Greenland spent decades funnelling every visitor through an old American airbase, and that has just ended.

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Greenland spent decades funnelling every visitor through an old American airbase, and that has just ended. Every international arrival used to land at a former military strip far inland, then transfer to a small propeller aircraft. Now a runway built for jets serves the capital directly from Copenhagen, Reykjavik and Newark, a second airport has opened in the south, and a third is due at the icefjord town. With all three running, most of the country sits within about ninety minutes of one connection. That rebuild is the reason to look now. Check whether the northern airport is operating before planning around it, since the opening has moved more than once, and expect prices that reflect a place where almost everything is imported. Beds are few and fill fast in the short summer. Compare flights and hotels for Greenland at https://destination.chat and build in spare days, because weather cancels flights here as routine rather than misfortune. The icefjord is the headline. A glacier that ...
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Two countries share this island, and nothing marks the border but a stone.

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Two countries share this island, and nothing marks the border but a stone. The southern half is Sint Maarten, Dutch and busy; the northern half is Saint-Martin, French and slower; and the line between them has been crossed freely for centuries, with no checkpoint, no queue and only a roadside monument to say you have arrived. The result is the smallest inhabited landmass in the world divided between two nations, and a holiday where lunch can change country halfway through.

The Dutch side holds the international airport, one of the busiest gateways in the eastern Caribbean and a hub for onward flights and ferries to Anguilla, Saint Barthélemy and Saba. Rooms fill through the dry winter months and around the sailing regattas. Compare flights and hotels for Sint Maarten at https://destination.chat and choose your half deliberately, because the two sides sell genuinely different holidays on the same small island.

The contrast is the attraction. Philipsburg lines its boardwalk with duty-free shops and cruise crowds, Simpson Bay keeps the bars and the nightlife, and Maho Beach sits directly beneath the approach path, where aircraft pass low over the sand in the island's most photographed spectacle. North of the line, Marigot has a French market and hilltop fort, Grand Case is the island's kitchen with its beach shacks and restaurants, and Orient Bay stretches long and open to the Atlantic wind.

Where you sleep decides the accent. In Simpson Bay, resort hotels and marina apartments sit near the lagoon and the airport. In Philipsburg, mid-range town hotels stand a step from Great Bay's boardwalk. Over the border in Grand Case, small French guesthouses line the beach road above the restaurant strip, while at Orient Bay, beachfront bungalows and villas gather near the bay's long sweep, popular with families and windsurfers.

A hire car is genuinely useful here, and this time driving is on the right. Distances are short, the border crossing needs no paperwork, and one road ties the whole island together, though traffic around the lagoon crawls at the wrong hours. Boats matter just as much: day sails, ferries to the neighbouring islands and snorkelling trips make the water part of the plan. You can check car rental and day trip prices at https://destination.chat and see both halves properly.

Personally, I would sleep on the French side and play on the Dutch one. Grand Case gives you the better dinners and the quieter evenings, Simpson Bay and Philipsburg are a short drive away when you want noise, casinos or shopping, and the freedom to cross an international border for an ice cream never quite stops being funny.

Q: Do I need a passport to cross between the Dutch and French sides?
A: No. The internal border is open, with no checkpoint, though your passport matters at the airport and for onward travel to other islands.

Q: Which side is better, Sint Maarten or Saint-Martin?
A: The Dutch side brings nightlife, casinos, shopping and the airport, while the French side offers quieter beaches and the island's best dining. Many visitors mix both.

Q: When is the best time to visit?
A: The dry winter and spring months are the most reliable and the priciest. Late summer and autumn are cheaper and quieter but fall inside the Atlantic hurricane season.

Q: Is Maho Beach really that close to the runway?
A: Yes, and it is the island's signature sight. Aircraft pass just above the sand on approach, though standing behind a departing jet is dangerous and firmly discouraged.

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