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Philipsburg, St. Maarten: Want to see how the rich, excuse me “very rich” live? Come to St., Maarten, St. Martin during high season (anywhere between Dec. 15 to April 15) and check out the Megayachts moored in the Simpson Bay area and at Port de Plaisance Marina. This is truly a lifestyle of the rich and famous but those of us who are poor and nauseous can at least look.
St. Maarten, St. Martin has now become the leading home to these fabulous, luxury vessels (sorry Monte Carlo) because it has all the ingredients to attract them. Clients appreciate the close proximity to the airport for international flights, the great restaurants, the fabulous beaches, the world class shopping and, of course, the Casinos. What they also appreciate is the clean and safe protected harbor and that provisioning and parts are very easy to get. It’s less expensive to keep a yacht in St. Maarten, St. Martin than in many other places and the crews just love it here.
You just have to see some of these boats. Imagine. Some of them even have helicopters on them. You can even stand at the Simpson Bay bridge at opening times and they pass within a few feet of you. You can wave and, yes, they’ll wave back. They won’t throw you a beer or anything but waving is good.
Megayachts typically charter from $12,000 per week at the low end to $600,000 per week at the very top end and this is without extras. You’d think at those prices they would throw in a tuna fish sandwich and a coke at least.
Most of the charterers are very wealthy families (no kidding), corporate executives (nice perk), fashion people, movie stars and rock stars. There are also a few Sheiks and Sultans in the mix so if you have one of those in your family you might be able to hitch a ride. If not? See you at the bridge.
