You’ve seen them. Those impossibly blue pictures of St Martin island that make your current office chair feel like a personal insult. The water looks like someone spilled a bottle of Curacao into the Atlantic, and the sand is so white it looks like it was filtered through a high-end Lightroom preset before you even took the lens cap off. But here’s the thing about this 37-square-mile rock: it’s actually two different countries, three different vibes, and about a thousand different shades of turquoise that your iPhone probably can't quite capture.
St Martin (the French side) and St Maarten (the Dutch side) share a landmass but exist in completely different orbits. Most people scroll through travel photography and assume it’s all one big resort. It isn't. Not even close. If you’re looking at a photo of a massive cruise ship towering over a colorful boardwalk, that’s Philipsburg on the Dutch side. If the picture shows a quiet, nudist-friendly beach with a tiny shack serving the best grilled lobster of your life, you’re likely looking at the French side’s Baie Orientale.
It's a weird place. Beautiful, but weird.
The Viral Illusion of Maho Beach
Probably 80% of the pictures of St Martin island floating around social media are taken at one specific spot: Maho Beach. You know the one. A massive KLM or Air France jet looks like it’s about to give a haircut to a group of tourists holding GoPros. It looks fake. Honestly, standing there, it feels fake too.
The Princess Juliana International Airport runway starts just feet away from the sand. When a Boeing 747 (though they rarely fly the big ones there anymore) cranks up its engines for takeoff, the "jet blast" is strong enough to toss grown adults into the ocean. It’s loud. It’s sandy. It smells like kerosene.
Is it "relaxing"? Absolutely not. But it’s the most photographed spot on the island because the visual scale is terrifyingly cool. If you want that shot, you have to time it. Most people just show up, but the seasoned photographers check the flight arrivals board at the Sunset Bar and Grill. That's the secret. You wait for the big long-haul flights from Paris or Amsterdam. The little island hoppers are cute, but they don't give you that "the sky is falling" aesthetic that makes for a viral post.
Beyond the Postcard: The French Side’s Culinary Soul
If the Dutch side is for partying and duty-free jewelry, the French side is for people who actually like food. Grand Case is often called the "Gourmet Capital of the Caribbean," and for good reason. When you look at pictures of St Martin island featuring candlelit tables right on the water’s edge, that’s Grand Case.
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The architecture here is different. It’s more "shabby chic" than "high-rise resort." You have these old Creole houses painted in pastels that have seen better days but still look incredible in the late afternoon sun. The light hits the salt ponds behind the town and turns everything gold.
- Grand Case: Fine dining, boutique hotels, calm water.
- Orient Bay: The "Saint-Tropez of the Caribbean." It’s where the chic crowds go.
- Anse Marcel: Tucked away in a cove, feeling almost Mediterranean.
Most people don't realize that the French side was hit incredibly hard by Hurricane Irma in 2017. If you look closely at some photos, you’ll still see the scars—skeletons of old hotels or piers that haven't been rebuilt. It adds a layer of grit to the beauty. It's real. It's not a sanitized Disney version of the tropics.
Pinel Island: The Picture-Perfect Escape
You have to take a tiny ferry (a "barque") from Cul-de-Sac to get here. It takes maybe five minutes. Once you land on Pinel Island, you realize why people obsess over these specific pictures of St Martin island. There are no cars. No roads. Just two beach restaurants and some iguanas that are way too comfortable around humans.
The water at Pinel is shallow. Like, knee-deep for fifty yards shallow. This makes the water look almost transparent in photos. If you're a photographer, this is where you go for the "floating boat" effect, where the water is so clear the boat looks like it's hovering in mid-air.
I remember talking to a local boat captain, Jean-Pierre, who’s lived on the French side for thirty years. He told me the best photos aren't taken on the beach at all. He pointed toward the hiking trails that lead to the "wild" side of Pinel. Most tourists stay in the beach chairs with their rum punches. If you walk ten minutes to the windward side, the landscape shifts. It’s rocky, the Atlantic is crashing against the cliffs, and there isn't a soul in sight. It’s the side of the island nobody puts on Instagram because it’s not "pretty" in the traditional sense, but it’s spectacular.
The Colors of Philipsburg and the Dutch Side
The Dutch side, St Maarten, is a different beast entirely. It’s louder. It’s busier. The pictures of St Martin island that show vibrant, neon-colored buildings along a bustling boardwalk are almost certainly Philipsburg.
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Front Street is the heartbeat of the Dutch side. It’s a canyon of shops selling watches, diamonds, and electronics. It’s high-energy. If you go there when four cruise ships are in port, it’s chaos. But early in the morning, before the ships arrive? The colors are incredible. The way the Dutch colonial architecture mixes with Caribbean palettes creates this weird, beautiful hybrid.
- Front Street: Shopping and history.
- Simpson Bay: The center of the yachting world.
- Cupecoy: Stunning limestone cliffs that turn orange at sunset.
Cupecoy is the underrated star for photography. While everyone else is at Maho watching planes, the smart money is at Cupecoy. The cliffs provide a backdrop you don't really find elsewhere on the island. The erosion has created these little caves and alcoves that frame the ocean perfectly.
Technical Tips for Capturing the Island
Lighting in the Caribbean is tricky. Around noon, the sun is so high and harsh that it flattens everything. The turquoise water looks great, but your skin will look like a tomato and the shadows will be brutal.
The "Golden Hour" here is short. Because St Martin is relatively close to the equator, the sun doesn't linger. It drops. You have maybe 20 minutes of that perfect, honey-colored light before it’s gone. If you’re trying to get those iconic pictures of St Martin island, get to the western coast—places like Baie Rouge or Terres Basses—by 5:30 PM.
Also, polarize. If you're using a real camera, a circular polarizer is non-negotiable. It cuts the glare off the water and lets the camera see the reefs underneath. Even on a phone, try to tap-to-focus on the brightest part of the water to keep the sky from blowing out.
The Reality of the "Island Vibe"
We need to talk about the goats. You won't see them in many professional travel brochures, but they are everywhere. On the roads, on the hills, occasionally on the beach. They are part of the landscape.
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The island is also surprisingly hilly. Mount Paradis is the highest point, and the views from the top are insane. You can see Anguilla, St. Barts, and Saba on a clear day. Most pictures of St Martin island focus on the coastline, but the interior is this lush, scrubby green that provides a massive contrast to the blue water.
There’s a complexity to St Martin that photos can’t capture. You can stand with one foot in France and one foot in the Netherlands, and the only way you’d know is a small sign on the side of the road. There are no border guards. No passports. Just a change in the language on the billboards and the price of gas (liters on the French side, gallons on the Dutch side).
Common Misconceptions Found in Travel Media
One major thing people get wrong when looking at pictures of St Martin island is the seaweed. Like much of the Caribbean, St Martin deals with seasonal Sargassum. Sometimes, those pristine white beaches you see in old photos are covered in brown, smelly seaweed. It's a natural phenomenon, but it’s something photographers edit out or avoid.
If you’re planning a trip based on photos, check the "Sargassum maps" or local Facebook groups. Usually, if the Atlantic (east) side is hit, the Caribbean (west) side is crystal clear.
Another misconception? That it’s all expensive. While the French side has some of the most expensive villas in the world in the Terres Basses area (where celebrities hide out), the Dutch side has plenty of affordable spots. You can get a "loLo" (local roadside BBQ) plate for $12 that tastes better than a $60 steak in Marigot.
Actionable Steps for Your St Martin Visual Journey
If you’re heading there soon or just dreaming through a screen, here’s how to actually experience the island beyond the lens:
- Rent a Car: Don't stay at the resort. You can drive around the entire island in about two hours (depending on the notorious Simpson Bay bridge traffic).
- Visit Loterie Farm: It’s a nature preserve on the French side. The photos from their "Jungle Room" pool look like something out of Bali, not the Caribbean.
- Eat at a LoLo: In Grand Case, look for Sky's the Limit or Cynthia's. The smoke from the grills makes for atmospheric photos, and the ribs are life-changing.
- Take the Ferry to Anguilla: It’s a 20-minute boat ride from Marigot. If you think St Martin's water is blue, Anguilla will break your brain.
- Go to Fort Louis: Climb the stairs in Marigot for a 360-degree view of the harbor. This is where you get the "yacht porn" photos.
The best pictures of St Martin island aren't the ones that look like a postcard. They’re the ones that capture the weirdness—the plane landing over your head, the iguana stealing your fries, the sunset at a beach bar where the floor is just sand and the beer is cold.
Stop looking for perfection. The island is messy, colorful, and split down the middle. That’s what makes it worth visiting. Go to the Dutch side for the adrenaline and the French side for the soul. Bring a camera, but remember to put it down when the sun actually hits the horizon. No sensor can replicate that specific shade of pink anyway.