Sint Maarten: Le Meridien (May 1998)

My spouse and I stayed at the Le Meridien for xx nights in mid-May 1998. Le Meridien (owned by the Starwood hotels group and part of their “Luxury Collection”) has a remote location over a steep hill at the end of the island; the hotel is located approximately 45 minutes drive from the airport, and 20 minutes drive from town.Located on the French side of St Martin, this deluxe resort is surrounded by a 150 acre nature preserve and within an open cove facing the sea with a 1600-foot white sand beach. Le Meridien has two low rise sections, L Habitation with 251 rooms and suites, and Le Domaine with 145 rooms and suites. Buildings are Creole style with white laced balconies and verandas. Port Lonvilliers is the full service marina on site. We booked a Deluxe Garden Room, in the Le Domaine section, which was located on the ground floor, overlooking the gardens. Our room was 370 square feet, equipped with a king-size, bed, min-refrigerator, telephone, television, air conditioning, terrace, bathroom equipped with two sinks, bathtub/shower, hairdryer, separate toilet. The hotel has four restaurants: Le Balaou (for breakfast buffet), Le BBQ (lunch and dinner), La Belle France (dinner only), and La Veranda (breakfast, lunch, dinner). The hotel has two swimming pools. Port Lonvilles is the full-service marina on site.

We stayed at Le Meridien on the French side, but it was really isolated. We had a car, so going to Grand Case for dinner was not a problem. The restaurants/food there was some of the best we've had anywhere during our travels. The Verandah (the hotel restaurant at Le Meridien) was excellent, and there was a small shopping center-type area nearby at the marina that had food and shops. The French side seemed much more relaxed and laid back than the Dutch side.