Getting around St. Martin: do you need a car?

Do you need a car?

On the West End, yes. Minibuses run along the island's main roads, but they don't come into Terres Basses, and taxis have to be called for every ride back. A taxi is fine for one dinner out; for a week of beaches, groceries and restaurants, a car is cheaper and far easier.

If you plan to stay put in a busy area such as Simpson Bay or Grand Case, you can manage with taxis and walking. Terres Basses is the opposite: quiet because nothing is there, and that includes transport.

Renting a car at the airport

Most visitors fly into Princess Juliana Airport (SXM), on the Dutch side, and pick up a car there. With the big international brands, you usually take their shuttle from the terminal to their main office and do the paperwork there. It works, but on the way home you have to drop the car back at that office and wait for the next shuttle to the airport, just when you would rather not be rushing.

That is why Micheline and Lionel send their guests to Golfe Car Rental, and through Lionel, Villa Zenitude guests get a discount. Someone meets you at the airport. Payment can be arranged in advance or settled there, and your car is waiting for you, clean, from a good choice of models. Five minutes to check everything over and you are on your way. When you leave, you simply park it in the airport's private car park, and that's it.

The Saint-Martin tourist office says a French or international licence is enough, and most rental companies accept a current US, Canadian or European licence. Rules on age, deposits and driving on both sides of the island vary, so check them when you book.

Driving on St. Martin

Driving here is easy once you know a few things:

• Drive on the right. French road rules apply on the French side.
• There are roundabouts everywhere. Give way to cars already on them.
• One main road loops round the island, with smaller roads to the beaches and districts. Signs are scarce, so use Google Maps, which works well here.
• There is no passport or customs check between the French and Dutch sides; a sign by the road tells you when you cross.
• There are fuel stations on both sides. The nearest to Terres Basses is Cadisco at Baie Nettlé, which also has a small grocery. You can pay there in US dollar cash.
• Roads are narrow, and there are speed bumps ("dos d'âne") everywhere, not always marked. Keep your speed down, especially through villages.
• Watch out for two-wheelers. Some locals race scooters and motorbikes or pull wheelies on public roads, so check your mirrors before turning and give them room.
• Try not to overtake. With narrow, winding roads and short sight lines, it rarely saves more than a minute.
• Be patient: drivers stop in the road to chat with someone they know. Don't honk; you are on holiday.
• Traffic builds in high season, so allow extra time even for short trips.

Bridges and traffic

Three bridges over Simpson Bay Lagoon open to let boats through, and traffic stops for 10 to 20 minutes each time. The road from Terres Basses to the airport, through Cupecoy and Maho, crosses none of them. The Sandy Ground bridge is on the way to Marigot, and traffic backs up around its openings: at those times it can be quicker to reach Marigot by going round past the airport and over the Causeway bridge. Published opening times (they can change with the weather):

• Sandy Ground bridge (French side, between Baie Nettlé and Marigot): 8:30 am and 5 pm, every day
• Causeway bridge (Dutch side): 8 am, 10 am and 4:30 pm
• Simpson Bay bridge (Dutch side): 8:30, 9:30, 10:30 and 11:30 am, then 2, 4 and 5 pm

Taxis and minibuses

Taxis wait at the airport, in Marigot and Philipsburg, and at the main tourist spots. They have no meters: an official fare table applies, so agree the price before you set off. Most drivers take euros and US dollars. To get back to Terres Basses after dinner, book the return ride when you arrive.

Minibuses are cheap and run all over the island on the main roads, with no timetable and often no marked stops. Ask locally where to wait and raise your hand when one comes. They usually take euros and US dollars.

Money: euros, dollars and cards

Cash is easy. On both sides of the island, shops, restaurants, taxis and fuel stations take euros and US dollars, often at one for one, so it is always worth carrying some US dollar cash. At the Cadisco fuel station at Baie Nettlé, for example, you can pay in dollars.

Cards are different. On the French side you are charged in euros. On the Dutch side you are charged in US dollars or Caribbean guilders, Sint Maarten's local currency.

Drive times from Terres Basses

Typical times from Villa Zenitude, outside rush hour:

• Baie Rouge and Porto Cupecoy: 5 min
• Maho Beach and Marigot: 10 min
• Princess Juliana Airport: 10–15 min
• Friar's Bay and Happy Bay: 15 min
• Grand Case: 25 min
• Orient Bay, French Quarter and Philipsburg: 30 min
• Anse Marcel: 35 min
• Oyster Pond: 35–40 min