|
Orient Beach, home of the Club Orient naturist resort, has something for everyone. The northern end starts off mostly clothed and people wear less and less until they reach the southern end where clothing is optional throughout the resort: beach (of course), boutique (why not), and restaurant (yikes!). Don't let the, shall we say casual, atmosphere fool you as there are some very good restaurants on the beach. Kakao Beach, Bikini Beach, and others at the northern end all have fine restaurants and snack bars for lighter fare, but also beach chairs, umbrellas, beach boys, boutiques, massage stations, and more. Just a bit further along the beach is Kokomarina,
Pirate Beach Bar, and the rest of the smaller establishments. These are smaller places, with smaller menus, and smaller prices, but with plenty of chairs and umbrellas for a relaxing day at the beach. At night La Place in Orient Village comes alive and some of the finest Asian cuisine can be found at Tai Chi.
|
|
Want to see it all? Go to the southern end of the beach, no seriously, stop at Paradise View or for a view of all of Orient out to St Barts. Enjoy a cool drink on the porch or a great local meal in the dining room. Visit the shops for art and duty-free alcohol. Another alternative for seeing it all is nearby Rancho del Sol, also on a hill with a great view of the wide sweep of Orient Bay.
Just south of Orient Beach is L'Embouchure Bay or Galion Beach, voted best place to take your kids on the island. One of the reasons is Chez Pat, a great beach bar on a calm and beautiful beach with great windsurfing.
To the south is Oyster Pond, the home of Beau Beau's where St Maarten's legendary calypso King has opened a beachside restaurant in the Oyster Bay Beach Resort. Even a little further south is Dawn Beach, good snorkeling and boogie boarding.
This street map will be helpful for driving, but for an amazing aerial photograph that shows the entire sweep of the beach and has links to larger individual restaurant photos and websites, check out Ed and Sandra's Orient panorama and their Dawn Beach panorama.
|
