As we arrived in St. Maarten and found out our excursion had been cancelled, we sat on the balcony for a moment to decide what we were going to do instead. This ship below caught my eye and I started noticing that most of the passengers were older. Turns out it was a cruise around the world that lasted for several months. Anyone up for that? Me!
We finally decided we would just chill at the beach for the day and off we went to the end of the pier. There is a little area here with shops and a fun welcome sign (great for pics). This is also where you catch the water taxi to go to town.
After walking from one end of the beach to the other, we picked a spot and spent the rest of the day there. There is a fee for using the lounge chairs and umbrellas (about $20).
At first we just relaxed with some swimming, reading and getting a massage. The massage was for me! A nice lady came by giving foot massages with fresh aloe vera. I couldn’t pass that up. She ended up doing the whole leg and answering lots of questions I kept asking her. I learned a lot about the Caribbean lifestyle and how it revolves around tourism. Very interesting stuff.
But after staring at these jet skis for a couple hours, we could resist no longer and decided to rent them for an hour. We had so much fun! My son drove one with me on the back and my husband took the other with my daughter on the back. I had an absolute blast! I have to admit that a lot of the fun came from being able to hug my teenage son tightly for 30 minutes without him being able to get away. Hey, I had to hold on tight or I would have fallen off. 😉
Once again, it wasn’t the day we had planned, but boy was it a good day! :)Check out other travel photos at Photo Friday on Delicious Baby, Friday Daydreamin on RWeThereYetMom.com & Travel Photo Thursday on BudgetTravelersSandbox
Want to be inspired? Check out Inspire Me Wednesday on MamaBuzz
Want to be inspired? Check out Inspire Me Wednesday on MamaBuzz
Marian Krueger
That blue water is calling me… and loudly!!!
Sonja Hoyt The Happy Travel Bug
I hear ya! At least it's not snowing anymore where I am. 🙂
Adam Sommer
I miss St. Maarten! When we went we headed to the franch side of the island (no kids with us back then)….first time at a topless beach (except us…but the French were everywhere and it was a French beach..). Very unique
Sonja Hoyt The Happy Travel Bug
What do you miss about St. Maarten…could it be the topless beach?! 😉
Mary {The World Is A Book}
The blue waters are gorgeous! I love how you were able to have so much fun despite your cancelled plans. We didn't even set foot on this beach but remember the welcome sign fondly. I'll gladly join you on that round-the-world cruise.:) Did you get the email I sent you re: Disney contact? Pls. let me knof if you didn't.
Sonja Hoyt The Happy Travel Bug
I did get it…thanks, Mary.
Shannah @ Just Us Four
My in laws do multi-month cruises now that they are in retirement! They love it.
Sonja Hoyt The Happy Travel Bug
Not to rush time, but I am looking forward to that!
andrea, passports and pushchairs
Gorgeous waters! Glad it worked out! I don't think I could do a months long cruise though 🙂
Sonja Hoyt The Happy Travel Bug
No? How come? The hardest part would be across the ocean. That would be a long time on the ship with no excursions. But I still think I could do it!
InsideJourneys
A cruise around the world? I'd be up for that, well, maybe, since it's not my demographic.
That water looks quite inviting.
Sonja Hoyt The Happy Travel Bug
lol…I don't know, I like hanging out with "older" people. They aren't usually loud and obnoxious! 🙂
Marcia
So true!
Cheryl L
Gorgeous photos!! That water looks so inviting. Oh man… to be on a cruise again!
I'm game for a cruise around the world! Where do we sign up?!
Sonja Hoyt The Happy Travel Bug
Thanks! Turns out several lines offer round the world cruises. They are SUPER expensive! But we can dream. 😉
Rebecca Darling
And now you have me Daydreamin for St. Maarten!!!
Thanks for linking up!
Sonja Hoyt The Happy Travel Bug
Thanks for hosting! Glad I inspired a daydream!
Tricia Manaster @ roadtriptheworld.com
Gorgeous pictures! Haven't taken the kids on a cruise yet. Hope to someday!
Sonja Hoyt The Happy Travel Bug
Oh, you should for sure! We started when the kids were somewhat little. Check out my Alaska "Hot Topic" for pictures on that. They loved it!
Mel Lockcuff
Wow, the water there is just so beautiful! Kinda makes me want to dive right into your photos and escape for awhile.:) Thanks so much for linking up to Inspire Me Wednesday. Featuring your post in this week's issue.
Sonja Hoyt The Happy Travel Bug
Oh, thanks so much! I look forward to linking up every Wednesday. 🙂
Muza-chan
Beautiful photos 🙂
Sonja Hoyt The Happy Travel Bug
Thanks! 🙂
Lisa Goodmurphy
The colour of the water is just gorgeous! Haven't been to St. Maarten yet but it does sound lovely. I often think that those round-the-world cruises sound amazing and then I wonder would I actually want to be confined to a small room for that much time!
Sonja Hoyt The Happy Travel Bug
I think I could handle it. Plus, there is the rest of the ship to explore and I'm sure you would find something to do. I'm ready! 🙂
Jan Robinson
The leg massage looks good and finding out about the ins and outs of tourism in the Caribbean would be even better 🙂
Sonja Hoyt The Happy Travel Bug
It was really interesting hearing what she had to say and the longer she talked, the longer my massage was! 😉
Marisol@TravelingSolemates
Wow, that water is gorgeous! That leg massage is a heavenly treat. Beautiful beach + massage equal divine vacation for me.