The SXM Lagoon Festival is collectively organised by four marinas in the Simpson Bay Lagoon.
SIMPSON BAY--The first St. Maarten Lagoon Festival, scheduled to take place from Thursday March 23 to Sunday March 26, comes about thanks to a collaboration between four marinas in the Simpson Bay Lagoon: IGY Marinas Yacht Club Isle del Sol and Simpson Bay Marina, Yacht Club Port de Plaisance, Palapa Marina and Skyport Marina. This was announced by the St. Maarten Marine Trade Association (SMMTA) on Monday.
The SMMTA is proud of the launch of the Marine Industry Trade Event that will showcase the ever-growing yachting Industry while offering a unique opportunity for the yacht crew members to celebrate the end of the season on St. Maarten, through a number of events hosted by the marinas.
Over the course of four days, the marinas host a variety of events. The majority is geared towards the yachting crew, in celebration of the end of the season, but there are a number of events that the public can enjoy.
On Thursday, March 23, Yacht Club Port de Plaisance kicks off proceedings with a Best of the Best Chef’s edition. This event invites Yacht Chefs to compete against each other, resulting in a battle between six of the best yachting chefs from around the world, currently on St. Maarten.
Prior to the chef competition, the chefs will participate in a supermarket sweep at Prime Supermarket to grab items needed for the competition. The contest for each competing chef will be to create three courses, while being challenged with having to use ingredients from mystery baskets and local produce from St. Maarten’s farmers.
The judging panel will be formed by Executive Chef Dino Jagtiani, Master Chef Alexander Adoptie, Master Chef Danitza Dormoy and Master Chef and Owner Dale Carty from Anguilla.
“This event is very much in line with our goal as we continue to collaborate with our neighbouring island Anguilla to showcase our destinations as the “Destination Hub of the Yachting Industry,” said Sharrita Mills, Director of Sales and Marketing Yacht Club Port de Plaisance. “We are excited to host this event at our Oasis Garden Venue at Yacht Club Port de Plaisance. For several years, we have hosted the Farmers Market, so to bring a chef’s competition as the next event fits in nicely with this concept.”
On Friday, March 24, Palapa Marina will be hosting events. Valeska Luckert, owner of Palapa Marina said: “Yacht bartenders are challenged to compete in a cocktail competition at Soggy Dollar Bar, the grand prize being a round trip to St. Maarten! This fun event is followed by an Electro Jungle Night, as only Soggy can put it together, turning this popular venue into a jungle themed setting, it will be absolutely amazing! Music will be by Jayson Miro, Ca Lum and DJ EM and the public is invited to party along the yachting crew to celebrate a successful season.”
On Saturday March 25 the event is hosted by Skyport Marina and Rusty Rocket with a Rock ‘N Roll Beach Party starting at 4:00pm, festivities are accompanied with a seafood fest and an all you can eat burger competition. The public is invited to stop by.
On Sunday, March 26, St. Maarten Lagoon Festival continues at Isle del Sol Marina IGY with a day full of activities, starting with a pool party. This is followed by a mini carnival with live entertainment that will showcase St. Maarten’s culture and heritage. The evening will shift back to the pool side to close out this four-day event with live music. The day’s events will also include a special lunch menu, a BBQ for the Carnival and drink specials all day long.
“This event started off as a conversation of wouldn’t it be cool to end the yachting season for our marina with a party, much like how we started the season,” shared Andy Caballero, Regional Manager Caribbean and Central America IGY Marinas. “Each conversation became bigger and bolder which brought the four marinas together to start a new tradition for the yachting industry on St. Maarten. We hope that this year’s festival will be the first of many years to come. Each year we will be able to include more events, also for the general public to get more of an insight into the marine industry. With the support of St. Maarten Tourist Bureau, we will be able to continue growing the event.”
On each of the four festival days a water taxi service is connecting the marinas to move around yacht crew to easily attend all events. This service is managed by the Maritime School of the West Indies and is scheduled to operate between 2:00pm and 10:00pm.
SMMTA is proud to see the collective efforts between the marinas and is keen to include more trade businesses to the Lagoon Festival concept in upcoming years to showcase the whole of the industry, as St. Maarten is considered to be an important hub for marine services in the Caribbean.
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