Five Day Business Retreat Itinerary “French Side St. Martin & Grand Case”
It was the northern side of St. Martin where President George Bush sr and French president Mitterrand once met for a short summit to discuss post – cold war Europe. It is that same northern part of the island where exclusive Grand Case Beach Club built a whole new convention centre catering to intimate, upscale business retreats. In walking distance of famous culinary fishing village Grand Case, this secluded beach paradise is a great setting for business retreats, strategic sessions, incentives and brainstorms for groups from 20 to a 100 people.
Only a few hours of flight from Florida and with direct connections to two European and many American and Canadian hub airports, St. Maarten airport’s great connectivity helps with the elegibility of St. Maarten / St. Martin as business retreat location of choice. From the airport, it is a 20 to 30 minute cab or transfer ride to Grand Case. With larger groups, itinerary planning in advance with a DMC will definitely help.
Another strong point of St. Maarten / St. Martin is its vast array of excursions available that you can make use of alongside your work retreat purposes. Leisure can meet your brainstorm, workshop or strategy retreat on St. Maarten / St. Martin unlike on any other Caribbean island. If you are planning for a French side business retreat at the Grand Case Beach Club meetings and incentives centre, below is an itinerary that combines work, fun and sun. When planning, contact the professional and dedicated team behind the convention centre to see how they can assist with packages. As you will land on the Dutch side of the island, make sure your group members fill in the before departure.
Day 1 (Arrival): Sunset Meets Moonrise
If you are amongst the early birds of your team, walk up the landmark rock separating the two beaches in front of the resort. You will find, to your surprise, an elevated pool deck with great views of the bay of Grand Case. Grand Case Beach Club is famous for its sunsets, and you are well suited in the Moonrise Bar to be part of this unique experience. Try the resort’s waterfront restaurant just below for your first official Grand Case dinner.
Day 2 (Monday): Meeting (The Town)
After a Grand Case Beach Club breakfast at 8am, head for the convention centre. The hotel will have the room set according to your preferences and business retreat targets.
Use a 10am fifteen minute coffee break for a walk around the beautiful resort premises, specifically the panoramic wooden boardwalk surrounding the landmark rock you explored yesterday.
Use a long afternoon lunch break from 12pm to 2pm to explore nearby Orient Bay Beach. This famous beach and watersports resort town has many beach clubs catering to lunch needs. For larger groups, consider bigger beach clubs like Wai.
After business brainstorms have resumed, finish at five to see the sunset from a different angle – in the town center. Local favorites Auberge Gourmande and Ocean82 are known for outstanding French cuisine, adding to the Culinary Capital of the Caribbean nickname of the island. Or do as the locals do and take a grilled fresh catch like lobster or mahimahi at a Lolo restaurant. In all cases, depending on group size, ensure to make a reservation at one or more restaurants.
Day 3 (Wednesday): Breakout & Boating Day
The Grand Case Beach Club convention centre offers the opportunity to divide your team into some smaller groups for brainstorming purposes. Consider to make use of this breakout session opportunity during your second day of strategizing or training.
Charter a boat as of noon. Most yacht charters can cater lunch on board if so requested. As a suggested itinerary for the afternoon voyage, consider to shortly touch base on nearby Anguilla to further widen horizons for business brainstorming.
Thusfar, the sole moment your team members have visited the Dutch side was at the airport. Having already visited British dependency Anguilla today, you can make the day trinational by ending your evening in luxury marina Porto Cupecoy and its many eateries. Restaurants like Rendez Vous and India Palace are just some of the many at this Tuscany inspired lagoonside foodie square.
Day 4: Dutch Side Day
After a great breakfast, commence the the third day of your St. Martin corporate retreat with wrapping up. Summarize workshop output, content learnt or present a new product concocted during your executive retreat.
After spending many days on the tranquil and scenic French side of the island, today serves to explore its other half in-depth. At 11.30, have your bus head for the Dutch side via the Atlantic side of the island. Have it stop for 15 minutes at free-of-charge Amuseum Naturalis for a shot of history and culture. In addition, its back garden yields panoramic treasures. Let the bus take a small detour along the natural areas by Baie L’Embouchure.
With easy parking in front and some capacity for groups, Chesterfield’s and Aziana are great spots to have a 12.30pm lunch in Philipsburg. Granting your colleagues off until 3pm allows them to explore the town, its boardwalk and to do some shopping in Front Street on their own pace. The free Museum and some of the well known town murals are close by both restaurants. As the town is compact and its grid easy to understand, your group is prone to find their way back to the bus easily. You can use the St. Maarten cruise ship schedule to see how busy the town will be.
No visit to St. Maarten / St. Martin is complete without seeing airplanes land and depart at Maho Beach. Make Tortuga your base of operations for the remainder of the afternoon. When inside, you would at times not say this quaint beach club was adjacent to the massive and roaring spectacle of 787s landing and taking off. It does however offer a great vantage point for seeing the planes land, and to have your team members shortly walk in and out the gate at times to witness the vast planes take-off and touch down. Additionally, it allows for a moment to strawl through the Maho resort village or to take a dip in the Caribbean.
At 5.30pm, head for the Simpson Bay area, the most bustling and cosmopolitan resort town of the island, known for its wide variety of ethnic cuisines. If feeling like mediterranean, head for Al Pasha. Close by Beirut serves Lebanese cuisine; Balls & Wine fusion with a latin touch.
Depending on how late you want to make it, with popular bars like Buccaneer and Huppel The Pub, beachclubs like K and D’s and famed Club Lotus as afterparty venue, you can have the third and last full work retreat day end at any given time.
If this 4 night Caribbean corporate retreat is not long enough, see other itineraries for more inspiration. If you want to explore Dutch side MICE venues, also consider day-by-day corporate itinerary plans for Philipsburg, Little Bay, Maho and Simpson Bay. Also see more excursion opportunities, the interactive map and general island information to develop your Caribbean business getaway plans.
