Maho Beach St. Maarten: Is the Plane Spotting Excursion Worth It? | Icon of the Seas

✈️ Maho Beach St. Maarten plane spotting was one of the most unique experiences from our Icon of the Seas Eastern Caribbean cruise! In this video, we take you along on our Royal Caribbean shore excursion to Maho Beach, famous for airplanes landing just feet above the beach next to Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM). 🏝️ We visited Maho Beach in St. Maarten / Sint Maarten while sailing on Royal Caribbean Icon of the Seas, and we’re sharing exactly what the experience was like — including the planes we saw, the condition of the beach, the cost of the excursion, taxi options from the cruise port, and whether we would book the excursion again. ✈️ During our visit, we saw everything from small Caribbean island-hopper planes to Boeing 737s and large Airbus A330 widebody aircraft, including KLM and Air France flights coming in over Maho Beach. 🌊 One thing that surprised us was how different Maho Beach looked compared with many of the photos and videos online. After several weeks of rough Caribbean weather, much of the sand had been pulled offshore, exposing large rocks along the shoreline. Maho Beach can change dramatically depending on storms, waves, and surf conditions. 🚢 We booked the Plane Spotting at Maho Beach shore excursion through Royal Caribbean while Icon of the Seas was docked in Philipsburg, St. Maarten. The excursion was around $60 per person and included transportation, a guide, and the convenience of having everything arranged for us. 🚕 But you can also visit Maho Beach independently. The drive from the St. Maarten cruise port to Maho Beach is roughly 20–30 minutes depending on traffic, and published taxi fares can make this a much cheaper option — especially for groups. The biggest advantage? You control when you arrive and when you leave. 🍔 We also spent time at Sunset Bar and Grill / Sunset Beach Bar, one of the best-known places for plane spotting at Maho Beach. The views were fantastic, but food and drinks were definitely on the expensive side! 😬 Our biggest disappointment? We had to leave with the excursion just before a KLM Airbus A330 was scheduled to take off. Had we stayed another 15–20 minutes, we probably would have seen one of the biggest jet-blast moments of the day. ⚠️ And yes — the famous jet blast at Maho Beach is real. There are warning signs for a reason, and we definitely recommend enjoying the planes from a safe location rather than standing directly behind departing aircraft. If you’re planning a St. Maarten cruise, researching things to do in St. Maarten, looking for Royal Caribbean shore excursions, or wondering whether Maho Beach plane spotting is worth it, we hope this video helps you plan your day. 👇 Let us know in the comments: Would you book the Royal Caribbean excursion, or would you take a taxi and explore Maho Beach on your own? 🚢 Subscribe to Travel with Nick and Tony for more: Royal Caribbean cruise reviews, Icon of the Seas videos, cruise excursions, Caribbean ports, cruise tips, Club Royale casino offers, ship tours, and honest travel experiences. #mahobeach #stmaarten #planespotting #iconoftheseas #royalcaribbean #sintmaarten #PrincessJulianaAirport #sxm #MahoBeachStMaarten #royalcaribbeancruisevlog #cruiseexcursion #shoreexcursion #caribbeancruise #IconOfTheSeasCruise #StMaartenCruisePort #philipsburg #SunsetBeachBar #airbusa330neo #boeing737 #klmroyaldutchairlines #airfrance447 #cruisetips #TravelWithNickAndTony #royalcaribbean ChatGPT can make mistakes. Check important info.