Sonesta Great Bay Beach Resort & Casino
Information & Amenities
Amenity highlights: A crescent beach extends 1.5 km (1 mi) around Great Bay, which opens to the south into the Caribbean Sea. The Sonesta Great Bay Beach Resort & Casino provides lounge chairs and umbrellas on the beach. Two pools lie above the beach; one has an infinity edge and a swim-up bar, and overlooks the bay. A water-sports/dive center offers a variety of rental equipment and arranges motorized water sports and scuba-diving/snorkeling trips.
Insider tip: A one-way street flanked by narrow sidewalks and a few parking spaces, Philipsburg's renowned Front Street is crammed with duty-free shops. To avoid getting jostled and trapped (no side streets exist to escape the daily traffic jam), guests are advised to walk to the street—which begins 400m (437 yds) from the resort—and to arrive before cruise-ship passengers get there or after they depart.
Property Amenities
Guests may book either an All-Inclusive plan or a Room-Only (No Meals) plan. All-Inclusive plans include meals, drinks, gratuities, and certain resort-offered amenities. Room-Only (No Meals) plans do not include meals, drinks, gratuities, and certain resort-offered amenities (scroll up to the All-Inclusive Plan Details section for more information).
Open from evening to early morning daily, the resort's casino offers roulette, black jack, poker, and slot machines. A "Vitality Oasis," which is air conditioned and carpeted and includes Asian rugs, couches, and banquettes, contains two rooms for massage (surcharge), two tables for "tension taming" (surcharge), fitness equipment (complimentary), and a mat-floor area for twice-weekly stretch exercise (complimentary). An air-conditioned activities center contains a pool table, a foosball table, board games, books, and a big-screen television for children's movies.
Self parking:
Complimentary.
Subject to change without prior notification.
- Swimming pool - outdoor
- Poolside bar
- Swim-up bar
- Massage - treatment room(s)
- Spa tub
- Concierge services
- Complimentary newspapers in lobby
- Fitness equipment
- Restaurant(s) in hotel
- Bar/lounge
- Parking (free)
- Meeting rooms (small groups)
- Banquet facilities
- Audio-visual equipment
- Business services
- Number of rooms: 262
- 24-hour front desk
- Porter/bellhop
- Security guard
- Safe-deposit box - front desk
- Multilingual staff
- Number of floors: 7
- Gift shops or newsstand
- Tour assistance
- Currency exchange
- Medical assistance available
- Dry cleaning service
- Pool table on site
- Casino
- Air-conditioned public areas
- Elevator/lift
- Supervised child care/activities
- Wedding services
Room Descriptions
Guests may book either an All-Inclusive plan or a Room-Only (No Meals) plan. The All-Inclusive plan includes meals, drinks, gratuities, and certain resort-offered amenities. The Room-Only (No Meals) plan does not include meals, drinks, gratuities, and certain resort-offered amenities (scroll up to the All-Inclusive Plan Details section for more information).
Sonesta Great Bay offers 262 air-conditioned guestrooms in a seven-story hotel wing and a four-story vacation rental wing, both with white exteriors and blue trim.
Rooms at this St. Maarten hotel include furnished balconies or terraces and contemporary bathrooms with granite vanities, shower/tub combinations, or glassed-in stall showers without tubs.
Decor and furnishings feature white walls and ceilings, pale-tile floors, turquoise-and-orange fabrics, and caramel-colored furniture, including dresser/desks and armchairs with yellow cushions by a cocktail table. In-room safes are available for surcharges.
Room Features
- Cable/satellite TV
- Premium TV channel(s)
- Blackout drapes/curtains
- Climate control
- Air conditioning
- Voice mail
- Wake-up calls
- Housekeeping (daily)
- Turndown service
- Complimentary toiletries
- Hair dryer
- Child care (in room, surcharge)
- Electronic/magnetic keys
- Iron/ironing board (on request)
- Window opens
- In-room safe
- Television
- Smoking rooms
- Rollaway beds
- Cribs (infant beds) available
Area Attractions
Philipsburg center (Dutch capital) - 400m (437 yds)
St. Maarten Park (zoo, botanical gardens) - 3.75 km (2.5 mi)
Marigot (French capital) - 9.5 km (6 mi)
Le Fort Louis (historical site) - 9.5 km (6 mi)
Mullet Bay Golf Course - 10.5 km (6.5 mi)
Butterfly Farm - 14.5 km (9 mi)
Orient Beach (Baie Orientale) (water sports, dining, nude sunbathing) - 14.5 km (9 mi)
Grand Case village (dining center) - 16 km (10 mi)
Loterie Farm (nature preserve) - 16 km (10 mi)
Paradise Peak (Pic Paradis) - 16.75 km (10.5 mi)
Queen Juliana International Airport (SXM): Approximate driving time to the Sonesta Great Bay Beach Resort & Casino is 20 minutes and distance is 8 km (5 mi).
Driving directions from Queen Juliana International Airport: Depart airport and turn right. Follow signs toward Philipsburg. At top of steep winding road up hill, turn right. The resort is on the right at the bottom of the hill.
Getting there: Shuttle vans and private cars of varying prices are available. They can be reserved during the process of booking a reservation for this St. Maarten hotel, via this Web site, and added to the total trip cost.
Getting around: The hotel staff summons taxis on request. Motor scooters and bicycles can be rented nearby.
Activities
Guests may book either an All-Inclusive plan or a Room-Only (No Meals) plan. Please note the following recreational amenities may not apply to all guests (scroll up to the All-Inclusive Plan Details section for more information).
Sonesta Great Bay Beach Resort & Casino lies on Great Bay and its 1.5-km (1-mi) crescent beach, which opens to the south into the Caribbean Sea. Lounge chairs and umbrellas are supplied along the resort's beachfront.
Two pools are terraced above the beach. The lower pool overlooks the bay and measures 19.75m by 6m (65 ft by 20 ft); it has an infinity edge and a swim-up bar. The irregularly shaped upper pool is 18.25 m (60 ft) long. A 20-person spa tub also overlooks the bay.
A water-sports/dive center rents snorkeling gear (complimentary for All-Inclusive plan guests), kayaks, windsurfers, and sailboats. The center also arranges personal watercraft, parasailing, water skiing, wake boarding, banana boating, scuba-diving instruction/certification, and scuba-diving and snorkeling excursions (surcharges for all).
Tennis on the resort's lighted court, tennis racquets and balls, bocce, shuffleboard, beach volleyball, Ping-Pong, pool, beach croquet, and beach/pool lounge chair/towels are complimentary for both All-Inclusive plan and Room-Only (No Meals) plan guests.
The recreational activities listed below are available either on site or near the resort, in the Philipsburg area of St. Maarten; fees may apply.
- Windsurfing on site
- Snorkeling on site
- Swimming on site
- Sailing on site
- Scuba diving on site
- Water skiing on site
- Personal watercraft on site
- Aerobics on site
- Tennis on site
- Volleyball on site
- Scooter/Moped Rentals nearby
- Hiking/biking trails nearby
- Bicycle rentals nearby
- Horse riding/rental nearby
- Parasailing on site
- Helicopter/airplane sightseeing nearby
- Fishing nearby
Restaurants & Bars
Guests may book either an All-Inclusive plan or a Room-Only (No Meals) plan. The All-Inclusive plan includes meals and beverages plus gratuities, at the following restaurants, snack spots, and bars. The Room-Only (No Meals) plan does not include meals, drinks, and gratuities, etc. (scroll up to the All-Inclusive Plan Details section for more information). |
The Bay View - Open-air buffet restaurant/bar serving breakfast, lunch, themed-night dinners.
The Molasses - Informal, air-conditioned fine-dining restaurant with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking Great Bay. Reservation required. Dress code: long pants, no beach sandals for men.
Sample menu for the MolassesSample menu for the Molasses
(Note: the following menu is for illustrative purposes only. Specific items listed may or may not be available.)
Appetizers:
- Puff pastry with spicy, creamy crab
- Cod fritters with mustard-lemon aioli
- Phyllo turnover with beef, Creole sauce
- Christophene with ham, cheese stuffing
Soups: - Cuban black bean
- Cream of sweet potato
Salads: - Tropical shrimp
- Jerk chicken
Main courses: - West Indian-style chicken breast with tomato-cream sauce
- Pan-fried curried chicken with banana
- Chicken cubes with spicy Creole sauce
- Beef stew
- Ribeye steak with Creole sauce
- Grilled pork chops with mango-cilantro sauce
- West Indian-style curried goat
- Shrimp in curried coconut sauce
- Seafood stew
- Snapper stuffed with conch
- Grilled grouper with spicy sauce
Desserts: - Bread pudding with tamarind-rum sauce
- Rice pudding with nutmeg-cinnamon sauce
- Guava tart with guavaberry liqueur
- Rum-flavored mango custard
The Living Room - Air-conditioned bar/lounge with view of Great Bay. Serpentine communal table and high tables with stools. Patterned carpet. Live music three-four nights weekly. Open early evening to late night.
La Cucina - Air-conditioned fine-dining restaurant serving Italian cuisine. Dinner only. Reservation required. Dress code: long pants, no beach sandals for men.
Anchor Bar - Pool bar with swim-up side. Open late morning to early evening.
Lobby Bar - Open early evening to late night.
Location
Little Bay Rd 19
Philipsburg, Sint Maarten
Netherlands Antilles
Nearest major airport:
Philipsburg, St. Maarten (SXM-Princess Juliana)
Important Information
Room-Only (No Meals) plans may not include taxes or gratuities.
Extra person charges may apply and vary depending on hotel policy.
Rollaway beds and cribs (infant beds) may be available and should be requested at the time of booking; fees may apply.
Photo identification and credit card or cash deposit are required at check-in for incidental charges.
Special requests are subject to availability upon check-in. Special requests made via this Web site cannot be guaranteed and may incur additional charges.
- Pets not allowed
- Check-in time is 3 PM
- Check-out time is 11 AM
