St. Martin anyone??!?!

jkny23 · 03-13-2008, 12:44 PM

I was told that St. Martin would be a great selection for a destination wedding out of the NY area since there are direct flights. Has anyone done a wedding there or have any suggestions

I originally went to Cabo thinking I was doing my wedding there until I realized how annoying the connecting flights would be for 40-50 guests!!! although I love Cabo, I am looking for some insight as to a place with a nice garden area to get married instead of sand and lots of activities provided both in and outside the resort.

I am narrowing it down to Jamaica (Rose Hall or Half Moon or any property at this point -- maybe Westin or La Samanna) in St. Martin.

Anyone...please help!!!!!

lucy106 · 03-13-2008, 02:20 PM

I went to St Marteen two summers ago. Did not do a wedding there but a family vacation. It is a small island, small airport (few flights in and out), but ate at a lot of nice restraunts, did some diving, some great shopping (its a popular cruise ship port). Went to the casino (nothing like Vegas but still fun). We stayed at a time share. Lots to do for a small island. My biggest concern for a DW would be lack of flights in and out.

jkny23 · 03-14-2008, 06:49 AM

the only good thing about the flights to St. Martin is that I am from NY and so are all of my guests. We have direct flights there on AA and Jetblue so that isn't the problem. I was considering Cabo originally and went there 2 weeks ago only to realize how much of a pain it will be for 40-50 guests to get there ultimately. I am having a hard time finding hotels that I am crazy about in St. Martin although I love the way the water and activities look.

I am so confused!!! Now I am between Jamaica and St. Martin.

Any additional suggestions would be appreciated!!

LisaW · 03-14-2008, 06:59 AM

Hi! I've been both St. Martin & Jamaice and they are both great!

St. Martin: I was there again this past winter. I absolutely love the Eurpoean influence on the Franch side of the island. To me, when I'm there it feels more like a fabulous European escape than a great Craibbean Island. And it's such a short, easy flight from NY, I love that!!! Great restaurants, easy to get to casinos for night activites, tons of watersports and gorgeous beaches. In terms of hotels, La Samana is gorgeous! It's hard to describe how stunning that place is!! It is expensive. The Westin has a gorgeous pool, but the lobby is a bit strange being below-ground on the garage level. That always struck me as kinda bizarre. And the beach gets very windy. But the pool and spa are very nice.

Jamaica: the people could not possibly be any nicer. We felt so warm & welcome there, which really surprised us given the islands past reputation. We stayed at the Ritz Carlton which was gorgeous!! Warm, cozy atmosphere, gorgeous pool. The beach is kinda rocky and tiny, so it's more of a pool hotel than a beach hotel. BUT they do have a private beach on premise to got married on which is so b/c it's so secluded. A friend of a friend of a friend got married there 2 years ago and I hear it was a phenominal wedding! Still hearing about it to this day I don't know anything about other hotels there, sorry!

Sounds like you have two amazing places to choose from and you cannot go wrong. GOOD LUCK!!!!

Lisa

jkny23 · 03-15-2008, 05:27 PM

That is some great information you provided. Now I am really confused!! Both seem great, although I won't be able to do La Samanna since the room rates are very high and my guests would be a little upset having to shell out that amount of money. I am not really thrilled with the way the Westin looks and I know that there is a Radisson Hotel opening up at the end of this summer in the area which is supposed to be nice. Who knows though!?!

I have been on every single website reading up on reviews for both locations. I am happy with the Half Moon Resort as well as the Rose Hall Resort in Jamaica. In St. Martin, it is hard for me to find anything that I am interested in as far as hotels are. I love that destination though from the pictures that I see and activities to do just not crazy about the hotels.

Kristy! · 04-01-2008, 02:56 PM

Not to add another one to the mix, but have you looked into St Lucia? There are direct flights from JFK now. Sorry, I'm a little biased!

pryzeless · 04-01-2008, 02:59 PM

You have to check out residency requirements for St. Martin, something like 10 day ahead of time but I could be wrong.

Pazoop · 04-01-2008, 03:37 PM

I have been to St. Martin many times and it is a fabulous island...the thing is, I don't know if it's quite at the point of catering to DW yet...I looked into it at the beginning of my DW planning and it seemed like there were only one or two hotels that were really geared to that sort of thing (I want to say the name of one was La Semana?)...The Dutch side of the island is very centered on cruise ships stopping through and the French side has more boutique hotels than larger chains with lots of amazing restaurants in areas like Grand Case and Marigot...so there are few AI hotels on the island.

Anguilla, which is about a 20 minutes ferry ride out of Marigot, has some of the most spectavular beaches I've ever scene but is very pricey to stay on....it would make for the ideal honeymoon location though and would be only a stones throw (literally)....

I would also consider looking into St. Lucia -- there are some beautiful AI hotels there for weddings (Almond Bay is one I think), and there are direct flights to Aruba too which has the added bonus of being below the hurricane belt....

TA Dina · 04-02-2008, 08:42 PM

Without knowing the specifics of your group, I will chime in that generally St Martin is expensive and has few direct flights going in/out of the island. There are some but you'll find one, maybe two a day? I've got a family going down this summer for a reunion and they're suffering from some sticker shock that's for sure.

But don't get me wrong, it's beautiful.

Jamaica will price better, and be much easier to get to IMO. Both resorts you mentioned are nice. And if you venture over to either coast of the island you may find some even nicer.

Aruba is quite nice as well. Although not many gardens to be found outside of the resorts. Great weather year round.

TA Dina · 04-02-2008, 08:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jkny23

I am so confused!!! Now I am between Jamaica and St. Martin.

Any additional suggestions would be appreciated!!

Or how about a cruise that stops at either island? Southern caribbean cruises from San Juan visit some awesome ports. St Martin being one of them.