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 Our October stay is fabulous. Visited: October 2009 |
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| Posted by bathcy2 | |
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We are currently at Villa Belle Mer, and are finding it just beautiful! The villa is exceptionally large, very clean, and has all the modern conveniences you would expect in a luxury villa. Kudos to the owners for doing such a fabulous job! |
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| 1 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. | |
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| The Best Place I've ever stayed at in the Caribbean Visited: November 2008 |
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| Posted by bathcy2 | |
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I love Villa Belle Mer! This place is the best I've ever stayed at in the Caribbean and the value for the cost is incredible. I love the fact that the layout allows privacy when you go with friends or family - especially that it is a great place for two couples who can have their own master bedrooms on other sides of the estate. Each bedroom also has it's own bathroom with granite countertops and marble floors too - so the privacy for everyone is great. I am a gourmet cook and even though we often eat out at the many restaurants - the kitchen is great to create a great meal. The most important thing above all is the expansive outdoor living and dining area on the terrace. We spend most of our time there if we're not upstairs lounging in the library listening to the ocean breeze! I can't say enough positive things about this place!!! |
| 1 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. | |
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 Don't have high expectations. Visited: April 2009 |
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| Posted by dlwhite064 | |
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It was a nice size, and a very clean room. However, there was no air vent in bathroom. You must lock it using a key in the door, inside and out. They had a nice free breakfast at the pool. There was no restaurant or bar, though. The beach chairs at Kakoa were run by outside party. They were very unfriendly and you won't get a "front row seat". Employees were nice, but not accommodating. My wife brought her curling iron and needed a converter. It took them three days to get one - every day saying they would have one. There was a great little "plaza" behind the hotel, with restaurants and a mini market. The beach was wonderful. This is a motel, not a resort, so enjoy your stay just don't have high expectations going in. |
| 2 users found this review helpful. 3 found this review unhelpful. | |
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| This is the best beach on St. Martin. |
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| Posted by daveb | |
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My wife and I rent a car from Michael's at Unity, and except for a couple of trips to Grand Case for dinner and a one day trip to Phillipsburg so my wife can shop for jewelry, we do not leave Orient. Andy and Cheryl at Bay Watch, Thomes and Amin at L'Astrolabe, and the Safari Grill keep us happy on Orient. The beach is the best. Even when the cruisers converge on the beach, it's still a great place to be. You can find cheap cold drinks, good food, beautiful blue green water. It's the best place on St. Martin to get rid of your tan lines and enjoy the feeling on not sitting in a wet bathing suit. We love Orient Bay, and cant wait to get back. Seven more months and counting! |
| 2 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. | |
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 This is one of our favorite resorts. Visited: November 2008 |
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| Posted by daveb | |
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My wife and I stayed at the Esmeralda for our anniversary last fall. It was our second visit here. We stayed ten days and had a great time. The rooms were big, clean and comfortable. The staff was very friendly and hard working. We did not spend any time on Coco Beach, we prefer the beach in front of Club O. We did have dinner twice at L'Astolabe. The food and service are excellent. The owners, Thomas and Amin, always made us feel like "guests of honor". We can't wait to get back to St. Martin and Orient Beach. |
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| It is great! |
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| Posted by t_freant | |
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Kokomarina serves great drinks and has amazing service! Koko takes care of you, assuring you have everything you need. Our drinks were always cold, and shots were very generous. |
| 0 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. | |
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| This will be our third trip to Alamanda Resort - in three years. Visited: October 2007 |
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| Posted by paulahakkaart | |
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This is a fantastic hotel with friendly staff, a great poolside breakfast, and lovely rooms. The location is on the beach with some of the best restaurants on the sand. If you like St. Tropez, but hate the paparazzi, this is it. The place is gorgeous and kid friendly. The pool at the hotel is wonderful, too. The two-story units are perfect for families. There is also lots to do in the area...tree forest walk, butterfly farm, horseback riding, 30-minute boat ride to Anguilla, etc. |
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| 17 users found this review helpful. 1 found this review unhelpful. | |
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 Jardins de Chevrise offers a bare basic accommodation. |
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| Posted by celticstar | |
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We stayed at the Jardins de Chevrise. It was a bare basic accomodation. We're low maintainence people, but I would have expected the sheets to be changed each day and the shower cleaned. Not so. The walk to Orient Beach was more like 15 minutes down the path behind the resorts. Then, to get to the "chaired" area of Orient Beach, it's another 10-15 minute walk along the beach. The resort is 220 wiring, not noted in the brochure or web site - which means a converter if you're from the US. There were only six TV stations (six of the same station from Guadeloupe and TNT w/o audio). The staff was nice, the breakfast was simple - and available for $12 daily. |
| 1 users found this review helpful. 1 found this review unhelpful. | |
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 I was so disappointed. |
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| Posted by timma | |
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We ‘ve read so many good comments about Captain Olivers that we decided to spend our weekly vacation there in December. We were so disappointed! First of all, that resort was not a four-star. The poor outside lighting at night made us feel so unsecure. I asked to the management if we could get closer to the front desk as the resort seemed to be empty. The lady made us feel that it would be a major problem to check into another room. The overall service was quite poor. The phone was not working properly all week long. Our room was filthy, with a low light system, a cheap TV, and one American channel ( NASA ). It looked like they were on a budget here. We had dinner at the restaurant once - and once too many. When we stepped in, we did not feel welcome. A young lady, who seemed to be in charge, did not bother to sit us at our table. She just pointed to a table next to the water, handed over two menus, and told us to sit down and she would be right back. She never showed up. The funny thing was - it was not quite busy that night. They had five tables - maybe six. We loved the area. Oyster Pond was what we were looking for. It was away from the crowd. We had a chance to visit La Caravelle Hotel. It was a cute little Property overlooking Oyster Bay. That property would be our recommendation with a 40% less expensive rate than Captain Oliver! |
| 3 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. | |
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| It was nice, so we extended our stay. Visited: July 2007 |
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| Posted by islandbound5 | |
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At first we were thrilled. However, once we realized the other villa features, we learned a few things. This villa is not child-friendly. There are lots of stairs - both to the pool and into the bedrooms. Also, the slate on the stairs and hallway is very slippery - and quite scary for wet feet. The pool is only a "plunge" pool with no shallow end, which also makes it more work to enjoy. The mosquitoes were merciless. I'm not sure if this is year round or in the summer only. They wanted to charge for a DVD player that gave out while we were here - even though we reported right away that it was making sounds in the motor. This was a tedious argument. Orient Bay is beautiful. The restaurants are delicious. It was nice enough to extend our stay a week for a three-week stay. |
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| 2 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. | |
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| This was the worst hotel stay I have ever had. Visited: March 2007 |
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| Posted by essexgirl | |
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If you like being treated badly and discriminated against for no reason, this hotel is for you. If, like me, you want to enjoy your holiday - do yourself a favor and stay anywhere other than this hotel. I encountered unbelievably rude staff. The room I booked was "substituted" for another lesser value room with no explanation other than "we're very full at the moment". Also, there was no corresponding discount on my pre-paid booking. My room was supposed to be ocean view, but overlooked the exposed sewer mains. I could hear the band playing in the bar intil very late. Also, my TV didn't work. The ceiling had major water damage, and looked as if it was going to cave in over the tub. Generally, everything my room was unclean and scummy. Although I didn't eat dinner at the hotel, they tried to charge me for the $38 buffet. This was the worst hotel stay in my experience. The only good point was the Dinghy Bar (not associated with the hotel) located on site that had cheap drinks, fantastic food at reasonable prices and good service. Otherwise, I wouldn't recommend Captain Oliver to anyone, and would give it zero stars - if possible. You couldn't pay me to stay here ever again. It was absolutely horrid from my arrival to my departure. |
| 6 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. | |
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| We are spoiled now! Visited: February 2007 |
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| Posted by jmm | |
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We have stayed in St. Maartin just up the beach from Club Orient for many years. We drove down to Club Orient every day to sit on the beach, and use their chairs and umbrellas. Everyone was all ways so nice. We were not sure of the resort at first sight. We thought it might be a little higher priced than we wanted to pay. We have not been to St. Martin in three years now, and upon our return we wanted to try to stay at Club Orient. We saw that there was new management, and we were very pleased. Now we are spoiled. Here, we can rise nude in the morning, open the door, and greet the day the same way. Then, after coffee, get clean beach towels at the office, and spend a beautiful day at the beach. I may have packed a few to many clothes. We rented a car at the airport, and that was not necessary. The boutique had everything we needed. There were morning coffees at the restaurant, afternoon happy hours at the Perch bar, and late afternoon happy hours or wine and cheese parties. The restaurant served three meals a day, and most evenings there was entertainment. You could also walk up the beach for a change of scenery .There was so much to do, the vacation went too fast. We are spoiled now! |
| 22 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. | |
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| Caribbean Princess is a great place at a great value. Visited: December 2006 |
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| Posted by dadichter | |
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My friend and I booked this trip last minute. We were so pleasantly surprised when we arrived to our room. We worried about the ground floor room at first, but it became the best part of our trip. We were able to sunbathe in our own back yard with the sound of the waves. Also, the room was clean and beautiful. We would definitely stay here again. |
| 4 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. | |
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| I enjoyed it here. Visited: May 2006 |
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| Posted by elizabeth_kincade | |
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This is a great house for friends traveling together. They offer three bedrooms and a loft. We were four women traveling together, and we all had our own space. There was lots of room. It was in a very private setting, with a great view. It was also an easy and quick drive to Orient Beach. The housekeeping staff was great, and they will do laundry! There were also lots of amenities. However, there were noisy, older air conditioning units, and the beds were a little old and worn. The room had a gas grill, a microwave and a rangetop - but no oven. And, like most properties in St. Martin, it came with a cat. |
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| 4 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. | |
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| This is the best kept secret in St. Martin. Visited: January 2006 |
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| Posted by susycav | |
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I love this place! It's so homey. The rooms are huge for the price, and it's not a typical big nameless resort. It has personality and heart. Also, it's just a short walk from the gorgeous Orient Beach. Plus, our room came with a cat on the terrace. Prior guests left a note requesting us to feed it, which we did. We then left a note for the next guests. I can't wait to get back! |
| 7 users found this review helpful. 1 found this review unhelpful. | |
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| This is the best hidden secret of Saint Martin! Visited: August 2006 |
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| Posted by cosmonomad | |
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We knew the excellent Soleluna restaurant from earlier visits, and believe it is just the best French restaurant we have ever been to. This year, we also tried one of their apartments, the Nacre Suite. We just loved it! It was very comfortable, very clean, and a great feature was this Jacuzzi on the terrace. The place gave us all the privacy we wished to have. The owners provided generous assistance - when needed! We strongly recommend the place, as it represents a great value. |
| 25 users found this review helpful. 3 found this review unhelpful. | |
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| It was pleasant, quiet, and typically European. Visited: July 2006 |
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| Posted by j_curtis | |
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This seemed typical of old European hotels in the Caribbean. It was very quiet, but close to shopping and restaurants. |
| 0 users found this review helpful. 1 found this review unhelpful. | |
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| I found it to be disappointing. Visited: July 2006 |
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| Posted by buckleyba | |
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We chose this hotel from a web site as it advertised "panoramic views of Orient Bay and surrounding islands". We couldn't see anything but the vegetation. Even the housekeeping manager agreed with us and recommended that we state so on the survey form left in our room. We will not got back until they've trimmed the trees! |
| 6 users found this review helpful. 3 found this review unhelpful. | |
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| I wasn't impressed with Hoste Hotel. Visited: October 2005 |
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| Posted by sawmeinhalf | |
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My room was ransacked, and the management couldn't seem to care less. I believe this is the worst management in the history of hotels in Saint Martin. |
| 5 users found this review helpful. 6 found this review unhelpful. | |
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| Aralliaya boasts great views. Visited: March 2006 |
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| Posted by sendtobrian | |
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We just got back from our trip to St. Martin and we stayed at the Aralliaya. We really liked the location. It was on the hillside overlooking Orient Bay (across the main road that went around the island). We enjoyed walking to the beach in the morning. It was about a 15 minute walk. Be warned: the hill was steep! The walk back was a workout. The house was in a great neighborhood--very safe. The villa had a nice deep pool (seven feet). I'm guessing it was about 15 feet wide. We got the morning sun on the patio, and it was all in the shade in the afternoon. The view from the villa was outstanding. Our bedroom window overlooked the steep hill and neighborhood below us. Other good points: great kitchen, great garden, great housekeeping, and a good stereo. Small gripes: There were not enough furnishings. There was one couch and one table. Bedrooms were sparse. The patio could have used an umbrella or two. Overall, I would stay here again. We really liked the location and the views. |
| 16 users found this review helpful. 0 found this review unhelpful. | |
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