripAdvisor - I can't remember which one but it was one of the more popular/highly rated ones when I searched.
Oriental beach was named one of the most beautiful beaches it's part of bus tour a wall is on the beach if u don't want to go on the other side
Do you have any content from the French side?
No we only ventured briefly there and it was by accident - will have to go on another trip to get the French side.
You captured the drawbridge in your footage, but you left out a trip to the Yacht Club. Reasonably priced food and drink and if you’re there in the morning or late afternoon when the bride dye goes up, you can watch the luxury yachts and sailing ships pass through to the lagoon from the deck of the restaurant.
Will have to go back and visit that spot!
Hello beautiful people I booked this island and im staying at Flamingo Beach Resort. Is someone kind enough to lmk what'sclose by or what we can do? Trip is set for early July! Thank you
Thanks for sharing! Your video was very helpful for my trip. I just posted a video about my experience as well :)
That's great! Glad you had a nice trip