Mullet Bay, Philipsburg © St Maarten Tourist Bureau
Visiting St Maarten/St Martin is a unique experience: it is an
eastern Caribbean island divided between two sovereign states,
France and the Netherlands, with an unpoliced border cutting
through its southern portion, allowing you to sunbathe in the
French St Martin in the afternoon, and stroll over to dine in Dutch
St Maarten in the evening. The French and the Dutch have shared
this Caribbean gem peacefully for more than 350 years ever since,
as legend has it, a gin-drinking Dutchman and wine-imbibing
Frenchman walked around the island to see how much territory they
could claim for their country in a day. The Frenchman gained
two-thirds of the island, but the Dutch maintain that their
representative claimed the prize part of the property.
The Dutch portion is in the south, with the capital Philipsburg
being a duty-free shopping Mecca that draws thousands of tourists
every day of the year. Dutch St Maarten arguably has the best
(certainly the most developed and crowded) beach resorts, clustered
along the southwest coast near the island's international airport.
French St Martin is more scenic and less developed, but no less
popular as a holiday destination.
The island is renowned as being the gourmet capital of the
Caribbean and for providing the liveliest nightlife, mostly centred
on the island's 35 enticing white-sand beaches. The small island's
main attractions are shopping, relaxing on the crowded beach or
dipping in the clear turquoise waters; there is little of historic,
cultural or architectural interest or natural attractions beyond
the sand and sea.
