St Martin/St Maarten / Towns

St Martin

Marigot - The French capital is well worth a stroll, particularly if you visit on a Wednesday or Saturday morning when the local produce market takes place. There are also daily souvenir and crafts stalls set up on the quayside that cater principally to the cruise ship trade. Inland lies a characterful grid of streets with small shops and old wooden houses. Walk south and you'll find the boutiques, restaurants and galleries of Marina Port La Royale, a large cemetery and the palatial Office de Tourisme. The Musée de Marigot lies at the northern end of town - at the same time you can visit the nearby Roland Richardson Gallery in rue de la République and walk up to Fort-Louis to take in the view over the harbour.

St Maarten

Philipsburg - The Dutch capital sits by the splendid sandy beach of Great Bay. The marina and cruise ship pier lies at its eastern end – if you arrive by sea you might like to walk first along the pedestrians-only Boardwalk then go inland a block and work your way back along Front Street which is lined with touristy shops. The next street behind this, Back Street, is less commercial and where locals buy their daily needs – there is a souvenir and crafts market on the junction with Hendrick Gevangenis Street. The Sint Maarten National Heritage Foundation is a small historical museum of interest that is tucked down an alley beside 7 Front Street.