Some quick photos of St. Barts — a high point on the island; view from the back of my villa, and the local airport with a very short and steep runway.
St. Barths Travel
St. Barths is a transplanted piece of France; the mailboxes, phone booths, street signs and groceries all come from there. The Euro is the official currency and most everything is in French. It has the feel of Santorini; the views are volcanic amidst the sea and mountains and most of the architecture has a specific theme that carries across the island.
San Maarten is the usual transfer airport from the mainland to the 23 mile commuter flight on Win-Air which is about 10 minutes. It cost me just a bit more than the trip from JFK to San Maarten. It took me 30 minutes to deplane, clear customs, check in and get to the gate with hand baggage. It is a 3:15 flight from JFK to San Maarten. Upon departure, $20 lets you into the business class lounge. Consider using Tradewinds Aviation thru San Juan; if you get caught overnight in San Maarten after Jet Blue’s 5pm flight out, there is no morning flight to New York and the only choice is an AA flight at 9am to Miami. On Win-Air, certain flights use a DC-6 and this provides a smoother ride than the Cessna-type aircraft otherwise used. People say it is better to close your eyes on the approach to St. Barths rather than to endure the ferry on choppy seas. And on the day I traveled both ferries were out of service; the Rapid Explorer is supposed to make the trip in about an hour. I had a heart-stopping landing in St. Barths sitting next to the female pilot who looked like she trained landing on aircraft carriers. You need special certification to land at this airport by the way. It looks like you are going straight into a mountain and then all of a sudden there is a clearing beneath you and voila there is the runway — you go straight down toward it and it is a very short runway running straight toward a beach and the sea. A large cross overlooks the runway. San Maarten is completely avoidable as a place to visit; La Semanna is a nice property with a nice beach at a more reasonable price but it is no way comparable to a trip to San Barths. I drove around the French side of San Maarten and the town of Marigot a bit by a big mama in a taxi (her business card refers to her company: Fast But Sexy Taxi Service); nothing to see and you don’t feel safe going one block beyond the tourist market area (and it is really hot to walk around anyway), and the Dutch side I am told has so much traffic that you can take an hour to drive 5 miles and therefore it should be avoided. I was forced overnight to the Sonesta Maho hotel which is basically an airport hotel of 3 star quality and featured a drunken man from the Midwest in the lobby bar wearing a bra shouting obscenities and hooting the girls. High class from the heartland.
I stayed at the Le Toiny hotel, a Relais Chateaux property secluded on the end of the island, 15 minutes drive from the airport, and 20 minutes from Gustavia, the main town. This is one of the best all-time hideaways I’ve visited with about 15 villas on the property spread apart. Your villa has a private pool in the back and you overlook pristine nature views of mountains, flora and the sea and absolute privacy. Breakfast is delivered to your villa and you can eat it outside by your pool. I think that villas 5 and 1 are the best in this regard and in this order in terms of views and privacy although the manager likes 7 for the view but it is not as private. Chill-out inducing common areas, good food and beverage, lovely views and a little spa. There is a PC in the lobby with internet access and the TV offers a few channels as discussed above. BBC World is not available on the island it seems. The villas are large, about 1,000 square feet and well appointed. The beach is a 12 minute walk but it is a lovely private beach. The ocean is a bit more coolish than I expected for 17 degrees latitude.
I visited all the other 5-star level hotels on the island. The Eden Roc is the scene place and the rooms on the actual rock are charming though small; there are family sized duplexes with beach view as well; lunch at the Sandy Rock on the beach is obscenely expensive at 45 Euro for an entrée but you can walk up the road a few minutes to a good Italian trattoria and eat very well for under 15 Euro. The Gustav is the only hotel within walking distance of town and the rooms are nice. The Isle de France has very nice bungalows in a garden setting. The Sereno and Guadahani are nice beach hotels but they could be anywhere. For the money, facilities, views and privacy, the Le Toiny was clearly the best. Altogether, there aren’t more than 100 rooms in all these hotels.
I do not recommend driving on the island; roads are about as big as Manhattan sidewalks and not really paved, and guard rails are mostly nonexistent over ragged coastlines and cliffs. Some people drive drunk and crazy. For 120 Euro, you can have a driver show you the island in 2 hours and the ride into town is 20 Euro.
I’m told there is zero crime here; petty thievery will get you nowhere since it costs too much to live here. There is no passport control upon departure; the police told me that there are so many ways to get off the island that it doesn’t pay to take notice of it. They just check on you when you arrive.
This is an island for water sports and clubbing at night. Both of which are not for me, so it is just for relaxing, eating and walking around. L’Isola is a good Italian restaurant in town. The restaurant in the hotel is also quite good for dinner or lunch. There are only 27 taxis on the island so you need to make friends with one. Luckily, I ran into “Yankee” twice just by chance as I was walking around and needed a taxi at various times in various places. It is a small village very quickly here. Most things are closed on Wednesday afternoons, even the supermarket in the town center. Shopping is limited in Gustavia; there are some nice fashionable things to buy such as nice eyeglasses and Petit Bateau childrenswear and the prices are reasonable but not cheap.
It is popular to rent villas here and I visited a few of them. It is obviously expensive but for groups it is efficient over the price of hotel rooms. Some of them are amazingly decorated; utterly amazing what kinds of things people think of and how they get the materials and appliances onto the island. One villa took 7 years to build and was designed for professional athletes with a full gym. Keep in mind that many villas don’t have beach access and you want one with that. Villa Lagon Bleu looked like an excellent choice, 5 bedrooms overlooking the private beach near Le Toiny. Villa Au Reve was the one for the athlete and was stunning but no beach access and rather hard to get to.
IC’s Best Hideaways in North America
Le Toiny, St. Barths
Private cottage with pristine nature views on a serene full-service property in upscale isolated location on pretty island that feels like part of France. Problem: Can get stuck overnight on the island or at St. Maarten. Fabulous solo or couple hideaway.
Sunset Cottages, Key West, Florida
Reached by 5 minute ferry ride; self-contained island with gorgeous beach and nice cottages right on the beach. Great family location.
Woolverton Inn, Stockton, New Jersey
Charming small inn with private cottages with pasture and sheep views and yummy foodies. Nearby antiquing and good food choices. Best couples hideaway within 90 minutes drive of New York City.
La Pinsonniere, La Malbaie, Quebec
Lovely 90 minute drive from Quebec City. Great food, small spa and views along the St. Lawrence river in a rural setting.
Beverly Hills Hotel, Los Angeles
Best urban hideaway with gardens and bungalows, very good food and excellent service.
Ahwahnee, Yosemite Park Village, California
Charming but somewhat dated building and good food; committed staff; great access to nature.
Carneros Inn, Napa, California
Lovely vineyard views with private cottages amid fruit trees and nearby farm animals. Great kiddie pool and some excellent food choices. Perfect stopover within 1 hour of San Francisco airport.
Runners Up:
Fisher Island, Miami Beach, Florida
Reached by ferry and travel around with a golf cart as no cars allowed. Large condo unit in a condo-hotel. Quiet beaches and some private pool areas. Semi-private and luxurious but not a true leading hideaway.
Keswick Hall, Charlottesville, Virginia
Smallish hotel and spa with excellent food with pretty country views and walks especially during autumn.
Wauwinet, Nantucket, Massachusetts
Rural bed and breakfast hideaway a 20 minute ride from town along the coastline with lovely walks and a small spa. Highly regarded restaurant. Most rooms are quite small; some have beautiful water views.
Mohonk Lodge, New Paltz, New York
Not really a hideaway since it is a large hotel but it is a great hideaway for families. All-inclusive charming building and facility with good food, entertainment for all and activities in a pretty mountain lake setting.
IC’s Best Hideaways Outside North America
Chateau D’Esclimont, St. Symphorien, France
Picture perfect castle hotel an hour from Paris with good food and a kick-ass master suite. The real thing and a great romantic hideaway.
El Convento de Sao Paulo, Redondo, Portugal
Ultimate place to be solo. Monastery restored as hotel in the middle of nowhere; master suite has porch with beautiful country views. A bit too lonely at night.
La Residenza de Napoleone, Rome
Unique urban situation; apartments in a restored castle just behind Fendi on main shopping street. Rooftop cozy duplex apartment furnished to the hilt features amazing rooftop terrace that makes for a beautiful breakfast brought and served there; apartment below is a restored Napoleonic décor with over the top furnishings. Great TV satellite system. Not a full hotel and can be lonely at night. But otherwise a remarkable hideaway.
Carlton Hotel, St. Moritz, Switzerland
Beautiful views and great kitchen overlooking the lake; a few minutes off the beaten path with its own spa and nightly dancing in the lobby. Hotel was redone after last visited in 2004.
San Pietro, Positano, Italy
Small hotel built into rockface overlooking the sea and the city with good food and stunning views from certain rooms. Romantic honeymoon-type hideaway.
Santiburi Dusit Hotel, Koh Samui, Thailand
Small hotel with lovely cabins near the beach in a pretty setting reached by air from Bangkok on an island.
Runners Up:
Chewton Glenn, New Milton, England
Smart modern small hotel with good food and spa with nice walks about 90 minutes from London.
Lapa Palace, Lisbon, Portugal
Urban oasis with interesting guestrooms and lovely pool area.
Reid’s Palace, Madeira, Portugal
Somewhat large historic charming hotel on a pretty island 600 miles west of Portugal. Some rooms are very pretty with stunning views. Has a refined elegance about it.
Villa D’Este, Cernobbio, Italy
Unique self-contained property promises an enchanted evening of dancing under the stars on the terrace by the lake (in season), good food, nice rooms and places to explore on the property and nearby Como and Cernobbio villages. Not particularly hospitable.
Abano Grand Hotel, Abano de Terme, Italy
Great dining room and a legitimate spa in a pleasant quiet village 45 minutes drive from Venice, all at a very reasonable price.
Raffles Hotel, Singapore
Urban oasis with British colonial feel with suites facing a garden courtyard.
Burj al Arab, Dubai
Large apartments with over-the-top furnishings throughout the property, yet still done with class. You pay royally but you get tons of free stuff delivered to you by your floor butlers. Very exclusive on its own island with stunning architectural details and commanding views of Dubai/Jumeirah beach developments; somewhat gimmicky elements may deter repeat visits. Definitely something you want to try once.
