Sint martin island caribbean airstrip. Saint Martin reviews

There is an unusual airport, considered one of the most dangerous in the world.

Princess Juliana International Airport is located in the Dutch part of the island, and is unique in that its runway starts almost right at Maho Beach, and since its length is not very long (only 2300 meters), all planes come in for landing very low altitude right above the beach.

Gaze and take breathtaking pictures low-flying aircraft- perhaps one of the most popular activities among the many tourists who gather on Maho Beach upon arrival aircraft. In many local bars and cafes you can see the schedule of their arrival.

But, despite such a harmless event from the side as the landing of the liner, it can pose a real danger to people standing under it on the beach.

And it's not even that the liner can fall on people, by the way, in the entire history of the airport's existence (it has been operating since 1942), there have never been such incidents here. The problems are jet streams from landing and taking off liners that can blow you into the water. The authorities constantly warn about this - in addition to the barbed wire on the fence, adopted for those who want to sit on it, there are many corresponding shields along the beaches.

In the entire history of the airport's existence, there have been only 3 incidents, two of them in the vicinity of the early 80s of the last century, and one at the airport itself quite recently - on January 14, 2014.

In 1970, a McDonnell Douglas DC-9 passenger plane flying to Sint Maarten from the USA after several failed attempts landed at the airport in bad weather forced landing straight into the Caribbean. 22 of the 57 passengers and one crew member were killed. It turned out that the liner ran out of fuel due to several attempts to land the plane, and most of the people died due to the fact that they were not informed by the crew about the upcoming hard landing on the water, which is why they did not prepare and did not fasten their seat belts.

The second crash occurred on December 21, 1972 with a small twenty-seat De Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter. It crashed at night in the ocean near Saint-Martin en route from Guadeloupe, killing all 11 passengers on board, along with two pilots.

And the third incident happened a couple of days ago, when a Boenig-747 of the Dutch airline KLM en route to the parking lot after landing at the time made a left turn instead of a right turn - due to its at least 17 cars parked nearby were damaged by its jet blast. Their windows were shattered and their paintwork damaged, but no casualties were reported.

No wonder the island has an unspoken status of unique. Firstly, the territory of Saint-Martin is peacefully divided by two states. Secondly, it is the smallest land on which two countries coexist, the earth on the planet. Thirdly, one of the most unusual airports the world is right here. There are fifth, seventh, tenth ...

Saint Martin on the map

Saint Martin island on the world map or detailed map islands can be viewed using the navigation buttons (+/-). Caribbean islands on the map

Since the island belongs territorially to two European powers, it has two names: the French say Saint-Martin (accent on the last syllable), while the Dutch call it Sint Maarten. Accordingly, there are also two administrative centers: Marigot (Fr.) and Philipsburg (Dutch).

City of Marigot

An extraordinary island is located in the north of the archipelago Eastern Islands West Indies. total area 87 km², with the possessions of the Netherlands making up a smaller part - 34 km². On French soil (53 km²) is highest point islands (424 meters) - Mount Peak Paradise. The Caribbean Sea washes the coast of this political and geographical miracle.

City of Philipsburg

Holidays in Saint Martin

South Drive, solar power, luxury vacation This is Saint Martin. The whole range of traditional beach pastime, which the Caribbean is famous for, is available on the island in full, so the facts will be more informative:

right above Maho Beach, giant Boeings take off / land incredibly low;
Mullet Bay, Orient Beach and the same extreme Maho are considered the best beaches;
duty-free shopping and the Dute Free zone, beloved by millions of tourists, will provide exciting shopping with purchases at affordable prices;
in an equal course and the euro, and the guilder, and the dollar;
the most hyped bar is the Sunset bar & Grill on Maho;
Marina Simpson bay is the most comfortable for living: the beach is within walking distance, well-developed infrastructure, many cafe-restaurants with first-class cuisine and live music;
You can get anywhere in Saint-Martin by minibus or rented car.

Tourists, despite the two euro-hosts, move freely throughout the island, freely crossing the conditional border-pillar. The only thing you need to decide in advance is which side to spend the night on - it depends on which country will provide a visa. And further. It's easy to stumble upon a cooing gay couple on a nude beach, so homophobic travelers should avoid these places.

Airport "Princess Juliana" on the island of Saint Martin

Nature of Saint Martin

The exotic charm of the nature of the Caribbean is revealed in Saint-Martin to the fullest, although the soil here is not very fertile. The territory is a rounded top of a currently inactive volcano. The entire perimeter of the island is surrounded by a scattering of picturesque coral plantations, which are easily accessible by swimming. The wealth of the underwater kingdom will provide exciting diving and productive fishing (white and blue marlin, barracuda, wahoo, less often sea urchin, etc.).

Land chic is not inferior to underwater. There are palm trees on the miniature land, and cactus, and succulent thickets of forests, and shimmering fields of cotton, vegetables, and reeds. Flower lovers arrive in ecstasy from the variety of buds, their aromas, shades, sizes. The fauna is many times poorer than the flora and is represented mainly by feral livestock, birds and lizards.

Magnificent St. Maarten can be discovered every day, but never fully known - such a compact Caribbean island is diverse. Ecotourists will certainly appreciate the walks along Botanical garden and a zoo located on the side of the Netherlands. Also popular in the Dutch part of the island are tours of nine churches, colonial era buildings, Her Majesty Wilhelmina Monument, Forts Amsterdam and Willem, Sint Maarten Museum, Dawn Beach, Cole Bay Hill, Watney Square.

And the French possessions will not disappoint tourists who are eager for impressions, especially lovers nightlife is a real paradise of casinos, restaurants-bars, discos, beach parties, original music. The day can be devoted to examining the French-style elegant buildings on Republic Street, climb to the ancient fortress of Saint-Louis, explore the unique exhibitions at the Museum of Culture and History of Saint-Martin and the Lulu Gallery, take pictures against the backdrop of the original building in which the Rue de la court is located. Liberte. Then go for a run through the Marigot market, go to the Creole village of Colombier, take a tasting tour of the gastronomic capital of Grand Case, relax your soul at the charming Butterfly Farm.

- the island of St. Martin is an island in the Caribbean, south of Puerto Rico in the northern part of a ridge of small islands separating the Caribbean Sea from the Atlantic Ocean.
If you look at the map, the location of the islands of the Caribbean ridge resembles a stretched bow, aiming an arrow at the African continent.

Island Saint Martin interesting in that it was divided between France and Holland back in 1648, and this peace treaty is the oldest treaty of its kind and is still in force.

The northern part of the island is an overseas territory of France and is named accordingly. saint martin
The southern part of the island is a self-governing state with significant autonomy, as part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and is called Sint Maarten.

The island is small: its area is 83 sq km. The capital of the southern, Dutch part of the island - Philipsburg- a major port where cruise ships call daily, bringing thousands of tourists traveling around the islands of the Caribbean Sea.

And so that tourists do not have to go far, all conditions have been created for them in Philipsburg itself: many restaurants, souvenir shops and shops with alcohol at duty free prices, casinos and, of course, many brothels.

Another difference of this part of the island: the American dollar is used here and most tourists from North America: USA and Canada.
The population of this part of the island speaks English and 99% of them are blacks (immigrants from Africa, brought here during the slave trade).

French part of Saint Martin

The capital of the northern (most) part of the island speaks French and is a French overseas territory.
Capital city Marigot(Marigot).
Time difference with Moscow on Saint Martin minus 8 hours

Mobile Internet 3G with travel sims on Saint Martin doesn't work though cellular available: its own network on the Dutch side and the French network on the northern part of the island. Rescues free wi-fi cafes on the beach and carelessly not password-protected Internet in cities.

How to get to Saint Martin from Europe

Saint Martin how to get there

You can get to the island from Europe by purchasing tickets from Paris by AirFrance or Air Caraibes.
KLM flies from Amsterdam.
Both the French and the Dutch fly to the same airport - it is common on Saint Martin.

It so happened that I posted the news on the forum: I took advantage of this idea and bought two tickets from Paris to Saint-Martin for 621 euros by the company Air Carais.

After that, it remained to find inexpensive tickets from Moscow to Paris (as you know, it was not difficult using the service on the forum) and do it - a visa is made in the same way as a regular French Schengen.

French overseas territory visa

The application form is printed from the website of the French Visa Application Center in Moscow, a photograph is taken against a gray background, copies of tickets for Saint Martin, a hotel reservation in Saint Martin, a certificate from work indicating salary and a seal or a bank statement for a couple are attached recent months so that the embassy understands that you are not a beggar.

The visa is done in 3 working days.
For those who have a Schengen multi-visa -
So: there are tickets, there is a visa, there is a hotel reservation for the first 2 days. Let's fly!

Air Caraibes review

Beaches in Saint Martin

I wrote about the beaches in a separate article called.

During the Great Geographical Discoveries many European countries acquired overseas territories and colonies. Some colonies subsequently achieved independence, but there are places that are still “under the wing” (remember this phrase, you will need it a little later) of the Europeans.

This is what happened to the island of Saint-Martin. This small piece of land in the beautiful Caribbean Sea was divided between France and the Netherlands. And almost in half. The northern part of the island is the possession of France, the southern part, respectively, belongs to the Netherlands. The name of the island is pronounced slightly differently by the French and Dutch. Saint Martin for the French and Sint Maarten for the Dutch. In translation, both mean "the island of St. Martin."

We will not touch the island itself for now, we will only pay attention to that part of it that belongs to the Netherlands, or rather to West Coast this part. This is where one of the most the most dangerous airports planet and one of the most dangerous beaches in the world. This is Princess Juliana Airport and Maho Beach, which is located right at the beginning of its runway.

It was Maho Beach that attracted our (and not only our) attention. It is located, as we have already said, in the western part of the island, just north of Berjo Bay.

Maho Beach on the map

Geographic coordinates 18.039228, -63.120539
Distance from the capital of the Netherlands is about 7000 km
Nearest airport across the fence from the beach

What is Maho Beach famous for?

The beach itself is unlikely to cause violent emotions. It is only 300 meters of sandy coast up to 20 meters wide. But its southern half ... also will not cause any adrenaline until a giant passenger liner Boeing 767 or Airbus A320. And the plane over the beach can fly at any time of the day or night. As you understand, planes flying over the beach are not an attraction for tourists at all. Flying over a small beach, the plane lands literally behind its fence.

This is where the phrase “under the wing” comes to mind. Tourists, basking in the sand, are literally “under the wing” of aircraft landing or taking off over Maho Beach.

Beach and start runway separated by a road and a mesh fence. The airport, located just behind the beach, has a rather limited strip of only 2300 meters and ends with the Simpson Lagoon. This is a fairly short segment for large aircraft. In addition, the runway is bounded by the Simpson Lagoon on the north and east, and the bay of the same name with the lagoon on the south.

It turns out such a narrow tie, surrounded by water, on which the plane should fall. He has to descend as much as possible to land at the very beginning of the runway. Therefore, planes fly over the beach, almost catching tourists' heads with their landing gear, and therefore the airport is considered extremely difficult to pilot.

Maho beach and spotters

It is natural to see a plane landing or taking off over the beach, and even almost at arm's length, the dream of many extreme sportsmen. They are also called spotters. These are the people who love to watch airplanes. And Maho Beach is the best suited for this.

Here you can practically scratch the belly of a landing plane (well, if you jump well). Of course, this is a joke, the authorities do not really welcome such an occupation. Danger warning signs are posted everywhere in the beach area, which stop few people.

There are such signs all over the beach, but this does not stop anyone.

The famous Sunset Bar and Grill cafe is located near the beach. Until August 2015, a loudspeaker was installed here, which warned of the approach of aircraft. On the beach you can see information boards, where the schedule of landings and takeoffs of aircraft is written.

Absolutely reckless tourists have the same reckless entertainment, something like "withstand the jet stream." This is when a group of people try to get caught up in a strong current from a plane taking off and try to resist. Someone succeeds, and someone falls down, because the flow speed can reach 160 km / h.

We, as sane people, warn you, as sane people, in no case try to repeat this. Games with death will not lead to good. In addition, there has already been clear confirmation of this. On July 12, 2017, as Caribbean Airlines Flight 457 took off from Princess Juliana Airport, a 57-year-old tourist from New Zealand died. The jet stream from the plane with its flow strongly threw the woman onto the concrete, as a result of which she died. Still, it is not in vain that warning signs are hung on the beach.

Relax on Maho Beach, swim in the gentle Caribbean Sea and sunbathe on the sand in the usual sense beach holiday you are unlikely to succeed. But it will definitely tickle your nerves and get a lethal dose of adrenaline.

For a classic beach holiday, head to San Salvador Island. It is located 1350 km to the northwest. Well, if finances allow, then on the island of Laucala, located on the other side of the world, 13,000 kilometers from Saint Martin.

The beach is popular not only among selfie lovers against the backdrop of a landing plane, but also among windsurfers and skinboarders due to periodically appearing here. big waves caused by jet streams from aircraft taking off
Maho Beach is completely devoid of flora, since this area is constantly exposed to jet streams from aircraft
In October 2008, Hurricane Omar blew all the sand off the beach, leaving only bare rocks. The authorities had to bring sand here from other places and fill the beach again
In September 2017, Hurricane Irma was already testing Maho Beach.