DIY IN THE CARIBBEAN

[Quizzical Bob]

Philipsburg is a water taxi ride or a ten minute walk from where the shop docks. There are sunloungers and shades available with the town stretching along the back if the beach. We never seem to get past the jewellery shops.

[Peter D]

Think I am bit like you. I will relax on the beach with a nice cool drink and OH can wander around the shops. The credit card will remain on the ship.

[DianaM]

Diana

What is Philipsburg Beach like for swimming, sun bathing and how close to the town.

It's great for sunbathing and swimming. Very easy to get to - just keep to the left after you get off the ship and you will end up in the queue for the water taxi! They are very frequent and good value. (Can't remember how much, but you can go backwards and forwards all day if you want, as you have a wristband).

Someone did try and put me off Philipsburg Beach once, by saying there is a sewer outfall pipe going into the bay, but it's actually storm water, and goes a long way out. It's to the right of the pier, looking at the land, so if you want to avoid it, go to the left to get your sunbeds

Swimming is very good, and there's not too much of a 'step' into the water like some Caribbean beaches. Not much good for snorkellng though

The shops are directly behind the beach, so no problem there.

Hope that helps.

Diana

[Peter D]

Diana, Thank you for the reply. This is our last port of call before the Atlantic, so a final spot of relaxation is in order.

[arrbee]

Peter, In the P&O leaflet about St Maarten it talks about the small town beach in Phlilipsburg but don't be put off. It is narrow but long so there's lots of space. Like you it was our last PoC before the Atlantic so we wanted to make the most of the sunshine too. There's lots of bars behind the beach with plenty of waiters to bring you your relaxing drink and there's also free wifi if you buy a drink. We paid $5 each for the sun-bed and it cost $7 for an unlimited number of trips on the water-taxi from the port to the town. Make sure you get off in the town centre as there are two stops.

Thanks for the tips Diane. We're planning next year already.

We also went DIY in Cozumel which was VERY easy. We asked the cruise excursion people how much a taxi to Chankanaab National Park cost and we were told about $50. It actually cost $11 and we shared with others in the queue from the ship so paid 7 dollars a couple including tip. We had heard about this park from other cruisers last year so we decided to head straight there after we docked. We went to the taxi rank just outside the shopping mall and from there It took us around 15 minutes to get to the park. We were greeted warmly on arrival and the main attractions pointed out on the map. We had a $2 discount voucher so paid $19 dollars each for admission and we thought this was a good deal. There really is so much to do in the park - we loved the gardens with the mayan ruins replicas, the dolphins, mannatees and sea-lions with lots of pelicans flying around. There were various places to eat and drink and we especially enjoyed our lunch and cocktails seranaded by a Mexican trio. Although the day started overcast by midday the sun was back shining so we spent several hours on the beach enjoying the beautiful clean sand and free chairs and parasols with waiter-service drinks. Our journey back to the ship was again a shared taxi this time with crew members. When we got abck we walked along to the supermakret (only 100 yards from the port) and it was the best supermakret we saw in the Caribbean. Fantastic selection of goods. We bought some wine and there was wine from all round the world including various European countries something we didn't see anywhere else and my favourite Kettle crisps. Another great day and definitely NOT worth doing a ship excursion for something so easy