If you'd rather not see the island from the safety and air conditioned comfort of a car, there are basically two options. You can obviously rent a bike but St. Maarten's steep hills were made for Tour de France racers and not mere mortals like us. A scooter is by far the best option, although many believe that the dangerous roadways far outweigh any advantages. In fact, many foreign guests refer to them them simply as suicycles. Some scooters don't have enough power to tackle the hills and congested, narrow streets in the cities often make driving a nightmare. It's impossible to go anywhere beyond Philipsburg without encountering incredibly steep roads, nasty curves and of course crazy drivers. You also can't get to Guana Bay, Dawn Beach, Oyster Pond, Orleans, Butterfly Farm, Galieon, Orient, Cul de Sac, Pinel, Anse Marcel, Grand Case, Friar's Bay, Happy Bay or the Minguet Gallery without navigating some extreme tracks reminiscent of a Himalayan climbing expedition. This is also true of the route in the other direction to the Cole Bay overlook, Simpson Bay, to Maho and Sunset Beach Bar. Despite all these potential dangers, we still genuinely believe that nothing beats the experience. Bear in mind that rental scooters are also prime targets for thieves.