One Day St. Maarten Cruise Visit Itinerary “Philipsburg Shopping Spree”
Port of Call Philipsburg has earned a variety of accolades by cruise magazines and websites. Many of the town’s cruise awards praise the pleasant combination of a beach nearby the port, shore excursions, museums and restaurants all within a few square miles around the cruise port. But roughly half of the prizes won are because of its excellent shopping opportunities in town.
That reputation is not just built on great reviews of cruise visitors. Many of the lovely boutique hotels in Philipsburg have a regional following of shoppers from surrounding islands who visit St. Maarten especially for this purpose.
Below suggested itinerary gives you guidance in where to go and what to visit for a satisfactory day of Philipsburg bargain hunting.
Capital Gems & Garments
First and foremost, Philipsburg’s fame as shopping haven derives from the many jewelry houses on Front Street. Both frequent cruise visitors as well as stayover guests postpone their purchases of rings and necklaces for special occasions until they reach Philipsburg’s main street. All of this shopping fun is only within 20 minutes walking from your cruise ship.
As you will find many jewelries within one mile, you can spend an entire morning of comparing designs and prices before you make your precious purchase.
Coming from the cruise port, AMA jewelers and Dazzling Gems are the first stops to make on your bargain hunting. Further down the road, you find Majesty Jewelers. Around the landmark courthouse, Diamonds International, Ballerina Jewelers and Joe’s Jewelry International are famed must-visit jewelry houses. Oro Diamanté is your final stop right beyond the square.
By now, you visited plenty of exclusive clothing stores to give this section a try. Walk through much photographed Old Street to connect to Back Street. This street is a wholly different shopping street along the full length of its famous colleague. Here you find another tier of clothing stores. If looking for the latest consumer technology offers, visit Boolchand’s.
Upscale Lunch
By now, you must be hungry. To celebrate your recently acquired gems and / or garments, do as many shoppers do and take a spot at the seaside terrace of Ocean Lounge. This shoreside restaurant of centrally located Holland House Beach Hotel provides a great base of operations for additional shop explorations.
Sightseeing & Souvenir Shopping
See our souvenir shopping list for an overview of St. Maarten must-haves. If you are done before 2pm, you still have time for some excursions on your own pace. Though your shopping spree has already passed some island monuments, consider to add some murals by local artists to your afternoon route. The Heritage Museum can be a great addition to spend 30 minutes delving into island history. Or use your time left to step in the world of Star Wars at the Yoda Guy Movie Exhibit. Luciano’s locally made ice cream is another great pastime to spend some time. Mojito-famed St. Rose Beach Bar opposite of Luciano is a popular in-the-know hangout for frequent cruise visitors to spend time after shopping until they strawl back to the boat.
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