Just did a 6 night stay and here are my observations in hopes it helps others:
- booked via points so 5th night was free and used Aspire free night cert for the 6th
- as noted in the sub, Diamonds get upgraded to ocean view (booked garden view) and the views are amaaazing!
- we went in mid December and apparently the winds are stronger during this time before Christmas so we were not able to use the beach much, they have flags at the beach and red = extreme caution with the strong currents ie no swimming. only 1 of the days we were there the flag was yellow
- the hotel staff are some of the nicest and hardest working staff i've ever met during my travels, some do breakfast service and break mid-day and come back and finish off with dinner service. wear multiple hats if necessary, bartenders becoming servers, servers going to run the kids club, etc. We tipped very generously.
- should have listened to this sub and rented from Island Car Rentals, we went with Andy's and got an older model Toyota and in the middle of our trip had car issues and couldn't use the car for a day. They did come out to service it and fix the issues but it's an annoyance no one wants to deal with during their vacation. So get a newer model car where possible
- go to Pit Stop by Ben, probably one of the most memorable meals and make a reservation, 5 min drive from resort
- higher chairs - not all restaurants outside of the resort have high chairs and when they do they are a bit sketchy. luckily we had a portable high chair we brought and all the restaurants were amazed
- arranged the boat shuttle through the hotel and it was a seamless transfer, one thing to note is that smaller boat will be rockier at sea but not something you can control - just something to keep in mind in case you get motion sickness easier pack some Gravol. Fun Times has both small and larger boats but again can't control which you get.
- Private boat transfer didn't seem worth it as noted it be rockier at sea with a smaller boat and upon arrival back at SXM didn't get any VIP treatment - they still had to wait in line at immigration