La Samanna, A Belmond Hotel, St Martin

Located on the French side of the half-Dutch St. Martin/Maarten, Belmond La Samanna can perhaps be best understood as a Caribbean version of the Côte d’Azur. No sprawling array of seaside shacks, this is a bona fide resort hotel, with all the glamour of a prime spot on the Croisette, along with the balmy climate and gentle pace one expects from the West Indies.

There was a sense, for a few years, that the hotel’s reputation had gotten ahead of it, in the same manner that perpetually haunts the Riviera’s celebrated hotels. But today one gets the feeling that this place is once again fit for magnates, heiresses and the like. It’s dressed up, at least for the islands, but still never stuffy, the service a unique blend of the relaxed and the professional.

Rooms are spacious and elegant, decorated with North African and Far Eastern curios and antiques, and the cottages, once the black sheep of the resort, have been redecorated and refitted with lounge-worthy bathrooms to replace the merely functional originals. Views are outstanding from the sprawling balconies, the Baie Longue as scenic as can be. And the fitness center and spa are reason enough to prefer a proper hotel to the sort of backwoods villa where the only exercise comes from clapping mosquitos between the pages of a worn copy of “To Have and Have Not.”

All told, it’s a rather more civilized version of the Caribbean, rather like Miami Beach if it broke free from the mainland, learned French, and evicted all the pop stars. Maybe that’s a stretch, but for those who aren’t keen on roughing it, the Belmond might be the ideal entrée to the soft life.

Please note: Belmond La Samanna closes annually in September & October.

How to get there:
Belmond La Samanna is accessible through Princess Juliana International Airport, which offers daily direct flights from the USA, France and the Netherlands. The hotel is approximately a two-mile drive from the airport.