The small beach is located adjacent to the airport. With the airport's landing strip literally steps away. The planes fly directly over your head to land! This is what the beach is famous for. A two way road sits between the beach and a gate around the runway. Every once in a while instead of landing, a plane will take off from said runway. If these planes are traveling away from the beach, their rear jets will face this gate. For some thrill seekers holding onto this gate and experiencing the jet blast is "a thing". The force of the blasts and visible plume of chemical gases, are beyond dangerous. The locals tell of a person who was blown from the gate right into the path of a car. There is clear signage that encourages folks not to engage in this behavior. The beach itself was clean and the waters clear. All beaches in St. Maarten are public and no lifeguards were present. Signage tells you to swim at your own risk. We enjoyed taking in the sun, taking dips in the Caribbean Sea and seeing the occasional plane land. Yeah, we stayed away from the gate. read more

Beautiful beach with very soothing water. Very clean and nice to relax in. Bring cash to purchase a chair and umbrella.

It's an okay beach. It's very small, and the main attraction is watching the planes fly overhead. During the day it gets extremely crowded so much so that you can't even walk along the beach and end up having to walk in the street instead. The street itself is very narrow, and cars struggle to get through with all the foot traffic. Go early, get your quick photos, and then head out. It's definitely more of a novelty stop than a relaxing beach day read more

See all

The cabbies will tell you the beach is 15 minutes from the cruise pier but it's closer to 30 and it cost us $72 for 4 of us. Beach chairs were $20 which we thought was expensive but soon discovered it was one of the less expensive places. Our vendor was very friendly but the service was soooooo slooooooow and we were constantly bothered by vendors. In fact two vendors got into a turf war (just yelling) while we were there. The water was crystal clear but we definitely went to better beaches. We won't return here. read more

Maho Beach Sint Maarten - Beaches Near Me

A small beach right at the edge of the airport, pretty noisy but spectacular view of the planes landing and taking off. read more

Maho Beach Sint Maarten - Beaches Near Me

Moho Beach in Saint Martin is an unforgettable experience and easily one of the island's most exciting spots. The crystal-clear turquoise water, soft white sand, and lively atmosphere make it a must-visit. What truly sets Moho Beach apart is the thrill of watching planes fly incredibly low as they land at the nearby airport--it's exhilarating and unlike anywhere else in the world. Despite the excitement, the beach still offers plenty of space to relax, swim, and soak up the Caribbean sun. With nearby bars and restaurants adding to the vibrant vibe, Moho Beach perfectly blends natural beauty, adventure, and fun. A truly iconic Saint Martin destination that lives up to the hype. read more

One of the best experiences at a beach I've ever encountered. The water is gorgeous. Being so close to the airplane's landing is so surreal, especially for airplane fanatics. I only wish it was a larger area. So many tourist come to watch the planes and it can get crowded. The sunsets and sunrises are like no other. read more

See all

I'd recommend this beach for the experience of seeing the planes land over your head. It is pretty cool if you like plane watching. You can go online and see the scheduled landings for the day so you know the best times to see the big jets. The water here is clear , but a bit rocky by the shoreline, so if you just want to swim, keep that in mind. There are also 2 restaurants/bars on either side of the beach. read more

Maho Beach Sint Maarten - Beaches Near Me

As someone who grew up watching air shows by the Air Force...I am surprised that people are willing to risk their life like that. That said. I love the beauty of the water & the planes. Much preferred view from my plane then at the beach. read more

I joined the many people at Maho beach waiting for a plane to land so we can snap a cool picture. I missed two and the third plane was just a tad bit more to the right so I didn't get the plane flying over me picture! But it was a fun experience!! There are a couple of bars located on the beach. read more

As an aviation nerd, I finally got to visit famous Maho Beach on the island of St. Maarten. This had been a longtime dream of mine and it finally came to true. What an experience! If you enjoy plane spotting, there is no other place IN THE WORLD better than SXM - Princess Juliana Airport in St. Maarten to catch arrivals and departures from the end of the runway as you're standing on Maho Beach. You will get chills! You will come face to face with some of the biggest airplanes in the world! And that's what Maho Beach is all about. Tourists stand on the beach as planes zoom right over your head and onto the SXM runway. For departures...planes make a left hand turn right beside Maho Beach. You can feel the energy! You can feel the excitement and anticipation! And finally, when those Boeing and Airbus engines rev up and thrust to full throttle and max power, you either get out of the way, stand off to the side of the beach or be prepared to get tossed into the Atlantic Ocean! It's a thrill unlike any other! Writing this review, I'm just 2 days removed from standing on Maho Beach and reliving some of the best moments of my life! It was that surreal, I think I want to cry tears of joy, but really, I just want to return to St. Maarten and relive every moment, every arrival, every departure and let my inner child loose. Here are details about what you can expect if you'd like to visit St. Maarten and stand on world renowned Maho Beach... - All planes basically do a turnaround at SXM - Princess Juliana, meaning...they arrive in St. Maarten, drop passengers off and then load up passengers and depart off the island. Planes don't stay overnight. - The action begins with arrivals over Maho Beach that start as early as 7am, but they are infrequent arrivals, maybe 1 or 2 every hour or so. The majority of the craziness begins around 12pm and lasts through 4pm. You have about 4 quality hours where airlines like American, United, Delta, JetBlue, AirCanada, WestJet and Spirit all come and go. - And...it's not just domestic carriers, Air France flies once a day, every day, right over Maho Beach. It's a beautiful Airbus A330 aircraft coming from Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris. It's a major, major highlight!! - Also, it wasn't every day but appeared like every other day...there's a majestic KLM airplane flying in from Amsterdam that's a sight to see! KLM is so recognizable in its vintage blue coloring it's like a signature sight racing right over Maho Beach that everyone recognizes! And best of all, when KLM departs back to Amsterdam, you get to witness it take flight right in front of your own eyes from Maho Beach. It's a blissful experience that cannot be duplicated!!! One thing...when Air France departs back to Paris, it starts down at the other end of the runway far from Maho Beach so you don't get to watch its engines ignite unfortunately, but you do get the most amazing flyover departure that again...can't be replicated. Lol, I have more to say.... - For the middle of April, it was so hot. I'm from South Florida and it felt like a brutal 90 degree summer day, almost every day. Good thing when there's no plane flyovers, you can hop in the waters to pass the time. - I was also surprised that the beach wasn't so busy for April. I had enough room for videos and picture taking to not feel bombarded by strangers. I had researched that when cruise ships are docked at port here in St. Maarten, Maho Beach can get packed. But that wasn't the case at all during my 4 day visit. - There are beaches all over the island of St. Maarten and yet, I found here at Maho Beach to have some of the most colorfully turquoise blue waters. Only problem is...if you're looking for peace and quiet to relax on the sand, you're not going to get it here. But if you love planes, you get the bonus scenic surroundings which makes for the magical setting! - There are cool, little tropical restaurants right beside Maho Beach. I had dinner at two of them. First off, and what is the famous restaurant here is Sunset Bar and Grill. You can grab drinks and dinner, watch the perfect St. Maarten sunset and of course catch plane arrivals right over the beach. Food and drinks were reasonably priced, surprisingly not overpriced. The other restaurant is the Driftwood Bar and Grill, which is the same type of vibe as Sunset Grill, but not nearly as big and touristy. And the views aren't as spectacular as it is from Sunset Grill. - Btw, to be kept up to date with all the arrivals and departures, go to www.sxmairport.com for the day's info and what you can expect so you can be prepared. In the end, what else can I say about Maho Beach? I had the time of my life. The experience lived up to every expectation I had. If you love planes and traveling, then you MUST come here to Maho Beach on the island of St. Maarten. read more

See all

Super cool tourist attraction. This place was featured in a lot of magazines and movies, the beach is right next to the airport where jumbo jets have blown people off the beach into the water. To be honest it's quite dangerous. And according to our taxi driver, just recently a Canadian woman was blown off and killed. The jumbo jets takes off away from the beach so the power of the Jets actually is very noisy and cause a huge racket. The beach is actually quite beautiful nice beautiful water a nice white sandy beach. Good for a quick visit, but still very dangerous so be careful. read more

Maho Beach Sint Maarten - Beaches Near Me

See all

Beautiful small beach! Main attraction the sxm airport sits directly behind beach.. if you get there at the right time you could possibly see a jumbo plane preparing to land. It hovers so close it seems you could almost touch the plane while sitting on the beach! It was so hot .. this activity was not my idea of fun, for many others they waited and waited for the photo op?!?! Be careful the engines are so powerful he blast blows you around and also the sand. As I said not my idea of a good time but I can imagine many left with a once and a lifetime picture! read more

See all

A must see while on the island - although it was not at all what we expected. The beach is very small and right on the road. You gotta get your plane selfie though! Get drinks at the bar and walk over when you see a plane coming in. read more

Maho Beach Sint Maarten - Beaches Near Me

See all

Truly unique beach located at the end of Runway #10 of the Juliana Airport on the Dutch side of Sint Maarten. It is not a huge beach; but the sand is almost white & very fine. The water is crystal clear & a beautiful shade of shade turquoise. The most amazing thing about this public beach is that since it is right next to the airport; you can watch planes arrive and depart all day long! The views are amazing; especially if you are an aircraft enthusiast.....but if not it's still a pretty cool place to visit while in Sint Maarten. The planes fly so low you can watch them descend and land. It's also easy to get the flight schedule so you know when to get your camera ready. (You can even find out the specific airline, type of plane, etc.). You really feel the planes flying right overhead, and it gives you a great breeze! The planes that are departing are just across the street behind a fence. There are warning signs posted all around because the engines can literally knock you off your feet and blow you across the street! Tourists have been injured and even killed because they go right up to the fence; ignoring the signs! I stayed on the beach and never went across the street to the fence and you really feel the engine blast from the beach as well! My husband had his hat blown off & the sand really blasts you! (It is like a slightly painful exfoliation treatment!) I don't know if I would want to make this my regular beach, there are so many other beautiful, serene beaches on the island; but it is definitely a "must visit" place if you are traveling to Sint Maarten on vacation because there is no other beach quite like it! There are also 2 Caribbean-themed restaurants/bars on each end of the beach; the famous Sunset Bar & Grill and the lesser known Driftwood Boat Bar. Both have large menus and cold drinks. You can sit at one of the bars and enjoy the takeoffs/landings without direct sun & blasting! I loved this beach and it was one of my favorite experiences in Sint Maarten! read more

See all

A different experience for sure! Sitting in the water having planes lane nearly feet above your head is a must have! We also stood closer to the strip at the top of the beach and the take offs, though the sand and jet blast is strong it is worth it!! read more

Maho Beach Sint Maarten - Beaches Near Me

See all

Love coming here and just watching the planes fly in and out so close over my head that I feel I can reach up and touch them. Great fun vibe and relaxed atmosphere Have been here many times on cruise stops and land-based stays. The fun never gets old for me. Crystal clear turquoise waters and baby powder white sand makes staying here all day quite easy. Plenty of services around. There's a great little bar pumping out all your Caribbean favorites as well as a full restaurant on premises. There's always something going here in the form of live entertainment. This is must stop for all beach lovers. So unique and exciting. The bar has a plane schedule that list all of the flights coming and going. Make sure you are on site for a 747 KLM take off and line up by the fence for something you'll never forget! Be very careful though or you will blown away...literally! read more

Watching planes arrive at st marten Get a drink at boat bar. Camera friendly -- can be a crowd at 1 -3 pm read more

Maho Beach Sint Maarten - Maho beach is at the end of runway - Beaches Near Me

Nice beach. During this visit, the beach was gone as the water level was really high. The view of the planes coming in was such an experience! read more

Fantastic waves, crystal clear carribean water, playful global tourists and warm sunshine!

Good times for partying and swimming and watching airplanes. A little noisy and smells like jet fuel when airplanes are flying