St Maarten or somewhere else?

[nmjoseph]

Hi, I'm sailing as crew for a boat delivery from the Bahamas to St Maarten, expecting to arrive the end of April. I've been trying to plan a short holiday with my boyfriend, initially thinking he could fly to St Maarten/St Martin and meet me there. But we're mostly budget travelers, and from the bit of research I've done so far, St Maarten is not budget friendly.

Can someone who is familiar with St Maarten (or the Caribbean in general??) give me some advice -- should I keep researching places to stay and things to do in St Maarten, or should I look somewhere else? How is the sailing/boating community in that area?

Any advice and all recommendations are greatly appreciated!!

[dohenyboy]

Look into private homes, apartments to rent.

[nmjoseph]

I've looked on AirBnb -- is there a better source?