St. Barth

[wild_turkey 3,159]

Keywords: St. Barthélemy, St. Barths, St. Barts
 
Headed out today to one of my favorite places on earth. For those who haven’t been, it’s French - the food is amazing, the language is French with a fair amount of English, the currency is the Euro, the people are beautiful, and the beaches are French (if you catch my drift).
 
There are no cruise ship ports, no large hotels, no AI resorts, no casinos, no golf courses, no zip lines, no Starbucks or McDonalds or Señor Frogs, no people selling weird shit on the streets or beaches. Plenty of other places to go if you want or need those things.
 
You can arrive by plane through St. Martin or San Juan, or by ferry through St. Martin. We use St. Barth Commuter through SXM. It’s an 8 seater plane and the landing is fun.
 


 
Being just the wife and myself, we prefer to stay in hotels. This time will be Hotel Christopher where we have stayed once before. Another option is to rent a villa, which @Johnny Sack can chime in on as he has experience there.
 
A few of the beaches have small hotels or restaurants with day beds and drink service. Many of the beaches are uninhabited so you can take whatever you want and you may only see a few people there. My favorites are Colombier, St. Jean, and Salines:
 



 
 
 

[VABuckeye 2,472]

One of my favorite islands.

We're on St. John this week and Jost van Dyke next week.   Enjoy!!

[NoName 16,350]

you guys have convinced me, this is at the top of my list of places to go currently. 

fiance wants to go to a Caribbean all inclusive just for ease for honeymoon, which i am on board with - but this place looks beautiful. 

[Jhawk 1,075]

Take her to hedonism.

[wild_turkey 3,159]

fiance wants to go to a Caribbean all inclusive just for ease for honeymoon, which i am on board with - but this place looks beautiful.

If you want a place to plop down at a resort with a wristband and unlimited drinks, you won’t find it here. That being said, the island is incredibly easy to navigate and you’ll want to make it your playground.

Why stay at one hotel or beach when you could easily experience multiple nice beaches with hardly a soul in sight?

Why eat at prepaid AI hotel restaurants when you can indulge in incredible gourmet food at restaurants scattered around a small island?

Everyone has their own preferences and that’s completely fine, but St. Barth has forever ruined the rest of the Caribbean for us. The only islands left on our radar are Tahiti and the Maldives.

[Onboard 2.0 9,083]

2 hours ago, NoName said:

you guys have convinced me, this is at the top of my list of places to go currently. 

fiance wants to go to a Caribbean all inclusive just for ease for honeymoon, which i am on board with - but this place looks beautiful. 

It is, and it ain't cheap though.

[Sbbruin 21,829]

2 hours ago, VABuckeye said:

One of my favorite islands.

We're on St. John this week and Jost van Dyke next week.   Enjoy!!

Nice.  Gonna charter out of Tortola?

[NoName 16,350]

1 hour ago, wild_turkey said:

 

If you want a place to plop down at a resort with a wristband and unlimited drinks, you won’t find it here. That being said, the island is incredibly easy to navigate and you’ll want to make it your playground.

Why stay at one hotel or beach when you could easily experience multiple nice beaches with hardly a soul in sight?

Why eat at prepaid AI hotel restaurants when you can indulge in incredible gourmet food at restaurants scattered around a small island?

Everyone has their own preferences and that’s completely fine, but St. Barth has forever ruined the rest of the Caribbean for us. The only islands left on our radar are Tahiti and the Maldives.

 

With you 100% on multiple beaches, food and being on your own - typically we are both this way but for honeymoon she wants something easy...which I understand. 

[VABuckeye 2,472]

3 hours ago, Sbbruin said:

Nice.  Gonna charter out of Tortola?

Just hanging out on the islands this week.  We did a day trip around St. John on SUnday with a buddy who's a captain for some country singer that has a house down here.  We're heading to Jost on Sunday for four nights.  We'll just hang out with the day party crowd at White Bay and then have dinner with friends each night.

[VABuckeye 2,472]

6 hours ago, NoName said:

you guys have convinced me, this is at the top of my list of places to go currently. 

fiance wants to go to a Caribbean all inclusive just for ease for honeymoon, which i am on board with - but this place looks beautiful. 

No offense intended but I will never, ever do an all-inclusive in the Caribbean.  I want a house, a Jeep and to explore the island.  I want to eat where the islanders eat and see what there is to see.

[VABuckeye 2,472]

Hawks Nest Bay on St. John today.  That's Jost van Dyle, BVI in the distance.

[Incredulity 11,649]

Quote

Headed out today to one of my favorite places on earth. For those who haven’t been, it’s French - the food is amazing, the language is French with a fair amount of English, the currency is the Euro, the people are beautiful, and the beaches are French (if you catch my drift).

Lousy service and the people are assholes?

 

[Johnny Sack 8,397]

8 hours ago, NoName said:

you guys have convinced me, this is at the top of my list of places to go currently. 

fiance wants to go to a Caribbean all inclusive just for ease for honeymoon, which i am on board with - but this place looks beautiful. 

I still owe you a response.  Will do this weekend when I have a minute.  

[Johnny Sack 8,397]

5 hours ago, Onboard 2.0 said:

It is, and it ain't cheap though.

I went all out staying at Le Toiny, one of the nicest lux hotels on my honeymoon.   Spent almost two weeks there.   Was a fortune.  Felt we wasted money because so little time is spent in your room — we war on the island.  Went back two years later and stayed at Le Village in St Jean for a fraction of the price.  Had just a good of a time.  

I prefer villas now.  I like having a private pool where I and the kids can hang out while wife is getting ready to go out or while I’m cooking dinner. 

I don’t find the island much more than any other place I’ve been in the caribe.  So long as you aren’t going the two weeks either side of New Years or staying somewhere ridiculous. 

Breakfast for 4 is croissants from a bakery for $10.  

We eat half our lunches on beach picnic - - some rose, beer, bottled water, fresh baguette and cheese is cheap.  Other half at restaurants.  Half dinners out the other half cooking in villa.  

St Barth has entirely different demographics from every other place I’ve been in the Caribe.  Because they never had slaves.  

Edited May 31, 2019 by Johnny Sack

[Johnny Sack 8,397]

4 hours ago, NoName said:

With you 100% on multiple beaches, food and being on your own - typically we are both this way but for honeymoon she wants something easy...which I understand. 

St Barth is very easy.  You’ll have a vehicle. And the island is tiny.  Look at it like the entire island is your resort.  

But you’ll often be on a 700 yard beach with 4 other couples.  Instead of packed in like sardines and having to run down to the beach early to save your seats.  

[ChiTownDoc 21,140]

17 hours ago, wild_turkey said:

Keywords: St. Barthélemy, St. Barths, St. Barts
 
Headed out today to one of my favorite places on earth. For those who haven’t been, it’s French - the food is amazing, the language is French with a fair amount of English, the currency is the Euro, the people are beautiful, and the beaches are French (if you catch my drift).
 
There are no cruise ship ports, no large hotels, no AI resorts, no casinos, no golf courses, no zip lines, no Starbucks or McDonalds or Señor Frogs, no people selling weird shit on the streets or beaches. Plenty of other places to go if you want or need those things.
 
You can arrive by plane through St. Martin or San Juan, or by ferry through St. Martin. We use St. Barth Commuter through SXM. It’s an 8 seater plane and the landing is fun.
 


 
Being just the wife and myself, we prefer to stay in hotels. This time will be Hotel Christopher where we have stayed once before. Another option is to rent a villa, which @Johnny Sack can chime in on as he has experience there.
 
A few of the beaches have small hotels or restaurants with day beds and drink service. Many of the beaches are uninhabited so you can take whatever you want and you may only see a few people there. My favorites are Colombier, St. Jean, and Salines:
 



 
 
 

That hurricane  stopped the party a couple years but we plan on hitting NYE again w a large group this year.  Perfect spot.  Great post.  

[Nice Guy Eddie 13,508]

15 hours ago, Johnny Sack said:

I went all out staying at Le Toiny, one of the nicest lux hotels on my honeymoon.   Spent almost two weeks there.   Was a fortune.  Felt we wasted money because so little time is spent in your room — we war on the island.  Went back two years later and stayed at Le Village in St Jean for a fraction of the price.  Had just a good of a time.  

I prefer villas now.  I like having a private pool where I and the kids can hang out while wife is getting ready to go out or while I’m cooking dinner. 

I don’t find the island much more than any other place I’ve been in the caribe.  So long as you aren’t going the two weeks either side of New Years or staying somewhere ridiculous. 

Breakfast for 4 is croissants from a bakery for $10.  

We eat half our lunches on beach picnic - - some rose, beer, bottled water, fresh baguette and cheese is cheap.  Other half at restaurants.  Half dinners out the other half cooking in villa.  

St Barth has entirely different demographics from every other place I’ve been in the Caribe.  Because they never had slaves.  

St Barth never had slaves? That’s a myth they attempt to put out there.  Plenty of slavery existed there when it was a Swedish and later French territory. 

[immamac 42,835]

I'm happy for all of you that have wonderful experiences there, but my experience of St. Barths was complete garbage. It was pretty, but the beaches were far more packed than the posts indicated here (late December). I will say the airport and watching planes land was one of the coolest things I've done in the Caribbean. 

[Onboard 2.0 9,083]

1 minute ago, immamac said:

I'm happy for all of you that have wonderful experiences there, but my experience of St. Barths was complete garbage. It was pretty, but the beaches were far more packed than the posts indicated here (late December). I will say the airport and watching planes land was one of the coolest things I've done in the Caribbean. 

It's cooler in St. Maarten to watch planes land and takeoff.  St. Barts is a gorgeous little island though.  Been there by yacht, we were the poor folks in the harbor. Rented a 100' sailboat, sailed from St. Maarten, and were moored next to mega yachts with more crew than the people we had on our whole boat.

[Johnny Sack 8,397]

5 minutes ago, immamac said:

I'm happy for all of you that have wonderful experiences there, but my experience of St. Barths was complete garbage. It was pretty, but the beaches were far more packed than the posts indicated here (late December). I will say the airport and watching planes land was one of the coolest things I've done in the Caribbean. 

I’ve never been that time of year.  Pretty sure it’s a different island from mid December to mid January.  That’s when the celebs take over and the rents quadruple and the marina is packed with super yachts

I go during Thanksgiving.  And it isn’t crowded. 

[VABuckeye 2,472]

December would be during high season.  

[wild_turkey 3,159]

We only go during low season. I’ve seen pictures of Gustavia during high season and it looks like madness.

 

[ChiTownDoc 21,140]

1 hour ago, immamac said:

I'm happy for all of you that have wonderful experiences there, but my experience of St. Barths was complete garbage. It was pretty, but the beaches were far more packed than the posts indicated here (late December). I will say the airport and watching planes land was one of the coolest things I've done in the Caribbean. 

As mentioned above, time of year...party your ass off December into early January - with crowds, but chill other times of the year.  

Personally I think it’s worth the extra hassle to get there but I could see people not thinking it’s THAT much better vs another high end island/resort in the Caribbean, especially considering the effort to get there.  

[VABuckeye 2,472]

True.  We spend a lot of time in St. John and the BVI because it’s accessible and we have friends here.   I want to go to St Vincent and the Grenadines but they’re much more difficult for us to get to. 

 

Don’t y’all have easy flights to St. Maarten from Texas?

[immamac 42,835]

3 hours ago, Johnny Sack said:

I’ve never been that time of year.  Pretty sure it’s a different island from mid December to mid January.  That’s when the celebs take over and the rents quadruple and the marina is packed with super yachts

I go during Thanksgiving.  And it isn’t crowded. 

This was my exact experience. I was treated like "peasant trash" everywhere I went and there were crazy yachts parked all over. Perhaps I'll give it another shot after hearing it's a different place - I was on my honeymoon and we only stayed on the island 1 day. 

[Thetexashammer 1,062]

Wild Turkey, did they let you sit right seat? How did you that one pic of the garmin?

[ChiTownDoc 21,140]

On 5/31/2019 at 10:12 AM, NoName said:

you guys have convinced me, this is at the top of my list of places to go currently. 

fiance wants to go to a Caribbean all inclusive just for ease for honeymoon, which i am on board with - but this place looks beautiful. 

I have not done an all inclusive in about a decade but even the ‘best’ ones were pretty terrible.  Maybe that’s an unpopular opinion and I sound like a snob but unless you like quantity over quality they suck.  And they’re not much cheaper unless you have 70 well drinks a day.  

[wild_turkey 3,159]

Wild Turkey, did they let you sit right seat? How did you that one pic of the garmin?

They let you sit there. I’m pretty sure that was me on a previous trip, can’t quite remember. Wife got the honors this time.

[Johnny Sack 8,397]

On 5/31/2019 at 7:23 AM, wild_turkey said:

Keywords: St. Barthélemy, St. Barths, St. Barts
 
Headed out today to one of my favorite places on earth. For those who haven’t been, it’s French - the food is amazing, the language is French with a fair amount of English, the currency is the Euro, the people are beautiful, and the beaches are French (if you catch my drift).
 
There are no cruise ship ports, no large hotels, no AI resorts, no casinos, no golf courses, no zip lines, no Starbucks or McDonalds or Señor Frogs, no people selling weird shit on the streets or beaches. Plenty of other places to go if you want or need those things.
 
You can arrive by plane through St. Martin or San Juan, or by ferry through St. Martin. We use St. Barth Commuter through SXM. It’s an 8 seater plane and the landing is fun.
 


 
Being just the wife and myself, we prefer to stay in hotels. This time will be Hotel Christopher where we have stayed once before. Another option is to rent a villa, which @Johnny Sack can chime in on as he has experience there.
 
A few of the beaches have small hotels or restaurants with day beds and drink service. Many of the beaches are uninhabited so you can take whatever you want and you may only see a few people there. My favorites are Colombier, St. Jean, and Salines:
 



 
 
 

I like those beaches plus Guverneur.   You ever eat at Santa Fe in Lurin which is on the turnoff for Guverneur?   One of my favorite places on island.  It’s a great dinner spot.  But a hell of a lunch spot with a view of it is a clear day.  We can’t go this thanksgiving like we normally do because I have an arbitration.   But I’m booking a villa for early June next year.  Ten nights.  Can’t wait.  

[wild_turkey 3,159]

St. Barth will open its borders on June 22 with the requirement that all people entering will have a negative COVID PCR test within 72 hours of arrival.

We were originally scheduled in early June but have now re-booked for July 17-25, staying at Pearl Beach. As of right now, there is no definite timeline for when SXM airport in St. Maarten will open, so flying through there is a big risk. We will instead fly to San Juan, PR and stay one night, then catch a Tradewind flight to St. Barth. Never done that before but the Tradewind planes look nice, albeit more expensive than St. Barth Commuter.

I need to do some research on how to get a COVID PCR test in the DFW area if you are asymptomatic. I'm sure there's somewhere that I can pay for one, but lots of the clinics still have minimum health criteria to qualify for testing. It's definitely a calculated risk because even if we aren't sick, we could have a false positive test that would cancel the trip at the last minute. Not to mention this is deeper into hurricane season than we would normally go. But if everything works out it will be totally worth it, and if not, we'll go again next year.

[Ag with kids 581]

I saw the comments above about going in December.  We usually do Sint Maarten for Christmas and a few years ago did an excursion to St Barts.  Included ferry ride and a Jeep when we got there.

Had a great time.  Stopped somewhere and ate (don't ask me where).  It was kind of busy, but wasn't too bad at the 4 or 5 beaches we stopped at.  So, don't be TOO afraid of high season.

It WAS a sight to see in the harbor when you pull into it, though.  About 20 of the yachts you see there have their own wikipedia page.  And watching the planes land was pretty awesome.  Not Sint Maarten awesome, but still really cool.

I'd like to try staying there some time, but I still really like Sint Maarten/St Martin.

[wild_turkey 3,159]

I’m in heaven. Seriously, I might be dead because life doesn’t get better than this.

[VABuckeye 2,472]

If someone prefers St. Maarten/Martin over St Barths I just don’t know what to say to you.  It’s no contest. 

[Ag with kids 581]

11 hours ago, VABuckeye said:

If someone prefers St. Maarten/Martin over St Barths I just don’t know what to say to you.  It’s no contest. 

I didn't say I preferred it.  I really liked St Barths.  But, I've only spent about 8-10 hrs there, too.

And St Barths is more difficult to get to and more expensive, by a lot, for me...

I had a great time when I was there, though.  And it was cool seeing all those 9 figure yachts in the harbor.

[Onboard 2.0 9,083]

On 6/17/2020 at 5:50 PM, Ag with kids said:

I saw the comments above about going in December.  We usually do Sint Maarten for Christmas and a few years ago did an excursion to St Barts.  Included ferry ride and a Jeep when we got there.

Had a great time.  Stopped somewhere and ate (don't ask me where).  It was kind of busy, but wasn't too bad at the 4 or 5 beaches we stopped at.  So, don't be TOO afraid of high season.

It WAS a sight to see in the harbor when you pull into it, though.  About 20 of the yachts you see there have their own wikipedia page.  And watching the planes land was pretty awesome.  Not Sint Maarten awesome, but still really cool.

I'd like to try staying there some time, but I still really like Sint Maarten/St Martin.

We rolled into St. Barth back in 94 on a 150' custom sailing yacht owned by the guy who started Comcast cable. We were living large with a crew of 5 to take care of 6 of us.

We immediately felt like the poor relations when we came into the harbor.  Ted Turners yacht along with a few sheiks, and dozen or more other high wealth folks. They had crews of 15-20 for those mega yachts.

[Ag with kids 581]

20 minutes ago, Onboard 2.0 said:

We rolled into St. Barth back in 94 on a 150' custom sailing yacht owned by the guy who started Comcast cable. We were living large with a crew of 5 to take care of 6 of us.

We immediately felt like the poor relations when we came into the harbor.  Ted Turners yacht along with a few sheiks, and dozen or more other high wealth folks. They had crews of 15-20 for those mega yachts.

I know exactly what you mean...it was just jaw dropping when I saw all of them - and I'd even seen a few in the Sint Maarten marina before they'd headed that way.

We saw this one, for example:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Le_Grand_Bleu_(yacht)

Quote

The boat also boasts two additional yachts on individual cranes that she carries on the topside of the aft of the boat - one is a 73-foot (22 m) sailboat (on the port side), and the other is a 68-foot (21 m) powerboat (on the starboard side).

The current owner won it in a bet...WTF????😵

[Onboard 2.0 9,083]

1 minute ago, Ag with kids said:

I know exactly what you mean...it was just jaw dropping when I saw all of them - and I'd even seen a few in the Sint Maarten marina before they'd headed that way.

We saw this one, for example:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Le_Grand_Bleu_(yacht)

The current owner won it in a bet...WTF????😵

Yeah Phillipsberg marina has its share of big yachts. The relatively small size of St. Barths port makes them look even bigger.

[Johnny Sack 8,397]

If you rent a reasonably priced villa like we do, I don’t find it prohibitively expensive.  Just don’t try and go from mid December to mid January.  Prices on rentals are stupid for that one month period.  We like going at Thanksgiving. 

[wild_turkey 3,159]

Sunday means Nikki Beach. I’m talking sushi, rosé, magnums, DOUBLE MAGNUMS!!!, sunshine, thong bikinis, good vibes only. Tell only your best friends. La vie est belle.

[Ag with kids 581]

2 hours ago, Johnny Sack said:

If you rent a reasonably priced villa like we do, I don’t find it prohibitively expensive.  Just don’t try and go from mid December to mid January.  Prices on rentals are stupid for that one month period.  We like going at Thanksgiving. 

I just have a timeshare account (through RCI) that we inherited.  I'm spending 2 weeks on the water (with a small private beach) in Cupecoy in Sint Maarten from 12/19-01/02 for $239.  Hard to beat that price.

Don't have that deal on St Barths...

We may do an overnight trip to St Barths, though, so we get 2 full days and an evening.  I did enjoy it while I was there.  Although, I've been told by a lot of SXM locals that Anguilla has the best beaches.

[Longhorn 145]

Harbour Island is my go to in the Caribbean. You certainly don’t want to Eat where the locals do, but there are zero AI resorts and beach is probably best in the world.

[Ag with kids 581]

18 hours ago, wild_turkey said:

Sunday means Nikki Beach. I’m talking sushi, rosé, magnums, DOUBLE MAGNUMS!!!, sunshine, thong bikinis, good vibes only. Tell only your best friends. La vie est belle.

You, sir, are a good man...👍

[Steel Shank 9,421]

Sunday means Nikki Beach. I’m talking sushi, rosé, magnums, DOUBLE MAGNUMS!!!, sunshine, thong bikinis, good vibes only. Tell only your best friends. La vie est belle.

Thank you, kindly.

[Johnny Sack 8,397]

Sunday afternoon at Nikki is great.  The music gets louder and more of a party vibe as the hours pass.

[wild_turkey 3,159]

Landed again today because... why not?

We normally do June trips but we had a travel itch and we think this is a relatively safe travel destination during the pandemic. Testing required for entry and once you get here almost everything is outdoors or open air.

Had a great dinner at Santa Fe to kick things off. Somehow we had never been there but it lived up to its reputation. We have a ridiculous lineup of meals to come - Tamarin, Isola, Orega, Bonito - just to name a few. Places that would each be the star restaurant in our hometown.

Staying at Christoper in Pointe Milou which I personally think has the best views on the island as the sun goes down.

[Cajun 11,705]

On 7/19/2020 at 3:01 PM, wild_turkey said:

Go on...

[Hollywood 342]

3 hours ago, wild_turkey said:

Landed again today because... why not?

We normally do June trips but we had a travel itch and we think this is a relatively safe travel destination during the pandemic. Testing required for entry and once you get here almost everything is outdoors or open air.

Had a great dinner at Santa Fe to kick things off. Somehow we had never been there but it lived up to its reputation. We have a ridiculous lineup of meals to come - Tamarin, Isola, Orega, Bonito - just to name a few. Places that would each be the star restaurant in our hometown.

Staying at Christoper in Pointe Milou which I personally think has the best views on the island as the sun goes down.

Great hotel, thats where we stayed. So fucking jealous... 2021

Edited December 6, 2020 by Hollywood

[Reynolds Woodcock 4,739]

So, wife and I want to do St Barts for 4 or 5 nights in May.  @Johnny Sack, can you give any details on renting a villa? Looked at Cheval Blanc and Le Toiny which seem nice, but for $6K I’d like to make sure it’s really the best option and not just the easiest option.

[Johnny Sack 8,397]

4 hours ago, Reynolds Woodcock said:

So, wife and I want to do St Barts for 4 or 5 nights in May.  @Johnny Sack, can you give any details on renting a villa? Looked at Cheval Blanc and Le Toiny which seem nice, but for $6K I’d like to make sure it’s really the best option and not just the easiest option.

Rent a villa.  Check out Sibarth’s website.  We rent Villa Bikini.  I like having a bigger space and St Barth really is not a hotel/resort place.  I mean the two or so hotels you might want to use their facilities — just have a lunch or two there.  Most of your time you drive to a beach and hang there.  
 

https://sibarth.com/all-villas/villa-bikini/

 

we actually like doing more nice lunches out since that is when you can actually enjoy the view.  It gets dark early there most of the year. We end up cooking a lot at night for dinners and love opening up the pocket doors, having drinks and swimming while cooking and eating.  

[wild_turkey 3,159]

7 hours ago, Reynolds Woodcock said:

So, wife and I want to do St Barts for 4 or 5 nights in May.  @Johnny Sack, can you give any details on renting a villa? Looked at Cheval Blanc and Le Toiny which seem nice, but for $6K I’d like to make sure it’s really the best option and not just the easiest option.

Just a small fyi, St. Barth has been closed for travel since early February and there is no official word on when it will reopen. I don't think St. Barth has ever had much of a problem, but they are dependent on Guadeloupe and St. Martin for medical support and those islands have not fared as well. The decision comes from mainland France, so even though St. Barth wants to be open for tourism, they can't make that decision independently.

They are scheduled to receive vaccines on April 19 and there should be enough to cover everyone on the island that wants one. The expectation is for the island to reopen in late April or early May, which will once again be dependent on all travelers having a negative PCR test prior to arrival, unless they decide to make an exemption for vaccinated people sooner, which has also been rumored but not confirmed.

We are booked to be in St. Barth the first week of June. I'm optimistic it will actually happen.