10 Best Family Things to Do in Saint Martin

Tiki Hut Snorkel Park lets you navigate a series of floating platforms with the opportunity to get underwater and see the brilliant Sint Maarten sea life. Full lessons and guided experiences are available. You also get a deck chair and floating lounges to enjoy between snorkeling excursions. Food is available at the Tiki Bar and Grill, and consists of classic burgers and dogs with beer, rum punch, and nonalcoholic drinks for the kids.

This tour experience in Sint Maarten can be accessed by a shuttle that runs hourly. They have contracts with several cruise lines to get you to and from your ship. Enjoy lunch and cold drinks, and go swimming with hundreds of colorful fish.

Parotte Ville Bird Park is a hidden gem among this tropical island paradise where you'll see many tropical bird species from parakeets to conures, caiques, and others. The tour takes only 30 minutes to go through, and along the way you'll see such fun, colorful, and playful birds as the brown-throated conure, sun conure, rick-necked parakeet, and black-headed caique. You can even feed the birds with a cup of seeds provided by the park.

In addition, you can explore a medicinal garden and learn about the health properties of the plants there. This park in Philipsburg, Sint Maarten, is a fun and educational experience for all.

The Yoda Guy Movie Exhibit is a nonprofit "Star Wars"-themed museum run by one of the puppeteers who created Yoda and offers a look at real movie props and effects. Though it's focused on "Star Wars," here you can see props, exhibits, costumes, makeup, and ephemera from movies like "Highlander," "The Terminator," "Alien," "Superman," "Men in Black," and many others. It specializes in original relics used in productions, many autographed by the stars of the films.

Proprietor Nick Maley is an internationally renowned movie effects designer. This museum in Philipsburg, Sint Maarten, is sure to be an exciting experience for kids of every age from 1 to 100.

The Butterfly Farm is a small attraction, but one you're sure not to forget at this open-air netted park with waterfalls, colorful flora, and thousands of fluttering butterflies. You'll get a guided tour through the park to learn about how plants attract these beautiful flying insects and about the lifecycle of a butterfly from caterpillar to chrysalis to butterfly. If you're lucky during the tour, you might even have a butterfly land on you to say hello.

This tour only takes about 25 minutes to go through and is located on the St. Martin side of the island's east coast. It's like taking your kids through a fairy tale wonderland, where they'll learn while getting lost among the colorful butterflies.

Rhino Safari excursions offer a guided trip across the Simpson Bay Lagoon from inflatable boats, allowing you to see a range of sites on the island in a unique way. You'll move through protected waters to Creole Rock in the National Nature Reserve of St. Martin. Here you will get the chance to go on a guided snorkeling experience to witness the varied and colorful sea life of the St. Martin waters up close and personal.

This tour is fantastic for anyone with kids ages 3 and up, but to drive your own boat, you have to be at least 18 years old. You'll have an unforgettable experience on the bright blue waters seeing stunning natural vistas.

Aqua Mania Adventures offers a fun excursion with everything from boat rides and shipwrecks to ice cream, carousels, and obstacle courses to keep your family entertained all day. You'll start with an exciting boat ride out onto Simpson Bay where you'll get to waterbomb a shipwreck. Then you'll head back to shore where you can enjoy a ride on a classic merry-go-round with carved horses, and handmade ice cream at an old-fashioned parlor.

Next, head for the Playstation, a floating playground with obstacles, slides, jungle gyms, and swings all on the water. It's all part of the Simpson Bay Resort in Sint Maarten, but it's open to the public and great for kids of all ages.

Loterie Farm is a former sugar plantation and private nature reserve where you can fly, jump, swing, and hike your way through a historic location filled with wildlife. This treetop adventure park offers one of the fastest and steepest zip lines on the island and has several options for kids, teens, and adults. You can also go hiking through the natural tropical rainforest where you might see monkeys, lizards, and colorful butterflies through tropical mahogany groves.

Finally, you can navigate an obstacle course with suspension bridges, cables, swinging ropes, and other adventures where you can swing and climb like Tarzan himself. It's all located on a former historic sugar plantation in the heart of Saint Martin.

Seaside Nature Park offers the chance to explore the island's Sint Maarten side along the seashores and on the back of a horse with no experience necessary. Every kid fantasizes about riding on horseback, and this is their chance to experience not only the thrill of riding, but also of doing so along scenic shoreline vistas with several riding trail options available. At the end of the trail, you can even ride out into the surf and take a little horseback swim.

Each riding experience is guided by an expert rider who will educate you about the island and coach you on riding if you need it. You'll find this nature park along Cole Bay in southern Sint Maarten.

Fort Amsterdam offers the chance to explore the ruins of a Dutch stone fort dating to the 17th century with stone walls and ramparts, and astounding harbor views. The fort is in a state of disrepair but is still one of the more popular attractions in Sint Maarten for the incredible harbor views. You can still see several real cannons dating to the 19th century as well as informational plaques about the history of the fort.

The fort is a registered historical site and is an important breeding ground for brown pelicans. It's a great place for kids to run and play while adults capture photographs of fantastic Caribbean vistas. The fort is located just outside of Philipsburg.

Front Street in Philipsburg is where to go if you're looking to get some shopping done, with several shops even offering duty-free options where you don't have to pay tax. Front Street is the main shopping thoroughfare in the city and is a pedestrian-friendly stretch of independent shops, cafés, and restaurants. Stop off to grab some island-made liquor to take home, find the perfect souvenir of your trip, grab some new clothes, or just window shop your way along the road.

Here you'll find bargains on everything from electronics and housewares to jewelry and china patterns. You can spend all day here checking out the wide range of goods available.