Divi Little Bay

I’m very fortunate to have a career that affords me the opportunity to travel around the world. What’s even more special is being able to share my experiences with my best friend, partner in crime, and love of my life.

My latest adventure took us to St. Maarten for a five-day/four-night celebration for the grand re-opening of the Divi Little Bay Beach Resort. I was really excited to visit the island of St. Maarten because I had always heard about how beautiful the island was. But I also wanted to acknowledge and share the rebuilding efforts initiated by the incredible St. Maarten community.

From the plane window, the damage and reconstruction efforts were immediately evident. It made me think about how powerful and destructive the ocean can be, and then in an instant, return back to the beautiful, calming source of life that it is.

On September 6, 2017, twenty-three years and a day after being hit by the its biggest storm ever, Hurricane David, St. Maarten was devastated by Hurricane Irma. I remember following the news and seeing the aftermath of the storm and thinking that with such limited access to resources, it would take years for St. Maarten to bounce back. Although the island is still in recovery, it was encouraging to learn and empowering to witness how resilient the island and its people are.

Divi Little Bay

The 210 room beach resort is a made up of 34 beachfront hotel units, 74 studio suites, 101 one bedroom suites, and 1 three bedroom penthouse. We were lucky enough to stay in the penthouse! Just kidding… we stayed in a one bedroom suite facing the breathtaking Great Bay.

Our week was jam-packed with activities like tours, hiking, zip lining, and a whole lot of beach time. It’s hard to say what my favorite part of the trip was, but, one of the highlights and most informative aspects of my trip was the tour of the French Side.

French Side of St. Martin

Our guide was Kate Richardson, a bureau of tourism representative from the French Side. The first stop on the tour was a hike to the top of Fort Louis, which offered the most beautiful panoramic view of the French Side of the island. It was absolutely breathtaking! From there, we headed to Loterie Farms – a 135 acre paradise full of hiking trails, zip lines, bar/food, pools, and cabanas.

Before making our way to dinner, Kate took us by Orient Bay – a coastal community and beach – to show us where Bikini Beach’s beach bars and restaurants once stood before the hurricane. As an outsider, the white sandy beach seemed like heaven, but after learning more about the storm and its destruction, I couldn’t help but feel sad about all that the area had endured .

To seal the deal on an impactful and exciting day, we enjoyed some fine dinner overlooking a gorgeous sunset at the beachfront restaurant, Baccanco, in Grand Case.

There’s so much more I could share about our amazing experience, but I’ll let you see for yourself via my Instagram highlights.

Special thanks to Divi Little Bay Beach Resorts and the St. Maarten Tourism Bureau for bringing this experience to life. We can’t wait to return to St. Maarten!