Saint Martin / Sint Maarten

[Zanshin]

I don't think that they patrol heavily on the Dutch side, but in Marigot they do 2 daily tours of the anchorage in a customs boat and write down all boat names. I bet the French won't mind, since they are now collecting some very heavy fees, particularly the €20 or €30 fee for the first night anchorage in Marigot (after the first night, the fees go down to about €1).

[osirissail]

I wouldn't bet on getting away with breaking the law even on charter. Chartering on the French side is your best bet as was it was said above, all the "good" places are on that side. Everything on the Dutch side can be accessed by dinghy or bus or car. With only one week taking side trips to Anguilla or even St Barths, etc. is not really feasible if you want to "stop and smell the roses" kind of thing (not to mention sniffing around Orient Beach). If you want a week of "sailing experiences" then for sure the trips to St. Barths, Saba, St Kitts/Statia/Nevis and back will give you some serious sailing fun.

[Zanshin]

I keep on hearing that Anguilla discourages "hoi polloi" visitors by charging very high rates, my boat is over 20tons so a week permit would be about US$330 plus other fees - so although I've seen the white beaches and sailed close to the island I've never touched ground there. St. Barths, on the other hand, has the easiest and cheapest check-in rates in the area and the sail there from St. Martin can be a lot of fun.

[Fotoman]

The more I read about St. Martin the more I'm excited about this destination! Thanks for all the advice.