Plane Spotting on St. Maarten's Maho Beach


Visiting St. Maarten beaches supplies a lot of sunny highlights. This 37 square-mile, two nation island boasts 37 beaches for every mile, offering countless chances to sink your toes into soft, pearly sand and turquoise waves. All of the beaches have their own individual charm but only one is known around the globe for something other than sandy beauty.


Maho Beach is the famous beach  on the Dutch side of the island where the airplane runway almost meets the sand. I've seen countless photos and videos of planes swooping over the beach (There's even a Beach Cam to monitor the landings) and I was excited to grab a firsthand experience. Maho Beach is perched at the end of Maho Bay and the water glistened with crystalline waves when I waded in. Within 10 minutes, the sound of a jet rumbled  in the sky and a plane flew over my head as I splashed in the water. It's a crazy experience that adds to the excitement of being on a Caribbean beach. I visited Maho four times while I was on St. Maarten and seeing the planes never got old. What did get old was fumbling for a phone to take a pic if I was on the sand.  I never managed to be prepared so these pix don't capture the full drama of a plane flying just a few feet over your head as you lounge on a beach. It's not a tranquil beach, to say the least but it's definitely a bucket list-worthy activity.


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