St. Martin - St. Maarten
|
|
|
 |
 |
Hotel & Resort Reviews:
St. Martin/St. Maarten
Oyster Bay Resort 06/02/02
Reviewers Rating:  Great
They bill themselves as a 5 star resort in the Interval International Guide, (timeshare), but are still under construction, though fully functional,and a ways from being a full service resort. Its been under several ownerships and different phases of construction, so some of the buildings are newer than others. I would try and get a room in the newer buildings. We had a one bedroom with a full kitchen. The view was fantastic, we were about 50 step from Dawn Beach, one of the best beaches on St. Marten. Its on the Dutch side, but not far from the French. About 15 mins from Phillipsburg. One side of the resort faces the ocean, the other side Oyster Bay and the marina. Definitely attend the orientation for an overall review of the island, the activities offered and tips for getting around. You will definitely need a rental car (they rent there for about $230/wk with free ride to airport on your departure day)if you want to see anything else besides the resort and 2 other restaurants (very good ones) that are located within walking distance. The service can be frustrating at times, they are definitely on island time and many people have trouble answering questions. Activites desk has alot of things to offer and you can get discounts if you listen to the 30min time share pitch. We only ate breakfast a couple times in the restaurant at the resort, but other people said it was pretty good. We prefer Marigot or Grand Case restaurants, 20-30 mins away. Also Ms. B's or Mr. Busby's are great and within walking distance. There are 2 buildings that are partially finished and they are supposed to start June1 to construct 2 or 3 more on the bay side, also laundry, video rental and lush landscaping to be added. I would probably say it will be a year before that is all complete. We own at the Marriot in Kauai, so we compare everything to that, and this is definitely not as nice, but for this island, it is probably one of the best places. St. Marten still has alot of hurricane damage from Luis in '95. The French helped that side rebuild, so it is cleaner and looks less damaged, but the Dutch did nothing for the otherside, so they have had to rebuild on their own. Some people just didn't have the money to do it, so their houses remain in ruins and the people live in Red Cross shelters that were built after the hurricane. I would go back, its just not as pretty an island as some of the others in the region. Though, their beaches are beautiful and there are tons of them. I was a little disappointed in the abdundance and variety of fish I found when beach snorkeling, though I heard people that took boat trips to snorkel saw alot. I could see alot of damage to the coral from the hurricane probably. There is alot to do on the island and you could easily spend 2-3 weeks there. Its easy to take a ferry to St. Barts or Anguilla too, another fun day trip.
Diana
 Read more Caribbean Travel reviews at TripAdvisor
|
 |
|
