White Sands Retreat - Beachside at Beacon Hill
House in Simpson Bay
4 guests · 2 bedrooms · 1 bath
Reasons to book
Guests love it hereGuests give this property a top rating
Includes essentialsGarden, Kitchen or Kitchenette, Air conditioner and more
Book with confidenceWe partner with the top travel sites so you know you're getting a great deal on the perfect rental
About this house rental
White Sands Retreat (aka “Bowie Place”) is a private 2 bedroom 1 bathroom home just 75 yards from Simpson Bay Beach on Dutch Sint Maarten. Located in a gated neighborhood of other private homes where your privacy is assured. It can be rented as one bedroom (up to 2 guests) or as two bedrooms (2 to 4 guests). Rates are adjusted for NUMBER OF BEDROOMS requested. You are renting the exclusive and private use of the entire property.
COVID-19 update - The property is cleaned and disinfected each week and between guest arrivals and departures. Complementary disinfecting wipes are supplied for your use as needed. As you are staying is a private single family home you are safe distanced from others not in your personal rental group. There are NO common walkways, stairs, parking or group area that you will share. This is NOT a condo, resort or time share project.
The spacious cottage is equipped with modern appliances. All stays INCLUDE free on-site WiFi and internet access. The property features a one minute walk to the beautiful two mile long pristine Simpson Bay beach, off street parking and an local caretaker. This spectacular beach has no ocean undertow, gentle waves for swimming and soft pearl white sand. You can walk the entire length of our beach and visit the small beach cafes and restaurants.
You can stay in or go out and enjoy all the island activities that are nearby like world class restaurants, night clubs, beach bars and casinos.
You are booking directly with the owner, so our rates are extremely low for beach side accommodations. If requesting stay for more than 3 guests (two bedrooms) the forth guest is FREE (you must request a rate quote at time of booking to get the discount.)
Accommodation details:
Two private bedrooms with queen size beds and choice of firm or plush mattress. Each bright and airy bedroom has individual controlled air conditioning, dresser with mirror, closet, personal room safe and share a full bath with large walk-in shower. Both are supplied with fresh towels and all linens.
There is an air conditioned full size living room with Satellite TV, DVD/ Blue Ray player, movie selections and stereo. The dinning room seats six at a casual round table with tropical inspired designer place settings.
The kitchen has granite countertops and a full size gas range & oven, microwave, dishwasher and full size refrigerator with automatic ice maker. There is a full supply of pots & pans, designer plates, glasses, tableware, cooking utensils, as well as toaster, blender and drip coffee maker.
The back deck is partially covered and has an additional table and chairs. For the outdoor chief there is a stainless steel two burner Webber gas BBQ grill. The front porch is a great place to sip your morning coffee or enjoy your end of day cocktail.
COVID-19 update - The property is cleaned and disinfected each week and between guest arrivals and departures. Complementary disinfecting wipes are supplied for your use as needed. As you are staying is a private single family home you are safe distanced from others not in your personal rental group. There are NO common walkways, stairs, parking or group area that you will share. This is NOT a condo, resort or time share project.
The spacious cottage is equipped with modern appliances. All stays INCLUDE free on-site WiFi and internet access. The property features a one minute walk to the beautiful two mile long pristine Simpson Bay beach, off street parking and an local caretaker. This spectacular beach has no ocean undertow, gentle waves for swimming and soft pearl white sand. You can walk the entire length of our beach and visit the small beach cafes and restaurants.
You can stay in or go out and enjoy all the island activities that are nearby like world class restaurants, night clubs, beach bars and casinos.
You are booking directly with the owner, so our rates are extremely low for beach side accommodations. If requesting stay for more than 3 guests (two bedrooms) the forth guest is FREE (you must request a rate quote at time of booking to get the discount.)
Accommodation details:
Two private bedrooms with queen size beds and choice of firm or plush mattress. Each bright and airy bedroom has individual controlled air conditioning, dresser with mirror, closet, personal room safe and share a full bath with large walk-in shower. Both are supplied with fresh towels and all linens.
There is an air conditioned full size living room with Satellite TV, DVD/ Blue Ray player, movie selections and stereo. The dinning room seats six at a casual round table with tropical inspired designer place settings.
The kitchen has granite countertops and a full size gas range & oven, microwave, dishwasher and full size refrigerator with automatic ice maker. There is a full supply of pots & pans, designer plates, glasses, tableware, cooking utensils, as well as toaster, blender and drip coffee maker.
The back deck is partially covered and has an additional table and chairs. For the outdoor chief there is a stainless steel two burner Webber gas BBQ grill. The front porch is a great place to sip your morning coffee or enjoy your end of day cocktail.
Amenities
Air conditioner
Kitchen or Kitchenette
Internet / Wifi
Parking
Laundry
Balcony or Patio
Dishwasher
Hot tub or spa
TV
Garden
Family friendly
Map of Simpson Bay
$$$$
Ratings and reviews
8.0 / 10.0
Five minutes walk to the beach. Nice little house.
8.0 / 10.0
We really enjoyed our stay It was nice to have a place of our own. Don't expect a luxuries home. It is a older home and well lived in. Comfortable. We were a litte disappointed that the beach bar near took over the whole beach. We will still comeback to here. By the way, no hot tub.
10.0 / 10.0
Good value for the money. Near the airport but the planes are quiet over night. Great beach in walking distance. If you are looking for a quiet get away from the party atmosphere of Sint Maarten this it. The property is a bit dated but quite livable. Lots of space. Good AC.
10.0 / 10.0
As always "The Bowie House" was a great vacation. Lowest price and just 50 yards to a beautiful beach! What more could you want.
Oh, there's a small boutique hotel next door that will let you use their chaise lounges / umbrellas all day if you buy drinks or Lunch from them!
What more could you ask for!
10.0 / 10.0
Gary is a great host, all the comforts of home. This is our 2nd stay at Bowie Place, wouldn't consider staying anywhere else. Great location, clean, comfortable, well equipped and spacious.
10.0 / 10.0
It was beautiful time. Everything was grate. Definitely we would like come back to Gary's place next year. Thank you Gary!
10.0 / 10.0
What a perfect place to stay. Bowie's place was within a 5 minute walk to the pristine beach on Simpson Bay, and walking distance to Maho Market, Sunset Beach bar, the Boat bar (to just name a few), even 2 casinos should you so choose. The house was the perfect size for the 3 of us, with all the amenities needed to allow us to cook and manage our vacation like being at home (coffee pot, French press, blender, microwave, toaster oven, washing machine and more!). It was easy to get checked in, and any questions I had were answered promptly by the owner and grounds keeper. There were safes in both rooms allowing us to keep everything secure, and the gated property kept our rental car safe as well. The air units managed our evenings with lovely cool air in a short amount of time. It was truly a perfect place for our family. Thank you Gary and Neal.
10.0 / 10.0
What a fantastic choice ! For starters it was a pleasure communicating with Gary from 'consideration to commitment'. It didn't take long for us to make the decision especially with specific needs we had concerning a friend who may or may not have been able to join us. His recommendations were on point starting with AAA car rental. We loved the location, very easy to find and within walking distance to a private quiet beach that made for beautiful photos and quiet evenings. We felt safe walking even on late nights and early mornings before sunrise. Oh and the neighbors were also pleasant ! Also within walking to eat and the Maho beach experience.
Upon arriving, we knew we were going to love it ! The name says it all. Our dog and best friend is Bowie and that drew us in also. The home had everything we needed and more. The AC worked fantastic ! So much so, we kept it very low in the common area and I can't say enough about having individual air units in each bedrooms ! Our best friend loves to freeze but we like to acclimate to the average air temp. Coming from the US and needing to travel as light as possible to bring our dive gear, it was nice to have all the beach necessities available like coolers, pool/beach toys, chairs, etc. I LOVED watching the planes take off during the day, but night times were very quiet. We have a friend of many years who lives in Philipsburg that we hope to visit again and we would love to come back and stay at Bowie's Place if he'll have us ~
8.0 / 10.0
Modest home-but friendly neighborhood with wonderful beach access. Would have liked to have lock box code earlier to avoid problems with phone.
6.0 / 10.0
We enjoyed our stay immensely, the BBQ was a treat for condo tenants. The beach was close by and so much calmer than our normal beach retreats. We found everything we needed and close to the Maho area. We also used your recommendation for the rental car, no problems. We did find extra effort with the door locks so hope all was closed when we left!
Deb
10.0 / 10.0
Nice roomy older house near Simpson Bay.
Enjoyed staying. Place was clean, roomy, had all kitchen and home amenities. Appreciated the coolers, beach chairs, and umbrella. There were many windows that could be opened for air. We walked all of Simpson Bay each morning. The bay is a 100 yards to the beach. The planes are extremely noisy during the day but didn't bother our sleeping. I'd stay there again for this price point. A lot of room.
10.0 / 10.0
Great Time
Spacious, comfortable, clean, well equipped and private. Gary (owner) and Neil (caretaker) are very responsive and made sure everything was in order before and during our stay. Although this property is literally across the street from the airport, it is surprisingly quiet.
Neil checked on us regularly to make sure everything was ok and he's a great resource. My sister and I felt very safe. Thanks Gary and Neil for making our vacation a fantastic one. Will not hesitate to stay at White Sands again.
10.0 / 10.0
Feb. & March stay
Stayed for 3 weeks. Very clean and bright. Housekeeper came in each week to clean & do laundry. Beach is 50 yds away. Car rental 50 yds away. Maho beach & supermarket 15mins walk away. A bit close to the airport runway.
10.0 / 10.0
Great place to stay
We spent a week here and loved it! Great central location. Safe area and great beach. We used their beach chairs daily at the beach 100 ft. Away. Neil the caretaker was a great help. Planes are interesting to hear and watch and maho is a short walk.
2.0 / 10.0
Bowie’s Place
The place was close to a beautiful beach. Beach chairs, coolers, and towels are supplied. The sunrises are awesome. There is a restaurant a couple doors over, which was nice. The maintenance person, Ash, was very helpful to get us a rental car, etc. The planes are close, but you get used to them.
10.0 / 10.0
Great Location!
We stayed at Gary's house in Simpson Bay in Feb 2019 and were very satisfied with our visit. We had 2 adults and 2 kids and there was plenty of space to stretch out and relax. The house was clean and well appointed. There is a washer, and numerous clothes lines outside to dry everything, which was very efficient with the sun and constant trade winds blowing off the ocean. Ash, who lives next door, is also the caretaker of the property and we really enjoyed talking to him. He is very attentive and friendly, and it was a pleasure to talk sailboats with him. Highly recommended home!
6.0 / 10.0
Location, location, location
I rented White Sands for my 2 sons and their girlfriends who decided to come down to SXM while my husband and I were on the island. The location is the best part... literally steps to the ocean and beach. My kids took their morning coffee and watched the sunrise, were able to easily walk down the beach to El Zafiro and Karakters. The neighborhood was quiet and safe.
8.0 / 10.0
Clean, comfortable and cozy.
Conveniently located near the airport, beach and the Maho entertainment area. It is very clean, comfortable and nicely appointed. Front Porch is a plane watchers paradise and is in the shade most of the day. We were required to vacate our previous accommodations and Mr. Bowie, very graciously accommodated our need to transfer our possessions and most importantly the refrigerated food items at a time prior to check in. Thank You !
10.0 / 10.0
Home away from home
We loved our stay at white sands. Ash the caretaker was a fountain of help. The kitchen was equipped well.
We may have been close to airport runway but it was really fun to see and hear all the different planes. The planes did not fly all night.
Being steps from the long expanse of beach was great.
If you come to the Island take the time to visit with the people who lived through the hurricane. We heard some great and frightening stories.
8.0 / 10.0
Had a wonderful time
We really had a wonderful time at this place. It was exactly as Gary had described it in the VRBO description. A bungalow style 2 bedroom house. Location is just a couple of minutes walk from Simpson Bay with very easy access to the beach and 5-10 minutes walk from Maho beach. About 15 minutes from the airport. The area is very residential and felt very safe, we walked all over at all times including at night. We even befriended some of the neighbors.
House was clean and had no maintenance issues. The availability of the beach chairs, beach towels, and the beach umbrella was very useful as we could take them in our rental car whenever we went to a beach away from the house.
Mr. Ash, who is the person that looks after the house lives next door over the back wall of the property so you just have to shout over the wall for anything. He was kind and helpful to give us a brief introduction to the house and the area when we first arrived.
A few minor issues, the router had to be placed by a window facing a certain direction to get wi-fi. Something that was figured by Gary's friend who came to see why the internet was not working. There were a few mosquitos in the house, not a big issue but a minor annoyance. The TV had only two channels available and both were not English. Again not a huge problem, but it would have been nice to get an English channel such as CNN or a local English channel, just to get the news of the day.
One bathroom might be an issue for a large party. The property is right by the airport runway, so be ready for aircraft noise. We did not mind it, but some might.
In addition, Gary gave us one extra day without charging for it because of airline scheduling issues. His and Ash's responses to any of our questions were prompt and effective. So, will we come back? Most definitely yes.
Thank you, Gary and Ash.
8.0 / 10.0
Love Simpson Bay!
The house was just as advertised. It was a pleasure to deal with Gary, his caretaker Ash was there if needed,(he wasn't). We loved it so much we are taking the same weeks next year! Thanks for the use of your home and I can't wait for next year!
10.0 / 10.0
LOVE St.Maarten!
We stayed in Dec of 2014 and were lucky enough to find this great little spot. It was steps to what felt like our own private beach, the house was great and felt like home and had great entertainment and restaurants just a walk away! Also very happy we ended up on dutch side. We will be back to St. Maarten!
10.0 / 10.0
Fantastic Gem!
We stayed at Bowie place for 3 weeks in December 2014 and had a fabulous time. Gary, the owner was very easy to deal with when booking and was very helpful answering any questions we had. Located in a quiet residential area of Beacon Hill steps from the calm beach at the far end on Simpson Bay beach. The rental had all the amenities we could ask for and was spotless. Bbq, washer, oven, microwave and all utensils were provided. There was nothing we looked for that this place didn't have. The beds were comfortable and beach chairs, coolers, noodles, were provided as well. If you are new to St Maarten an extensive guest reference book is provided. The close proximity to the airport runway was fun watching the jets taking off and landing. The noise was not problematic as the jets stopped by 9:00pm and didn't start until 9:00am the next morning. There are ample fans to keep you cool and we did not need the A/C at all. Ash the groundskeeper was was a superb host and was more than accommodating but respected our privacy at the same time. The neighbours are very friendly and we felt right at home and very safe. Although Maho is within walking distance a car is recommended at night or if you want to venture away from Beacon Hill. We spent early mornings on the porch after a short walk to Maho or down the long beach. Our "beach days" cost next to nothing as everything was provided. A picnic lunch also was a cost savings. At night we either BBQ'd or went out to dinner. We didn't feel like hotel guests rather like someone let us use their vacation property which was perfect. Home away from home. We will definitely be back.
10.0 / 10.0
we should come back here
Whites Sands, Simpson Bay, St, Martin.
This was our second stay at this 2 bedroom cottage. When vacationing at places in the Caribbean in January over the last years, we always say "we should come back here again". The fact that we came back to White Sands says it all.
100 steps to a very uncrowded beach to see the cruise ships pass by to Phillipsburg while watching the sunrise over the hills is a daily and repeatable memory. Walking onto the sand and seeing the yacht A and other luxury ships anchored offshore while the pelicans dive 50 feet away is a thrill. Want a snack and a bucket of beer at mid-day? Stroll 10 minutes down the beach to Karacters for tapas and Caribs.
The cottage has everything you need if you prefer to do some or most of your own cooking. And there are at least 50 restaurants within 5 or 10 minutes. The new grocery store 10 minutes away is wonderful and fully stocked with fresh fruits, vegetables, meat and fish. The cottage is airy, clean, bright and well furnished.
People from all over the world seek out the experience of sitting at the Sunset Bar and Grill to watch the 747 from Paris land at the airport, coming in so low you can count the rivets on the wings. You can just walk to the Sunset, have dinner or a drink, see the cruise ships pass by to another island destination, wave goodby to the last flight out of the airport and watch the beauty of the tropical sunset.
When we left this year, again we said "we should come back here".
We will.
For two weeks.
Mike and Frank from Maine
FAQs
How much does this house cost compared to others in Simpson Bay?
The average price for a rental in Simpson Bay is $460 per night. This rental is $228 less expensive than the average.
Is parking included with this house?
Yes, parking is listed as an amenity at White Sands Retreat - Beachside at Beacon Hill. For more information, we encourage you to contact the property about where to park.
Is there a pool at this house?
We didn’t find pool listed as an amenity for this house. It may be worth double checking if a pool is important for your stay.
Is White Sands Retreat - Beachside at Beacon Hill pet friendly?
Unfortunately, this house is not pet-friendly. Try searching again and filter for "Pets Allowed"
What amenities are available at White Sands Retreat - Beachside at Beacon Hill?
We found 11 amenities for this rental. This includes air conditioner, kitchen or kitchenette, internet / wifi, parking, and laundry.
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