St. Maarten (The southern Dutch side)

[FunTimeSxm]

Yeah they are open but you can't go out after 7 pm, there is curfew every night and my Friend says you will get arrested if you out after 7 pm.

[Ivanvlad]

A girl I know, who is working in the Crystal, told me today that the Crystal and the Carolina are open.

[UltraHappy]

Just to be clear for those readers of this forum who are just skimming, Governor Mapp is the governor of the USA Virgin Islands and not of St. Martin.

So, Pogostick's observations below should not be misinterpreted as being about St. Martin by the more cursory readers following this forum.

Gov. Mapp is the most corrupt and biggest bullshitter in the Caribbean. Just a few weeks ago he was quoted as saying the USVI does not need a financial bailout, that the island's finances are just fine. They are a couple billion in debt, have fallen to junk bond ratings (Mapp cut off all communications with financial analysts), government employees are not being paid, govt utility bills are in arrears, there is not a single working ambulance on any of the islands (yet he and the LT gov just spent a small fortune on 3 armored SUVs and limos for themselves).

If he says they will be ready in January, he probably means in 2020.

[PogoStick]

(Take particular note of the research analyst quote in the article below, suggesting "several quarters or more" before cruise ships resume operations in St. Maarten. Ouch! So far, the cruise ship lines have only cancelled their stops at St. Martin for the next 5 weeks, but whether trips to St. Martin will be subject to further cruise ship cancellations remains to be seen).

TITLE: St. Thomas, St. Martin now off Royal Caribbean schedule for weeks.

SOURCE: https://www.usatoday.com/story/trave...eks/673339001/.


In an interview with NPR on Wednesday, the governor of the USA Virgin Islands said he hoped St. Thomas could be back up and running for tourism by January.

Gov. Mapp is the most corrupt and biggest bullshitter in the Caribbean. Just a few weeks ago he was quoted as saying the USVI does not need a financial bailout, that the island's finances are just fine. They are a couple billion in debt, have fallen to junk bond ratings (Mapp cut off all communications with financial analysts), government employees are not being paid, govt utility bills are in arrears, there is not a single working ambulance on any of the islands (yet he and the LT gov just spent a small fortune on 3 armored SUVs and limos for themselves).

If he says they will be ready in January, he probably means in 2020.

[FunTimeSxm]

Go to the national hurricane center and click on the Maria data click on the 5th box over.
St Maarten is in the bullseye of this hurricand now predicted to be over 110 mph. at least force 3 possibly 4 and 5 over puerto rico.

Yes, this was the hurricane my friend sent me picture of, I got the name wrong. I hope Maria changes direction like Jose did and goes back into the Atlantic or at least gets no stronger.

In other news I have been told Carolinas suppose to be re-opening tomorrow.

[Mel365]

Go to the national hurricane center and click on the Maria data click on the 5th box over.
St Maarten is in the bullseye of this hurricand now predicted to be over 110 mph. at least force 3 possibly 4 and 5 over puerto rico.

[Mel365]

Hurricane Maria is currently forecast to go right over St Maarten at Hurrricane strength. 2 PM Tuesday.

I can stay with my friend when I visit so don't need to worry about hotels and he said there are so many soldiers on the island now (1500-2000) on French side that looting is not as bad. However there is another storm on the way (Lee) and I have seen lots of photos of the devestation so if I do visit it will be last minute, it will be between December-April.

[FunTimeSxm]

I would seriously forget about visiting SXM for at least a year. I am right now going through my third hurricane aftermath. It is not fun. Fortunately, my neighborhood got off with minimal damage but I am one of the lucky ones. Even so, I spent 6 days without electric and gasoline for my generator was hard to find. Others in the area are still under water or have severe wind damage.

Unless you are part of an official relief crew in SXM, you will only be in the way and at high risk of violent crime. While there may be a few hotels and restaurants operational, all you'll see is wreckage and devastation. It would not be a pleasant or safe experience. Monger elsewhere until tourism fully rebounds.

I can stay with my friend when I visit so don't need to worry about hotels and he said there are so many soldiers on the island now (1500-2000) on French side that looting is not as bad. However there is another storm on the way (Lee) and I have seen lots of photos of the devestation so if I do visit it will be last minute, it will be between December-April.

[Barkey]

I think this year they are really celebrating the day on Sunday the 17th.

Maybe you still have time if you haven't sent the flowers yet.

Barkey.

Mel. You are right. My bad.

[Mel365]

Today is the day.

[UltraHappy]

(Take particular note of the research analyst quote in the article below, suggesting "several quarters or more" before cruise ships resume operations in St. Maarten. Ouch! So far, the cruise ship lines have only cancelled their stops at St. Martin for the next 5 weeks, but whether trips to St. Martin will be subject to further cruise ship cancellations remains to be seen).

TITLE: St. Thomas, St. Martin now off Royal Caribbean schedule for weeks.

SOURCE: https://www.usatoday.com/story/trave...eks/673339001/.

Irma-ravaged St. Thomas and St. Maarten are now off Royal Caribbean's schedule through at least late October.

With the islands just beginning what could be a months-long recovery, the line late Friday said four ships that are scheduled to visit over the next five weeks instead would head to such islands as St. Croix, St. Kitts and Bonaire.

Royal Caribbean already had canceled all of next week's stops at St. Thomas and St. Maarten the Dutch side of the island of St. Martin.

More: St. Thomas, St. Martin could be off schedules for months.

Grand Turk not quite ready for ships.

Royal Caribbean begins pulling Key West from itineraries.

The ships affected include the world's three largest cruise vessels Harmony of the Seas, Allure of the Seas and Oasis of the Seas. Based in Florida, the similarly sized trio measure more than 225,000 tons a piece so big they only can fit into the docking facilities at a handful of Caribbean islands.

Harmony will replace St. Thomas and St Maarten calls with visits to St. Kitts, which is one of the few nearby islands with facilities that can accommodate the vessel. Allure will replace one St. Maarten call with a visit to St. Kitts and additional calls in St. Maarten and St. Thomas with stops at Labadee, Royal Caribbean's private beach destination in Haiti. Oasis, which only is scheduled to visit St. Maarten over the coming weeks, will replace the calls with visits to St. Kitts and Nassau in The Bahamas.

Also affected by the changes is Puerto Rico-based Adventure of the Seas, which will replace St. Thomas and St. Maarten calls with stops in St. Croix, Bonaire and St. Kitts.

In a statement, Royal Caribbean left open the possibility of more cancellations to come.

"As the recovery effort remains fluid and each island is working diligently to get back to normal operations, we will continue to communicate any port changes approximately four weeks prior to departure," the line said.

The next Royal Caribbean calls in St. Thomas and St. Maarten that have not been canceled are scheduled to take place on Oct. 24 and 25, respectively.

Both St. Thomas and St. Martin were devastated by Irma, which barreled across the islands as a Category 5 hurricane, and some officials have hinted it could be many months before they are ready to receive tourists. In an interview with NPR on Wednesday, the governor of the USA Virgin Islands said he hoped St. Thomas could be back up and running for tourism by January.

In a research note sent to investors on Monday, Instinet analyst Harry Curtis estimated it could take "several quarters or more" to repair infrastructure on St. Martin and St. Thomas, suggesting it could be an extended period before ships return.

Royal Caribbean is one of the biggest operators of fall cruises to St. Thomas and St. Maarten. Its biggest rival in the region, cruise giant Carnival, also has been canceling St. Thomas and St. Maarten calls but so far only for the coming week. Another major competitor, Norwegian Cruise Line, has canceled all of its stops in St. Thomas for the next two months. All of the line's Eastern Caribbean sailings, which included a stop in St. Thomas as well as hard-hit Tortola in the British Virgin Islands, have been switched to Western Caribbean itineraries through November.

St. Thomas and St. Martin are two of the Caribbean destinations most visited by cruise ships and integral to dozens of cruise itineraries. Each draws more than 1. 6 million cruisers per year. In the Caribbean and the Bahamas, only a handful of ports come close to drawing as many passengers.

Royal Caribbean on Sunday used the 3,114-passenger Adventure to deliver relief supplies to St. Martin and evacuate stranded travelers, and its 1,840-passenger Majesty of the Seas docked Tuesday in St. Thomas and Friday in St. Maarten to offer similar assistance.

In addition to St. Thomas and St. Martin, cruise ship destinations significantly affected by Irma include Key West, Fla. ; St. John in the USA Virgin Islands; Barbuda; St. Barts; and Tortola in the British Virgin Islands.

[Barkey]

Tomorrow Saturday is Dia de Amistad y amor in Colombia.

Day of friendship and love. It is a second valentines day for Colombians.

Good time to text your girlfiends in Colombia or send them cheap flowers.

Colombia is a world producer of roses. I use Daflores.com.

Very Inexpensive.

I think this year they are really celebrating the day on Sunday the 17th.

Maybe you still have time if you haven't sent the flowers yet.

Barkey.

[PogoStick]

My friend confirmed that Carolinas is closed and he will update me when it opens again.

He said the looting is bad and that soldiers have been ordered to shoot first and ask questions later.

As per previous post, the girls will be busy with all the workers and soldiers on the island come the rebuild, I can imagine there will also be some real cheap flights and hotel deals to encourage Tourists to come back.

Was planning for a winter break over there before storm, hopefully I won't need to change my plans.

I would seriously forget about visiting SXM for at least a year. I am right now going through my third hurricane aftermath. It is not fun. Fortunately, my neighborhood got off with minimal damage but I am one of the lucky ones. Even so, I spent 6 days without electric and gasoline for my generator was hard to find. Others in the area are still under water or have severe wind damage.

Unless you are part of an official relief crew in SXM, you will only be in the way and at high risk of violent crime. While there may be a few hotels and restaurants operational, all you'll see is wreckage and devastation. It would not be a pleasant or safe experience. Monger elsewhere until tourism fully rebounds.

[Mel365]

Tomorrow Saturday is Dia de Amistad y amor in Colombia.

Day of friendship and love. It is a second valentines day for Colombians.

Good time to text your girlfiends in Colombia or send them cheap flowers.

Colombia is a world producer of roses. I use Daflores.com.

Very Inexpensive.

[Quagmire1974]

Was planning for a winter break over there before storm, hopefully I won't need to change my plans.

You might want to create a backup plan. I've spent the past week on TripAdvisor trying to find out what happened to the hotels, bars, restaurants, and nightspots that I visited on Sint Maarten, Saint Martin, and Anguilla. All of them were either moderately to heavily damaged or completely destroyed. A whole bunch of new threads have popped-up on TripAdvisor in the Sint Maarten and Saint Martin forums discussing the effects of Irma on the island. I know of one hotel (The Sonesta?) that was so heavily damaged that they canceled reservations for the rest of 2017. Here are a couple of links you might find interesting:

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/irma-creat...--finance.html

https://ph.news.yahoo.com/rebuilding...143548517.html