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| The Methodist Church in Philipsburg. |
We spent 11 days visiting the island of St. Maarten/St. Martin in March of 2013 for our honeymoon.
This blog entry will cover the places we visited and activities we participated in on the island excluding beaches, which is covered in a separate entry
here.
I highly recommend that anyone who visits St. Martin should rent a car as it is truly the best way to explore the island. St. Martin is much larger than one might expect and it can take quite a long time to drive between destinations due to its hilly landscape and terrible road conditions. While visitors could certainly rely on taxi services, it would likely become expensive rather quickly. There are literally dozens of different car rental companies to choose from which made my decision quite difficult. After plowing through numerous reviews on Trip Advisor, I narrowed it down to about five different companies. From there, we ultimately ended up going with a local company called
Tropicana Car Rental as they offered us the lowest rate of the five companies I obtained quotes from. For the most part, our car rental experience on the island was fairly straightforward, however, I would like to point out a few important things: the conditions of the roads were far worse than what we were expecting. Be prepared to deal with lots of potholes, extremely narrow roads, and locals whose cars will inexplicably stop or slam on their breaks for no apparent reason. Additionally, you may occasionally have to deal with a wandering goat or cow. Street signs are few and far between so make sure you get your hands on a very detailed map. Be prepared to get lost. Since it was an island, the thought of getting lost never entered into my mind, however, sure enough, as soon as we drove away from the airport we got lost in Phillipsburg rather quickly. Again, a detailed map will be very helpful in these sorts of situations. If possible, I would highly recommend to rent a small SUV; something that's tall enough to not bottom out on the many potholes but something that's also relatively narrow enough to drive on the small roads. Even with these difficulties, I would still rent a car again in a heartbeat on a future trip to the island.
Although the island is most famous for its plethora of beautiful beaches, there are many other things to see, do, and partake in on St. Martin. Naturally, the beaches were our primary sightseeing focus, but we still managed to find a few other non-beach related things to see and do. There are two major cities to explore (Phillipsburg and Marigot) both of which offer historical sights. There are numerous different activities to participate in including horseback riding, parasailing, snorkeling, scuba diving, sailing, fishing, etc. The list could go on and on. The island is also well-known for its shopping opportunities and wide range of nightlife. I was personally quite impressed with the wide range of choices visitors have on this small island. A non-beach lover could find themselves on the island for several days and not run out of things to do.
Below is the list of places we visited or activities we participated in during our stay, with a detailed description listed further below.
The Butterfly Farm
This wonderful site, located on the French side of the island, contains over 40 species of butterflies from all around the world that fly freely within the walls of the large meshed enclosure. Entrance to the site includes a thorough guided tour that explains the entire life cycle of a butterfly, which we found fascinating. Additionally, each ticket includes a free return pass that can be used at any point during the duration of your vacation. It is recommended to arrive in the morning as that is typically when the butterflies are most active. If you'd like to ensure that some butterflies will land on you during your visit, make sure to wear bright colors or floral scents.
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| Path to the Butterfly Farm. |
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