Our Trip to Saba: Per Aspera Ad Astra, Plus Yoda

Per aspera ad astra: Latin phrase that means “to the stars through difficulty.”

A few days ago, my husband and I came back from a short trip to Saba island in the Caribbean. I’ve already written a post on why I chose this place, as well as how I used the miles to book our flights to/from St. Maarten. I’ve read about Saba in a travel magazine two decades ago, and couldn’t get it out of my head. But something always came up.

In fact, this trip almost didn’t happen. A few days before we were supposed to leave, a close relative got a call from the doctor to come in ASAP and discuss the results of his medical tests. We had no idea what to expect, so I didn’t even pack until we heard back from him. Fortunately, it wasn’t as bad as he feared. There are issues that will need to be taken care of, but at least he won’t need surgery right away.

But this whole debacle reminded me how important it is to protect your trip “investments” because you never know what may come up at the last minute. In my case, the AA mileage tickets were refundable, and I would only lose $11 in taxes for Avios booking. My hotel in Saba was non-refundable at this point, but I reserved it via Hyatt credit card, which has a decent travel insurance built-in. I chose not to purchase a standalone travel policy, and only got medical insurance, which cost me $25 for two people. Bottom line: think of the worst case scenario and plan accordingly.

Medical crisis averted, but my troubles weren’t over yet. I used points to send my MIL and kids to Michigan, in order to visit my SIL who recently got married. The night before the flight, my 12-year-old son came to me and asked if he could go with us instead. He was in distress, and said that he was afraid of flying without me or my husband by his side. He was practically begging us to take him.

As you can imagine, that made me feel like a dog. I even checked award availability from Miami to St. Maarten, but the flight was completely sold out. In the end, we decided to go with the original plan. My SIL was excited to see both kids, and we promised my son we would not send him on a plane again without us being there. Needless to say, I didn’t sleep very well that night, and my excitement was dampened.

Fortunately, my MIL told me that once he got on a plane, he was perfectly happy, so that made me feel much better. My SIL ended up taking them to Niagara Falls and other cool spots, and my son later told me that we missed out by not going to Michigan. I prefer it that way.

Off to Miami we drove, for the overnight stop before our flight to St. Maarten the following morning.

Miami Beach without the cockroaches

There is a state of Florida, and then there is Miami. We co-exist peacefully, but may as well live on different planets. At a gas station the attendant for some reason kept calling my husband “papi.” There was an old mattress on the side of a major road (of course). And the cherry on top: we accidentally drove over a large glass object. As pre-slap Will Smith would say in his 90s hit song: “Welcome to Miami, bienvenidos a Miami!” Oh yes, fellow kids, back in the olden days Will Smith was actually a cool guy.

Even though my husband and I  have been to Miami a few times since we got married, we never actually stayed at a Miami beach hotel. In fact, the last time I was here was back when I was a 16-year old exchange student. I remember it like it was yesterday. My family was poor, and my parents couldn’t even afford to buy me a decent bathing suit for the trip. So, my mom borrowed one from a friend. The problem? It was too small for my frame. Fortunately, in Miami beach I fit right in! But what I remember most is cockroaches running around our humble (to put it mildly) hotel room.

So, here I was, back after almost three decades. I decided to use my IHG certificate at Kimpton Surfcomber hotel. I’ll do a separate review at some point, but the bottom line is for $49 (IHG credit card annual fee) I would be a jerk to complain. Yes, there was a parking fee+resort fee, but still. A beach is a beach, just don’t expect luxury at this hotel. No cockroaches, so that’s a plus. When we left for the airport the next morning, my husband said Miami beach was not as trashy as he expected. I think he figured he would see a bunch of drunk men in speedos, or something along those lines.

Originally, we planned to drive home after our evening flight from St. Maarten, but I changed my mind at the last minute. I ended up using my Hyatt credit card renewal cert at Hyatt Regency Coral Gables

I do plan to have a separate review, but the short version is that it’s a very nice hotel if you need a layover near Miami airport and don’t care about proximity to the beach. Unique architecture, overall luxury vibe, and a real steal for 9k Hyatt points per night in low season.

Facing my fears in Saba

One of the reasons I put off a trip to Saba is the scary 10-minute flight there from St. Maarten. Saba has the shortest commercial runway in the world, with cliffs on one side and the ocean on the other. There is zero room for error, and pilots who fly this route are some of the best in the world.

But I had to overcome my fear and put on my big gal underpants. You see, my late FIL used to own a Cessna plane, and my husband was his co-pilot. So, flying to Saba  was a bucket-list experience for him.

The plane was full of local residents, who happily let us sit upfront, where  my husband  had  a  full  view  of  the cockpit.

When we approached Saba, the plane slowed down in order to do a controlled stall maneuver. It was terrifying! I looked at my husband, and he had a huge grin on his face.

But we survived to tell the tale. Here is a two-minute video my husband took:

If you are into aviation, this is something I highly recommend doing at least once.

Ironically, I booked a Makana ferry back to St. Maarten, thinking it would be less scary. Wrong! We went super fast, and the boat kept rocking like crazy, while violently slamming into the water every few seconds. I couldn’t wait for our 90-minute ride to be over, and almost threw up at one point. When we were driving  to the port, some guy asked me if we ever went on this ferry before. Umm, no, why? He smiled and said one word: “Prayers.”

It was the most bizarre ferry ride of my life. They were playing “Top Gun: Maverick” movie with Korean subtitles. Oh, and the best part were the seats that they got from an old Delta plane.

But at least there was A/C, and the views from the boat were glorious.

Another brave thing I did was sign up for a snorkeling tour. Most people go to Saba to dive, but the local company will take snorkelers along as well, when there is room. My husband came too, but he decided to stay on the boat. I was the only person snorkeling that day, and had to overcome my fear of being in the open water with the depth of about 70 meters. I’m so glad I did, because it was one of the most amazing experiences of my life. Colorful coral reefs, all kinds of exotic fish and at one point, a giant turtle swam only a few feet away. Sadly, I didn’t have a water camera with me. I didn’t record any of it, but I lived it. It. Was. Awesome.

Even though I’m relatively close to the shore, it’s extremely deep

When looking at lodging, I saw that Juliana’s hotel had a cottage with an outdoor shower. I’m not normally an outdoorsy type, but decided it’s a good chance for us to be close to nature. Well.

While the shower was pretty cool, I didn’t realize that the toilet was outdoors as well. My bad for making assumptions and not doing more research.

Basically a fancy outhouse

One time I needed to use the restroom early in the morning, and there was a giant crab climbing the rocks. He looked at me, I looked at him, and we both went about our business. It was…interesting.

I’ll go into more details on this resort in a separate post, but needless to say, if you are squirmish about bugs, Saba is probably not for you. Oh, and apparently there are snakes, something I was not aware of at the time (thank goodness). We killed three giant cockroaches in our apartment. It’s a lush tropical island, enough said.

Keep in mind, most hotels and restaurants on the island don’t have A/C.  But how can you complain when you have that view from the veranda?

Our cottage did have A/C in the bedroom, so sleeping wasn’t an issue. Plus, it was relatively pleasant outside during mornings and evenings due to winds and higher altitude. Still, it is an island in the Caribbean, so if you don’t like the heat, it won’t be for you. Did I mention that there are no beaches  and you often have to walk uphill?

A slice of Star Wars in the Carribean

Since we had a few hours to kill before our flight from St. Maarten to Miami, I looked for things to do in Phillipsburg. I was surprised to discover that there is a museum run by Nick Maley, an Emmy-nominated artist who worked on many famous movies, including Star Wars.  He is also referred to as The Yoda Guy, for his contribution in developing that particular character. It’s $15 per person to get in.

The problem is that the museum operates on island time, and is often closed when the cruise ships aren’t in town, especially during low season. That was the case the day we went there. The whole town was seemingly deserted when we got off the ferry.

Fortunately (or so I thought), I emailed Mr. Maley a few days prior and asked if he would be willing to open up his museum for us. He assured me he would, and we set a time. Well, we got there and the museum was closed. He did tell me to call him if he isn’t there, which I did. No response. I texted him. Again, nothing. We waited by the museum in the heat for 30 minutes, but nobody showed up. So, we walked a bit, but since everything was closed, we got a taxi and decided to go to the airport early. We drove by the museum, and lo and behold, it was finally open.

So, I asked the taxi driver if she would be willing to hold our bags and come back in 30 minutes, and she said no problem. Obviously, I tipped her generously. BTW, her name is Mathilda and her phone number is 1-721-580-7499 (she responds to texts) in case you need transportation or tours on St. Maarten. A super nice lady, and her van has A/C.

Anyway, we went in and introduced ourselves. The guy didn’t really apologize for being late, but he was friendly enough. Again, island time. My husband is a big fan of Star Wars franchise, so he enjoyed the exhibit immensely. There was a copy of the first draft of Star Wars movie:

The inner core of the original mold of Yoda’s skin:

There were many photos of behind-the-scenes of Star Wars movies and all kinds of other cool stuff. We ended up buying an autographed Star Wars poster from him for $60 for our son. He said that’s what he charges at conventions. Definitely recommended if you have a few hours to kill in St. Maarten.

Final thoughts

As mentioned earlier, I plan to do a separate post on the island, with a more detailed review of our accommodations and activities. But suffice it to say, Saba is now our favorite island in the Caribbean. It’s unlike any other place we’ve been to. A cross between Kauai and Santorini, maybe?

Gorgeous scenery, interesting Dutch architecture and super friendly people. And don’t forget that crazy plane flight. This island packs a serious exotic punch, considering how close it is to the US. It won’t be for everyone, but it’s definitely on our “repeat” list. I feel lucky to have visited it.

It’s not the easiest island to get to, and your hotel points won’t be of any use here. But you can burn miles on flights to St. Maarten and use certificates for airport stays in order to offset the costs. We still spent a good bit of money, but it’s an anniversary trip we will never forget.