Philipsburg, St Maarten is always a nice port to visit and one of my favorites. It is hard to say that though, because I love them all.
The views are beautiful coming into port.
January is a busy time for this port. Lots of days there are many ships in port. Today there are two Royal Caribbean,
a Princess, a Costa, and an Aida ship docked. All of these ships are huge.
There is always some great music as you walk into port from the ship. Makes you feel welcome and happy to be here.
We usually walk to town to the shopping and the beach. It is an enjoyable walk if you like the heat and exercise. Just proceed through the port area shopping and make a left when you get out to the street. If you are not a walker you can take a ferry from the port to the town for $7.00 round trip. Today there are two very long lines at the booths for purchasing those ferry tickets.
With the five large ships in port, the sidewalk to town is very crowded along with the ferry booth ticket lines. When we left the ship we thought it would be cold to swim. It ended up that it was in the 80’s, sunny and very breezy. We should have packed those bathing suites. Oh well, next week we will be back.
Walking off the ship is really good for you though, so we walked around for about two hours up on front street and by the beach.
We visited this beautiful church “Philipsburg Methodist Church” So beautiful inside. Would be so nice for a wedding, but it was hot. Would have to be a 7am wedding before the heat.
This is the entrance off of the boardwalk to Front Street.
On the way back to the ship. The last two stores on the left are great to get things at. There are tables outside under cover. We usually buy a cold beer and some water from the store and sit and talk with others doing the same. We have met many local employees, ship employees, and other passengers from all over the world and shared stories at these tables.
Another great day at St Maarten. Bye till next week,
For additional information on the Royal Caribbean Anthem of the Seas click here: http://deestimes.com/anthem-of-the-seas/
For additional information on Philipsburg, St. Maarten click here: http://deestimes.com/ports/