All-Inclusive Resorts in St. Martin / St. Maarten (2026): The 3 Real Options, Compared

The island is split between Dutch Sint Maarten in the south and French Saint-Martin in the north, with an open border you can drive across without stopping.

Which side should you choose?

• All-inclusive at any cost: the Dutch side, specifically Maho or Little Bay.
• Food and a quieter beach: the French side, eating out every night. Grand Case alone has dozens of restaurants.
• Best of both: stay at an all-inclusive and rent a car for two or three French-side days. Taxi times from the airport run about 5 minutes to Maho, 15 to Simpson Bay, 20 to 25 to Little Bay and about 40 to Grand Case or Orient Bay.

Secrets St. Martin Resort & Spa opened at Anse Marcel on the French side in February 2020 as a 258-room, adults-only Hyatt Inclusive Collection resort built from the former Riu Palace St. Martin. On May 31, 2025 it stopped operating as Secrets and left the Hyatt Inclusive Collection (Vacation Express). It briefly continued as St. Martin Beach Resort & Spa, then shut its gates entirely in December 2025, with no announced reopening date; an August 2026 report describes the entrance as still barred (St-Maarten.com).

The last reviews before the brand exit were mixed: Tripadvisor showed 3.5 from 793 reviews, with guests praising the calm Anse Marcel beach but describing a resort that needed a heavy face-lift.

The good news: Anse Marcel's beach, marina, restaurants and small hotels are still open, so it is still worth a day trip.

Is there a Dreams resort on St. Martin? No. We found no Dreams property on either side of the island, open or announced, as of October 2026. If you are loyal to the Hyatt Inclusive Collection, the closest options are elsewhere in the Caribbean.

Both Sonesta resorts sit at Maho, beside the end of the runway at Princess Juliana International Airport, where jets pass a few dozen feet over the sand. For many guests it is the highlight; one October 2026 Sonesta Ocean Point reviewer called it breathtaking to watch the planes land and take off every day.

What to know before you book:

• It is loud. Jet noise runs from morning to evening. The resorts are well insulated, and several reviewers say the property itself is quiet, but you will hear the bigger jets.
• Maho Beach is a spectacle, not a swimming beach. It is narrow, public and often rough. Sonesta Ocean Point has no beach of its own.
• Jet blast is dangerous. Warning signs are posted because people standing behind departing aircraft have been seriously injured. Watch from the side or from a bar.
• The novelty fades. Many repeat visitors say the planes are thrilling for the first couple of days, then become background noise.

If you want a swimming beach, Divi Little Bay or a day at Orient Bay is the better bet.

Three popular resorts are often sold as all-inclusive but work differently:

Divi Little Bay Beach Resort: a real optional plan

Divi sells its own all-inclusive plan on top of the room rate, in two tiers, Signature and Premium (Divi Resorts). WestJet Vacations lists the plan as including all meals and snacks, unlimited domestic drinks and airport transfers, with the rooftop Mix at Oceans restaurant excluded (WestJet Vacations). Divi's own site says the Premium plan adds two more dining venues, in-room refreshments, handcrafted cocktails and premium liquors (Divi Resorts), and Divi was promoting a free all-inclusive upgrade on St. Maarten stays in October 2026.

Simpson Bay Resort and Oyster Bay Beach Resort: packages only

Both are vacation-ownership resorts with kitchens in the units and room-only rates by default. All-inclusive exists only when a tour operator such as Sunwing, WestJet Vacations or Vacation Express bundles a meal plan into a flight-plus-hotel package. If you book either direct or on a hotel site, expect to pay for every meal and drink.

Is a meal plan worth it?

On this island, often not. Simpson Bay sits on the island's busiest restaurant strip, and Oyster Bay has only two dining venues, so most guests are better off cooking a few meals and eating out the rest. Our what is an all-inclusive resort guide explains how to compare a package against paying as you go.

With Secrets closed, a French-side stay means room-only or breakfast rates, which is how most of the side's regulars prefer it.

• Orient Bay is the island's most famous beach: long, lined with beach clubs, with a clothing-optional section at its southern end. No all-inclusive resort sits on it, and La Playa Orient Bay closes from August 16 to October 12, 2026.
• Grand Case is the food village. Grand Case Beach Club (73 units, Tripadvisor 4.5 from 2,174 reviews) is the hotel we would use as a base: two small beaches, a pool, one restaurant and a 5 to 10 minute walk into the village.
• La Samanna (Belmond) is the French side's luxury hotel. It is not all-inclusive and is closed from July 24 to November 14, 2026.

A budget tip for all-inclusive guests on the Dutch side: rent a car for a day, have lunch on Orient Bay and dinner in Grand Case, and you will see why the French side has so many loyal visitors.

St. Martin is warm all year, with average highs from about 83°F in January to 89°F from July to September at Princess Juliana Airport, according to Meteorological Department Curaçao data. The real differences are rain and price.

• Mid-December to mid-April (high season): the driest stretch and the most expensive. February and March average about 2 inches of rain each; Christmas and New Year are the priciest weeks.
• May and early June: the value sweet spot, with rates falling before hurricane season.
• June to November (low season): cheapest; September and October rates can be about half of peak. September to November are also the wettest months, at about 4.4 to 5.9 inches each.

The Atlantic hurricane season runs June 1 to November 30 and peaks around September 10 (NOAA). St. Martin sits in the main storm track; Hurricane Irma made a direct hit in September 2017 and reshaped the hotel market. Buy travel insurance for any trip between August and October, and check whether your resort has restaurants closed for seasonal maintenance; Sonesta Maho's Ocean Terrace buffet, for example, is closed for maintenance until November 10, 2026.

Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM) on the Dutch side handles all jet traffic. Nonstop US service runs from New York (JFK), Newark, Miami, Charlotte, Atlanta, Boston, Philadelphia and Fort Lauderdale, with seasonal flights from Chicago, Baltimore, Orlando and Minneapolis. The small Grand Case–Espérance airport (SFG) on the French side handles regional hops only. Expect long immigration lines at SXM at peak times.

Transfers

• Sonesta Maho and Ocean Point: about 5 minutes; round-trip transfers are included in tour-operator packages.
• Simpson Bay Resort: about 15 minutes, roughly $15 to $20 by taxi.
• Divi Little Bay: about 20 to 25 minutes.
• Oyster Bay Beach Resort: 30 to 40 minutes, about $40 for two by taxi.
• Grand Case: about 40 minutes.

Taxis charge fixed, posted fares, usually quoted for two passengers; agree the fare before you get in. The Simpson Bay lagoon bridge opens three times a day and can add 20 to 30 minutes to airport runs, so leave margin on departure day.

Do you need a car?

Not at Maho, where you can walk to bars, restaurants and the beach. Anywhere else, and especially at Oyster Bay or on the French side, a rental car makes the trip.

St. Martin is a mid-priced Caribbean destination for an all-inclusive, but rates swing widely by date and room. For late-October 2026 dates, HotelsCombined showed Sonesta Ocean Point from about $461 a night for two including taxes and fees, with its priciest suites near $1,911, and listed September as the cheapest month (HotelsCombined). Low-season starting rates published in August 2026 were lower still, roughly $300 a night at Ocean Point, $220 at Sonesta Maho, $180 at Divi Little Bay and $150 at Simpson Bay and Oyster Bay (the last two room-only), according to a rate roundup. Peak weeks can cost roughly twice as much, so price your own dates on the resorts' sites before booking.

Tipping

• Sonesta resorts: gratuities are included in the rate, though a dollar or two for bartenders is appreciated.
• Dutch-side restaurants: many add a 10 to 15% service charge; check the bill before adding more. If none is added, 15 to 20% is standard.
• French side: service is legally included; rounding up or leaving a few euros is enough.

Money

US dollars are accepted everywhere on the Dutch side. The French side uses the euro, but cards and dollars are widely accepted. Some resorts charge for parking; one 2026 Sonesta Maho reviewer paid $10 a day for the garage.

For current sales, see our all-inclusive deals page.

1. Booking Secrets St. Martin from an old listing. It closed in December 2025.
2. Assuming "all-inclusive" means the resort includes food. At Simpson Bay and Oyster Bay, it only applies to specific tour-operator packages.
3. Expecting a swimming beach at Sonesta Ocean Point. It has none of its own; Maho Beach is narrow and rough.
4. Mixing up the two Sonesta resorts. One October 2026 reviewer's group accidentally booked the family side instead of adults-only Ocean Point. Check the property name on your confirmation.
5. Not asking for a specific room. Sonesta Maho reviewers report pool-view rooms that face plants, and Simpson Bay rooms vary widely between refurbished and not.
6. Skipping the French side. Grand Case and Orient Bay are a short drive away and are the main reason many visitors return.