Anybody been to St. Martin?

G

gvarsity

mr. mom
The fiancee and I had been thinking of holding off on an honeymoon but yesterday we changed our minds and booked a trip for a week at the island of St. Martin. Was wondering if any CS members had been there and what your experience was like.

I did notice there is a La Casa del Habano on the island. It looks like there is also a place called the the little cigar factory. I'm curious if anyone has tried any of their cigars. It seems like their specialty is liquor flavored/infused cigars which makes me a wee bit cautious but I'd be willing to give it a go.

Anyway I'm pretty stoked. Since we are going off season it's going to be pretty reasonable which may leave me a little more cigar money. :)

I would love to hear of any experiences good and bad you may have had on the island as well as suggestions and recommendations for restaurants, activities, things to see, cigars to smoke etc... Thanks in advance.
 
Two sides to the Island.

Lots of cigar shops selling habanos. There is a LCDH on the island. Stick with them. I have been to some of the shops and one used to be a source of mine way back when. Like I said way back when.

But just stick with the LCDH. It will be more money but your safest bet to get the real McCoy.
 
St. Matin is awesome but I would take your cigars with you.
You will a high price for any cigar there. A box of RYJ Churchills will run about $330.

I love that island. We went there for our honeymoon and it was out of this world. The beaches are some of the best in the world and all the Europeans go topless which really is no big thrill because they look so natural doing it.
Its funny to watch the American girls show off their new racks.

The jewelry stores have some great deals. Look for the smaller places off the beaten path where the owner is running the place. I scored a white gold bracelet for $350 that appraised for $2,500 back here in the states.

I will say that there is nothing like smoking a fine cigar on a white beach with your wife on your side drinking tasty drinks looking at the clear blue ocean.

Enjoy
 
I was thinking the LCDH was the way to go. Seems to be a consistent suggestion on CS that unless you are rock solid on something else go LCDH.

We are going to be on the french side of the island in a smaller village called Grand Case that caters to foodies. I have already been looking at some of the menus online. Fresh Mahi Mahi is one of my favorite things in the world.

I am soooo looking forward to this.

Thanks for the tip on jewelry had not thought about that. Won't be smoking next to the wife though she can't stand it. Still an hour or so of away time each day on the honeymoon can't be a bad thing.
 
Me and a couple friends stopped into a couple shops last year on a cruise to do some price comparison. LCDH was a great shop, but yes quite overpriced. We priced Monte #2 boxes for comparison sake (didn't buy of course) and LCDH was 320. We found 6 month old authentics at another shop for 230.

That being said, when I was just in Cayman, I only 'checked prices' at LCDH. Again, they were authentic, but expensive. But there were a couple other shops close by that were very questionable, and not much cheaper.

As far as anything else to do in St Maarten (Dutch side), I couldn't elaborate much as we spent a total of 8 hrs. on the island. I also look forward to going back to spend a week. That may happen next year.

Also some great prices on alcohol there.
 
I was there 3 or 4 times but unfortunately all of them when I was still a kid / teenager.

What I do remember are the following things: (keep in mind that was 10-15 years ago):

- Overall I liked the French side of the island much better. Less tourists, less businesses, more friendly and cheerful people.
Of course it also means less activities, less nightlife and more peace and quiet - guess it depends on what you like.
I think we usually stayed near Marigot but I really can't remember.

- Philipsburg (capital of the Dutch side) is an awfully touristic area. All the big cruise ships stop there, so you'll see more tourists than anything else.
Lots and lots of hotels, malls, tourist traps. Even as a kid I noticed how many cigar stores there were, many of them obviously aimed at ensnaring naive
tourists coming straight from the pier. There were also many people milling around trying to get people to buy cigars 'off the street'. But like I said,
I was too young and my parents don't smoke.

- The best thing about the Dutch side that I remember is a restaurant called 'The Wajang Doll' which serves one of the best "Rijsttafel" I ever had.
'Rijstafel' translates to 'rice table', it's a very famous specialty from Indonesia. The Dutch East Indian Company brought it from there home to the Netherlands,
from where it was then exported to the Dutch colonies in the Caribbean. It's really, really tasty but you must try it when you're hungry!
I don't recall the sizes of rijstafels that particular restaurant offered, but the smallest editions of that meal contain about 12-14 dishes and I remember
having been to restaurants offering 'rijsttafels' with over 40 of them (priced accordingly of course...)
Check out this link or this one for more information.
 
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Thanks for the info. I dated a dutch girl years ago and she made what must have been rijsttafel they were platters of indonesian rice dishes. Will have to head over to the dutch side and try them. We are staying near but not in Marigot and we are definitely looking forward to the peace and quiet and good food. Neither of us are "clubbers" and after several months of hectic activity quiet relaxation sounds really good.
 
I love St Martin/St Maarten. I prefer the Dutch side (St Martin), however, it is well worth a trip to the French side, don't pass that up. Great food on both sides. There are two main shops on the Dutch side. One, the first one you come to from the center of the downtown area as you head out of town on the main street, is great. It's on the second floor, the prices are high but better than the LCDH which is about a half mile further, on the same street. I've been there 4 times and have purchased cigars from both shops. They have always been quality cigars.

Johnny
 
JohnnyFlake said:
I love St Martin/St Maarten. I prefer the Dutch side (St Martin), however, it is well worth a trip to the French side, don't pass that up. Great food on both sides. There are two main shops on the Dutch side. One, the first one you come to from the center of the downtown area as you head out of town on the main street, is great. It's on the second floor, the prices are high but better than the LCDH which is about a half mile further, on the same street. I've been there 4 times and have purchased cigars from both shops. They have always been quality cigars.

Johnny
Click to expand...


Are you talking about Cigar Emporium ?? :hn
 
RPB67 said:
Are you talking about Cigar Emporium ?? :hn
Click to expand...

It's been about four years since I've been there and for the life of me, I cannot remember the name of the shop. I do recall, that from the street level, there is a door way, about 4" wide, between two other stores. That is the entrance, and you must go up a flight of stairs, to the 2nd floor, to enter the shop. I usually picked up a couple of cigars there on each visit. However, most that I purchased were from the LCDH. If I was on a cruise that was also stopping at Barbados, I always checked the shops in St Martin, however, I would save most of my cash for Barbados. The selection was always larger, and for whatever reason, the prices were always better. I am referring to the LCDH.

Johnny
 
JohnnyFlake said:
It's been about four years since I've been there and for the life of me, I cannot remember the name of the shop. I do recall, that from the street level, there is a door way, about 4" wide, between two other stores. That is the entrance, and you must go up a flight of stairs, to the 2nd floor, to enter the shop. I usually picked up a couple of cigars there on each visit. However, most that I purchased were from the LCDH. If I was on a cruise that was also stopping at Barbados, I always checked the shops in St Martin, however, I would save most of my cash for Barbados. The selection was always larger, and for whatever reason, the prices were always better. I am referring to the LCDH.

Johnny
Click to expand...

Stay away from that store.....:hn I know Vinod personally, he used to be one of my go to vendors way back when.

Definately stick with the LCDH.
 
Love St. Martin. I think the place with the 2nd floor is the cigar emporium. Nice place, liquor is quite cheap there as well. Wife and I keep saying that we are going to pass on a cruise one year and just head there for the vacation.

What the prev poster said jewerly there is a great deal. The place right next to the cigar emporium is where my wife shops. Place really impressed me, they remembered we were there the year before and I sent my mother over to buy some of their stuff.
 
RPB67 said:
Stay away from that store.....:hn I know Vinod personally, he used to be one of my go to vendors way back when.

Definately stick with the LCDH.
Click to expand...

I don't see myself getting back there anytime soon, although who knows. We are kicking around the idea of another Eastern Caribbean Cruise next February and we may hit St Martin. Thanks for the heads-up on that shop. I can only assume that it was okay during the times I stopped there. Obviously there have been some changes. We were on a Western Caribbean Cruise this past February and I really don't care for the destinations, besides, it's killer hot & humid there!

Johnny
 
Love St. Martin. Great beaches, great food, beautiful landscape. You should rent a convertible. We had a Jeep and drove around finding these little private beaches in the middle of nowhere....We were the only ones there. And it's very safe...we'd walk around at 2 in the morning with no worries about getting robbed or something. Probably because many of the locals were richer than us. :tu
 
gvarsity said:
Thanks for the info. I dated a dutch girl years ago and she made what must have been rijsttafel they were platters of indonesian rice dishes. Will have to head over to the dutch side and try them. We are staying near but not in Marigot and we are definitely looking forward to the peace and quiet and good food. Neither of us are "clubbers" and after several months of hectic activity quiet relaxation sounds really good.
Click to expand...

Just incase you'll be at the Dutch side, my sister own a little restaurant next to where all cruise ship docks, Say hello for me and tell them where in the same cigar forum. they might show you around and maybe some tips where to shop. Her name is Norina and the restaurant name is "Manila Cafe"
Just in case Amigo.

Love the nude beaches...
 
pinoyman said:
Just incase you'll be at the Dutch side, my sister own a little restaurant next to where all cruise ship docks, Say hello for me and tell them where in the same cigar forum. they might show you around and maybe some tips where to shop. Her name is Norina and the restaurant name is "Manila Cafe"
Just in case Amigo.

Love the nude beaches...
Click to expand...

Fantastic! We always love getting a chance to actually meet locals and see places from the non-tourist side. We plan to have a car and drive around the island for at least one day and plan to visit the Dutch side then. Hopefully we'll get a chance to check out her restaurant. Thanks.

Will also think about getting a convertible when we tour the island. That sounds like a blast. Great idea.
 
I went there years ago, and looked at some of the cigar shops. At the time I couldn't tell a habano from a dog rocket. but some of them clearly were not.
 
Headed there next Saturday for a week with the wife and kids. I love the island! It's our 3rd trip.

Great food, beaches.

Yes, take your own cigars.
I think I had the old bait and switch pulled on me one time.
 
Coffee Grounds said:
I will say that there is nothing like smoking a fine cigar on a white beach with your wife on your side drinking tasty drinks looking at the clear blue ocean.
Click to expand...

I am just a newb here and don't post much, though read a lot, but this line just pulled me out from under my rock.

So true this is...and at those times I realize how lucky I am and how good life really is. Now if I could just hit the lottery and make that my daily activity [laugh].
 
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