From the Ship
Cruise Port to Mullet Bay
If what you want is a swim rather than a photograph, this is the one.
Why this one
Because most people arrive at this port wanting a beach, and end up at Maho because it is famous.
Maho is famous for aircraft. As a beach it is mediocre — the shore break is steep, the sand shelves away sharply, and it is crowded because everyone else read the same article.
Mullet Bay is ten minutes further west and is the beach people mean when they say they want a beach. Long, sandy, gentler water, with sea grape trees giving actual shade at the back.
Getting there
Twenty-five to thirty minutes from the terminal, past Simpson Bay and on towards Cupecoy. The Simpson Bay bridge is on the route, so allow for it — we plan around the published openings.
What is there
Loungers and umbrellas for hire, a few beach bars, and food. Enough infrastructure to spend an afternoon comfortably and not so much that it feels like a resort.
Toilets are limited compared with Orient Bay, and it is worth knowing that before you commit to a long day with children.
The shade at the back of the beach is genuinely useful. On the sand itself there is none.
The water
Usually calm and good for swimming, which is the whole reason to come.
When there is swell running the shore break can pick up and it gets rougher. That is occasional rather than typical, and it is exactly the kind of thing worth asking about on the morning rather than discovering after a half-hour drive. Ask us — we will know.
Combining it with Maho
This is the best beach day from the port and the one we suggest most often.
Mullet Bay in the morning for the swim, when it is quiet and the light is good. Then ten minutes east to Maho in the early afternoon for the arrivals bank, roughly half past twelve to half past three.
You get the swim and the aircraft, and you avoid spending five hours on a beach that is mostly about watching things land.
Back on board
Guaranteed, planned backwards from your all-aboard with the bridge accounted for.
What it costs
The official tariff from the cruise port to Mullet Bay is $25 for one or two passengers, then $10 per person for three to five and $9 each above that.
A family of five pays $50 each way, $100 for the round trip — and that does not include a driver waiting while you swim, which on a beach day is the part that actually matters. See the full rates.
Questions people actually ask
How far is Mullet Bay from the cruise port?
About 25 to 30 minutes, ten minutes past Simpson Bay on the western end of the Dutch side. The bridge can add time.
Is Mullet Bay better than Maho?
For swimming, considerably. Maho is about the aircraft — the shore break there is steep and the sand drops away fast. Mullet Bay has proper sand, gentler water and shade at the edges. Different beaches for different days.
Are there facilities?
Loungers and umbrellas for hire, beach bars, and food. Less developed than Orient Bay and considerably more pleasant than Maho for actually spending an afternoon.
Can it get rough?
Yes, occasionally, when there is swell — the shore break can pick up. It is usually calm and it is worth asking on the morning rather than assuming.
Also worth reading
Checked and updated 4 September 2026.