Philipsburg travel guide

Philipsburg, the capital of Dutch Sint Maarten, is built on a narrow strip of sandy land between the sea and a shallow lake which was once a salt pond. It has two main streets, Front and Back, and a ringroad built on land reclaimed from the salt pond, which all run parallel to beautiful Great Bay Beach, perhaps the safest and cleanest 20-m wide city beach anywhere, with a new boardwalk running along it. Front Street is full of shops offering duty-free goods and has been enhanced with palm trees and pretty street lighting as well as strategically placed benches. Back Street contains low-cost clothes shops and low-budget Chinese restaurants. The historic Courthouse dating from 1793, on De Ruyterplein, better known as Wathey Square, faces the pier. In the past it has been used as a Council Hall, a weigh station, jail and until 1992, a post office. Now renovated, it is used exclusively as a courthouse. The harbour is frequented by cruise ships and a host of smaller craft. Captain Hodge’s Wharf can handle 1800 passengers per hour and has a tourist information desk, telephones, toilets, taxis and live entertainment, but in 2001 another cruise ship harbour was opened outside Philipsburg.

Fort Amsterdam was the first Dutch fort in the Caribbean, built in 1631 but captured by the Spanish in 1633 and partly pulled down before they left the island in 1648. It was still used for military purposes until the 19th century and as a signalling and communications station until the 1950s. Fort Amsterdam can be reached through the grounds of a private timeshare development. The guard allows visitors to park outside and walk to the fort. Fort Willem, started by the British at the beginning of the 19th century, has a television transmitting tower and there is a good view from the top.

A large part of the island is occupied by Simpson Bay Lagoon which straddles the international boundary and is fringed by a narrow strip of land round its southern, western and northern shores. There are two bridges allowing an outlet to the sea. The main one, just east of Juliana Airport, on Simpson Bay, opens for a maximum of 20 minutes at 0900, 1130 and 1730, to allow large boats to enter the lagoon. Just inside the lagoon by the bridge is a new harbour for mega yachts, an amazing sight. Allow extra time to get to the airport if coming from the east of the island at these times. The other bridge is a much smaller affair on the north side at Sandy Ground, just west of Marigot, used by fishing vessels and small craft....read more