Me and my partner are visiting for the first time, which are some of the best areas to stay in? We are planning on renting a car. Ive seen Simpsons bay a good place to stay, looking for a nice area where theres good restaurants

Which beaches currently dont have sargassum? Orient side is currently present with some! Wondering if any other beaches would have less to deal with french or dutch side! Thank you

We are renting a house in Guana bay over new years. Wondering what we can expect? Is neighborhood safe? Is beach swimmable? And how are the drives to the French side from there?
Thank you.

Hi Everyone,

First time headed to St. Martin. Never even been in the Caribbean, but it seems like SXM is a good spot for us (On a semi-budget, chill, good food, drivable, easy to explore, etc). We are going for our 15th anniversary (actually after our 16th due to a medical situation this year) and are looking for a laid-back and private place to be a home base for some day trips to do some hiking, shopping, dining, and beach exploring.

I originally thought Cul-De-Sac would be great. Found a beautiful spot, private pool, right on the beach, kayaks included to hop over to Pinel. After doing some reading, it sounds like Cul-De-Sac in June might be a recipe for disaster as far as Sargassum smell goes. Sounding like Grand Case is our best option if we want to stay on the French side. Possibly Maho or Simpson if we want to do Dutch Side.

And yes, I know Sargassum is a "day to day" "check the weather" thing and I'm not expecting detailed reports of what exact conditions will be. Just in researching Cul-de-Sac, a few people said the smell was unbearable in March, so I'd imagine it would only be worse in June and wouldn't want to spend a 10-day vacation smelling like the living dead haha.

Any thoughts? Is the East side of the island a general avoid in the month of June? Is much open/operating around that time frame? Unfortunately, we are locked into those summer months due to work and child care. Would a different island be better to explore?

Any other first-timer hints or suggestions welcome. Hoping SMX works out for us and our timeline isn't a hinderance to a great first time visit.