2015 - 3 - St. Maarten

THIS WAS our third time in St. Maarten, but the other couples' first. The concensus for that day was to find a spot close by on the beach, rent some chairs, and get a bucket of beer. As I have said in the past, we are not huge beach people. I can take it or leave it. My wife doesn't do well in the sun. So we don't do a lot of it. But in the last two circumstances, it worked out great, because we were able to get shade under an umbrella. And - its the company you keep. 😊 We enjoyed just relaxing in the "chill" atmosphere of a Caribbean Island. Fortunately for us, we had seen a lot St. Maarten on our first two trips here.

Beach in Phillipsburg, St. Maarten
Copyright Andy Richards 2015 - All Rights Reserved

THE SHIPS dock in the deepwater cruise port in Phillipsburg, on the Dutch (and south) end of the island. It is a quick 5-minute water taxi ride across from the cruise terminal to the main pier in downtown Phillipsburg. As you exit the pier, you can go either right or left. Interestingly, whoever was leading the charge decided to turn left. Down the beach in that direction is where all the "happening" bars are. Those bars face the waterfront, and there is a boardwalk that separates them from the beach, which makes a much narrower beachfront. Your feet are almost in the water.

Beachfront Bar - Phillipsburg, St. Maarten
Copyright Andy Richards 2015 - All Rights Reserved

TO THE right is a much wider beach in front of a number of highrise condominium buildings. From a sand and aesthetic view, I think it is the much nicer looking beach of the two. But in the end, we probably made the right call. About 2 hours into our day the skies darkened and a major dowpour with heavy winds opened up. We could feel the wind and see it coming and quickly abandoned our chairs to the attendant and walked just a few feet across the beach to one of the bars, which had a covered area - and a table for the 6 of us.

Beachfront Bar - Phillipsburg, St. Maarten
Copyright Andy Richards 2015 - All Rights Reserved

WE STAYED mostly dry, and ended up having some lunch, and in a short time the sun was out again. We would enjoy the ship's amenities for the next couple nights. We would have another full day at sea the next day before arriving back in Ft. Lauderdale in the early morning hours the following day.

As we now approach the end of 2025, this 2015 Caribbean Cruise was the last Caribbean Cruise we would do until after we came out of the Covid-19 Pandemic in 2022. Instead, we would turn our attention increasingly to Europe, including the Mediterranean, The English Channel, the Bay of Biscay, the North Sea and the Baltic. 2015 would mark our second cruise in the Mediterranean - on the Emerald Princess - more to come, so stay tuned. But in the meantime, Here is wishing all a Merry Christmas, a Happy and Prosperous New Year, and happy holidays to all those who observe one or more of the many holidays celebrated during this season!