St. Maarten Information

St. Maarten Information

Planning a wonderful trip to the smallest island paradise in the world, St. Maarten? Then a traveler should know some important St. Maarten information that could be useful in guiding tourists of what to expect in the island as well as giving them a better insight and overview of the island, so that they can better plan and prepare their vacation. After all, it’s always advisable to be well informed and be ready before plunging into unknown territories.

St. Maarten information on its location is quite an interesting fact; this beautiful little island is nestled in between to autonomous countries that has shared it with complete harmony for over three hundred fifty years now, so don’t wonder if the dual nationality of French and Dutch adds to the uniqueness of this island gem of the Caribbean Sea.

This tropical island in the Caribbean Sea has 18.02 latitude and 63.07 longitude just one hundred fifty miles southeast of Puerto Rico and covers thirty seven square miles. The Dutch part of the island is called St. Maarten spanning sixteen square miles and Philipsburg as the capital while the French part is called St. Martin that covers twenty one square miles with Marigot as the capital, still collectively they’re known as St. Maarten or St. Martin.

St. Maarten information on nationalities takes pride in one hundred forty different nationalities as part of the Netherlands Antilles and the Kingdom of the Netherlands, St. Martin on the other hand is a commune of Guadeloupe, an overseas region of France. Dutch is the official language of St. Maarten although English is spoken everywhere as well. On some parts of the Dutch side, Spanish, Italian, Hindi, Chinese, Papiamentu, and other languages can be heard as well. The official language of St. Martin is French and Creole Patois is also spoken.

St. Maarten information about its climate is a pleasant fact, as it has a tropical sunny and warm weather year-round, with a few cooling from the trade winds. Winter season average temperature is at 80F and some degrees warmer to any further extent in the summer. Infrequent showers in the late summer and early fall with an average annual rainfall of forty-five inches is also experienced in St. Maarten.

Airlines are one of St. Maarten information that should be taken noted of as air service to St. Maarten is an essential part of the trip. From the US to Princess Juliana International Airport in St. Maarten is provided by several airlines such as: American Airlines having flights direct from Miami, New York, and San Juan with connecting flights to many cities throughout the US; other Airlines include Northwest, USAir, ALM Antillean Airlines, LIAT, and Windward Islands Airways.

Another essential St. Maarten information is the entry requirements of the country, US citizens require a valid passport effective December 31, 2006 and a return or continuing ticket. For those naturalized citizens, they must show an original naturalization certificate with photo ID. Green card holders are required valid passports and a return or continuing ticket. For Canadian citizens, a valid passport and return or continuing ticket is needed. “Landing Permit” with valid passport and return or continuing tickets as well. For the European community, valid passport and a return or continuing ticket is needed. Airport departure tax for international destinations is US for age 2 and up. Islands within Netherlands Antilles have a departure tax of US.

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