khanh Saint-Barthélemy, known by tourists as St Barts, is a French overseas territory located on the Caribbean Sea. It is part of the Lesser Antilles, neighbouring other islands such as Saint Martin/Sint Maarten, Saba, Sint Eustatius, and St Kitts. As it is a small area, there is a limited way to reach the island. Here are the ways to get to St Barts.
Starting Point
As the island mainly relies on tourism for its economy, St Barts has visitors coming from all over the world, including the US. For the purpose of this article, we will discuss how to get to St Barts from two major US cities on the east coast; New York City and Miami.
New York City – St Barts
Commercial flights from NYC heading to St Barts depart from two airports. One is John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), and another is Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR). EWR is technically located in New Jersey, but it is very close to New York City, especially the borough of Manhattan. United Airlines only flies from EWR, whereas JetBlue flies from both EWR and JFK airports. Delta Air Lines and American Airlines also operate from JFK, although flights with the latter are only available seasonally. Spirit Airlines handles flights from EWR and LaGuardia Airport (LGA).
Miami – St Barts
Most tourists bound for St Barts typically fly out of Miami International Airport (MIA). Secondary flights for holidaying visitors are provided by Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL). Only American Airlines will bring you to Sint Maarten (SXM) from MIA, while transiting at San Juan (SJU) will give you more flight options, such as American Airlines, Frontier Airlines and Spirit Airlines. If you depart from FLL, you can either take JetBlue or Spirit Airlines to SXM.
Transit to St Barts
As there are no direct routes to the island using commercial transport, the quickest ways to get to St Barts involve a one-stop journey. For your transit, you have two choices; San Juan in Puerto Rico, or the island of Saint Martin/Sint Maarten.
1. San Juan
From your starting point (New York City or Miami) you will arrive in San Juan at the Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport (SJU). From there, the only airline that will get you to St Barts is Tradewind Aviation.
2. Saint Martin/Sint Maarten
All flights from the US will land at the Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM) in Philipsburg, Sint Maarten. After you pass through immigration, you can choose to take another flight to get to St Barts (a 15-minute flight, provided by Winair and St Barth Commuter). Grand Case-Espérance Airport (SFG) can also be a backup airport to depart from, if say, you did not get onto the flight from SXM. St Barth Commuter also provides flights from this airport, as well as the international airport.
Alternatively, you can take a ferry from any of the three ports on the island to Gustavia Port in St Barts. From the French half of the island, Voyager will provide a boat ride from Marigot, which will take you around 1 hour and 15 minutes to get to St Barts. If you board from Oyster Pond, the journey will only take 45 minutes. If you decide to take a ferry from the Dutch half of the island, you will board from Bobby’s Marina, in Philipsburg. The journey, provided by Great Bay Express, also takes 45 minutes.
End Point
Based on the method of transport you take on the second leg of your journey, you will arrive at the island from two entry points. If you take the flight, you will arrive at the airport. If you take the ferry, you will get to St Barts by the ferry docks on the Gustavia Port.
1. Gustaf III Airport
As it has one of the shortest runways in the world (646 metres), only small planes with a capacity of less than 20 people are cleared to land at this airport. The pilots manning the plane must be specially trained and certified to land there. Because of the lack of adequate lighting to operate at night, the airport is only open during the day, between 8 am to 6 pm. So, it is advised that if you are transiting in Saint Martin/Sint Maarten, do not fly later than 4:30 pm, as the flying conditions will become more difficult later in the afternoon.
2. Gustavia Harbour
If you take the ferry from Saint Martin/Sint Maarten, you will arrive at St Barts through the port in Gustavia Harbour. The port office is open between 7 am to 6 pm daily, all year. From there, you have to go through Customs/Immigration checkpoint before you can make your way to your temporary accommodation.
Private Charter to St Barts
If flying commercially is too much of a hassle, you can book a private charter flight directly to St Barts. If you reside in New York City, evoJets charter flights from the less congested Teterboro Airport (TEB) in New Jersey, located a few minutes drive from Manhattan. Depending on the aircraft you choose, you can expect a fee range between US$21,700 and US$37,800 one way. In exchange, you will be given the most luxurious services and the flight duration will take no longer than 4.5 hours.
You can also fly directly from Miami International Airport (MIA) to Gustaf III Airport (SBH), using charter services such as Caribbean Flights. The journey takes around 4 hours and it costs €17,460 one way (minus taxes). The airplane used is a Pilatus PC-12 turboprop aircraft. Alternatively, you can book a flight with the company with a transit in Sint Maarten’s Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM). From MIA to SXM, you will fly on the six-seater Cessna Citation CJ 2 (a light jet). Then, for the second leg of the journey, you will fly on the Cessna Caravan, which takes 15 minutes.
Additional transit routes
Saint Martin/Sint Maarten and San Juan are not the only transit routes to St Barts. You can get to St Barts via Guadeloupe or Antigua.
Guadeloupe
From MIA, you can take a flight to Pointe-à-Pitre International Airport (PTP) using AIr France or American Eagle (a subsidiary of American Airlines). From JFK, you can take JetBlue to reach Guadeloupe. From there, St Barth Commuter and Air Antilles Express provide a 1-hour nonstop flight to St Barts.
Antigua
Flights from Antigua’s V. C. Bird International Airport (ANU) to Gustaf III Airport (SBH) is provided by Tradewind Aviation, Winair and St Barth Commuter. American Airlines provides flights from MIA and JFK airports. JetBlue serves flights from JFK only, while United Airlines flies to ANU from Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR).
Cost/time comparison
Immigration takes the least hassle when transiting through San Juan (SJU) in Puerto Rico, as it is an overseas territory of the United States of America. Of course, this comfort doesn’t come without cost. The price of the San Juan – St Barts flight starts from US$754.50 one way. Ticket costs from New York City (JFK) start from US$144 one way (JetBlue, baggage excluded), with the journey taking 3 hours and 48 minutes. From Miami (MIA), ticket prices start from US$60 one way (Frontier, baggage excluded) and the flight takes 2 hours and 42 minutes. From SJU to SBH, the flight takes just over an hour. With shorter transit time, it is the quickest commercial route from mainland US to St Barts.
The most common route is transiting via Sint Maarten (SXM) to get to St Barts. From SXM to SBH, the flight ticket is US$178 one way (Winair, 1 x 23 kg baggage), taking no longer than 15 minutes. From New York City (JFK), ticket prices start from US$345 one way (JetBlue, baggage excluded), the journey taking just under four hours. From Miami (MIA), ticket costs start from US$326 one way (American Airlines, baggage excluded), the flight taking 3 hours and 11 minutes,
You can save money by taking a ferry from Saint Martin/Sint Maarten ports to Gustavia Harbour. A one-way ticket on the Great Bay Express will cost you €70 or US$75/adult (people over 13 years old) for same day booking. Voyager’s ticket costs start from €65 one way (ECO flex class). However, this choice should be put last, only to be considered when you; 1) didn’t get a flight ticket, or 2) have a fear of flying in tight spaces (small planes). This is due to the fact that the waters are quite rough. So, after over an hour on the ferry, you might not feel too well when you arrive at the island.
With the alternative routes, it takes 4.5 hours to fly from New York City to Guadeloupe, then another hour to reach St Barts. This makes a total time of 5.5 hours, excluding transit time. Ticket prices start from US$157 one way (JetBlue, baggage excluded, JFK-PTP), plus US$209 one way (Air Antilles Express, 1 x 23kg baggage, PTP-SBH), adding up to US$366, plus extra fee for baggage on the first leg of the journey.
From Miami, it takes 3.5 hours to fly to Guadeloupe, making it a 4.5 hour journey from Miami to St Barts, excluding transit time. Ticket prices start from US$229 one way (American Eagle, baggage excluded, MIA-PTP), adding up to US$438 if you take the same flight on the PTP-SBH route, plus extra fee for baggage on the first flight.
Here is the summary of the possible transit routes to St Barts (one way).
Go to St Barts from New York
- NYC → San Juan → St Barts: US$898.50 – excl. baggage, journey time – excl. transit: 4 hours 50 minutes
- NYC → Sint Maarten (plane) → St Barts: US$523 – excl. baggage, journey time – excl. transit: 4 hours 12 minutes
- NYC → Sint Maarten (ferry) → St Barts: US$420 – excl. baggage, journey time – excl. transit: 4 hours 43 minutes
- NYC → Saint Martin → St Barts: US$410 – excl. baggage, journey time – excl. transit: 5 hours 13 minutes
- NYC → Guadeloupe → St Barts: US$366 – excl. baggage, journey time – excl. transit: 5 hours 30 minutes
Go to St Barts from Miami
- Miami → San Juan → St Barts: US$814.50 – excl. baggage, journey time – excl. transit: 3 hours 44 minutes
- Miami → Sint Maarten (plane)→ St Barts: US$504 – excl. baggage, journey time – excl. transit: 3 hours 26 minutes
- Miami → Sint Maarten (ferry) → St Barts: US$401 – excl. baggage, journey time – excl. transit: 3 hours 56 minutes
- Miami → Saint Martin → St Barts: US$391 – excl. baggage, journey time – excl. transit: 4 hours 26 minutes
- Miami → Guadeloupe → St Barts: US$438 – excl. baggage, journey time – excl. transit: 4 hours 30 minutes
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