Why were we attracted to a private powerboat charter?
Plenty of people had told us to see the Caribbean by boat. Nearly every time we open something like TripAdvisor, one of the top things to do in any country seems to be hiring a chartered boat in a group or private. St Martin has so many little islands around it, and Anguilla is only a short distance away, that we chose to experience as much as we could and treat ourselves.
Kelly did a private boat charter with a friend many years ago in Cape Verde and enjoyed it, we have taken catamarans in other countries, but these were with groups of strangers organised by the hotel. We went on a whale-watching boat off the coast of Kaikoura in New Zealand, again as part of a big group. This would be the first time we would have a captain and a powerboat all to ourselves for the whole day to choose where to go and stay for however long we wanted.
We hired a private powerboat charter for two main reasons: we wanted to see St Martin and its small islands and bays from the sea, and there was a chance to visit Anguilla. Kelly and I agreed that a day trip to Anguilla would be enough for us. We were excited to live a little.
Who did we choose?
We chose a company called Paper Boat Charters due to their great reviews on Google and trip advisor. In addition, they offer day trips around St Martin, Anguilla and St Barth.
Kelly is skilled at picking quality places and activities plastered on the internet. Their website can be viewed here: Paper Boat Charter.
The powerboat is a DONZI 35 feet with twin 300hp mercury called smiley. I know nothing about boats, but I thought I might as well specify what we were travelling in. It can seat ten, apparently, but that might be pushing it a little. The private day all-day charter includes a captain, free drinks, a paddle board, snorkelling gear and a floating mat.
The private powerboat sets off from Anse Marcel marina in the north and heads out where ever you want them to take you.
A trip to Anguilla requires a copy of your passport, vaccine certificate and a fee, but this is all handled before you set off, so on the day, you can relax.
Where did we go?
We didn’t have a plan of where to go apart from a stop at Anguilla at some point, and this is where Captain Elliot’s knowledge comes into play, he offered to take us around some bays and islands around St Martin and then work our way towards Anguilla stopping off at more places to enjoy the beaches and do a spot of snorkelling if we wanted to where there is no current, so it’s easier. (He already knew us well)
Tintamare – St Martin
Setting off from Anse Marcel Marina, our first stop was an island called Tintamare. Only turtles, birds and lizards live on this idyllic little island.
Small boats and catamarans pull into the bay so people can bathe in the crystal clear turquoise waters and walk along the powdered white sands.
Marine wardens patrol the area checking to see if turtles have laid any eggs in the sand and to ensure visitors are not disturbing the inhabitants.
We stay for a while, enjoying walking along the sand and swimming in the water. There wasn’t much wildlife to see on the beach or the sea, but it was peaceful and beautiful.
We are hoping to see some turtles, as Captain Elliot told us he had spotted a few the day before. We did spot one far out in the water, but none closer. A quick swim back to the boat, and we set off to Anguilla.
Pinel Island is the closest island to Titamarre, a favourite amongst locals and tourists. This island is accessed by a boat taxi and has a great beach and even a restaurant on the island.
As we were staying across from there, we didn’t see the point of visiting it on this occasion.
Anguilla
Anguilla was such a stark contrast to St Martin. Firstly it is flat, look one way while you are crossing the channel, and you will see the high peaks of St Martin. Look towards Anguilla, and you see an island that seems squashed flat in comparison.
Captain Elliot informs us that while volcanos formed St Martin, Anguilla was a reef.
Approaching Anguilla, the water by the beach starts to take on its turquoise colours, and the white sands reflect the sun at you.
Rendezvous Bay – Anguilla
We arrived first at Rendezvous Bay, a beautiful beach stretching for miles.
Turquoise waters and powdered white sand along the coastline.
The island is surprisingly big compared to St Martin, yet only has a population of around 10,000, whereas St Martin has about 40,000. Therefore, the island remains quiet and peaceful even if all the hotels happen to be fully booked. Is it said that St Barts is where you want to be noticed, and Anguilla is where you come to unwind.
Maundays Bay – Anguilla
We stop and admire the view for a bit and then head off to Maundays Bay, where the Cap Juluca Hotel (A Belmont Hotel) is positioned. It is a significant estate currently closed; we pull up at the beach and jump out to enjoy the water and sand, as we are told the sand is different and to go check it out.
Accurate to Captain Elliot’s word, the sand is like sugar; unfortunately, seaweed had gathered on the beach due to the closed hotel, which took away a bit of its beauty. So we didn’t stay here long. It was weird walking in front of a closed hotel. It was like a ghost town, also, due to it being closed, the seaweed hadn’t been cleared, and I’m not a fan of swimming through bits of seaweed.
Little Bay – Anguilla
The next stop was Little Bay, a more enclosed bay with little current or waves, a perfect spot to do some snorkelling. The bay has a small clearing of sand, but further out, there is a rock with a rope that you use to climb and jump into the sea.
Near to this is a cave, where just outside, you can snorkel and see a whole collection of fish below you in the water swimming through the reefs. Unfortunately, the water was too deep for my GoPro to capture anything but the water was clear, so visibility was good enough.
For us, the sun was beating down as usual, and it was time for a late lunch and a rest from the sun.
Shoal Bay – Anguilla
On another speedy trip along the island to Shoal Bay, we jump off the boat to have lunch in Madearima Beach Bar.
This was the busiest part of the island we had seen.
A few families were enjoying the sea, parents were under cover of their parasols, couples were walking up and down the beach, and a few people were in bars and restaurants. The food was pricey, as you would expect in Anguilla, but well cooked.
We rested here for a while. We skipped the cocktails to top up our water levels as we had made the rookie mistake of not applying enough sunscreen for a boat trip and were starting to feel slightly burnt.
After enjoying sitting in the shade for a bit, our Captain came over and asked where to go next. We told him we didn’t think we could stay in the sun any longer, and he was happy to take us back to the marina via a detour to Scrub Island on the way.
Scrub Island – Anguilla
We powered around the remaining coastline of Anguilla, and Captain Elliot showed us Scrub island, a small island. You can walk across to the other side in about 45mins and find an abandoned airfield, even a crashed plane suspected of being a drug plane. However, we were all ready too crispy to jump out and enjoy more sun and sea, so we opted to go back and make a rapid journey across the Anguilla Chanel, bouncing on the waves back to St Martin.
How long was the trip?
We arrived around 4 pm, making 7 hours of sun enough for us. I was crisping up nicely and needed a shower and lots of aftersun. So we thanked Captain Elliot, paid the remaining amount, tipped him and left.
My camera bag scratching my shoulders and back on return to the car confirmed I was an idiot about sun protection.
Getting in the car was another furnace my body didn’t need, but a quick trip to the pharmacy to get a good dose of aftersun and a bottle of wine or two from the wine store (I’m sure I’ve read wine is excellent for sunburn) and we were back home by 4.30 to complain and laugh at ourselves.
That said, while it was expensive, we had never done it before and enjoyed the day; we even talked about doing it elsewhere.
How much did it cost?
A full-day private charter from Paper Boat Charters to do St Martin and Anguilla is usually USD 1100, and we were given a discount as there were only 2 of us, which dropped the price down to USD 900.
While it is a bit pricey for us to do too often, our experience of St Martin has been enhanced, and we wouldn’t have seen Anguilla, and there was no way we would have been able to enjoy all the places we visited.
We shall see if we do another one somewhere along the way.
View our other Caribbean Adventures.