I can't comment on the camping experience per se, but based on my experiences at the two beaches:

Cinammon is bigger. More sand between the trees and the water, and longer.

Maho is calmer. Cinammon gets pretty windy, but Maho is very much sheltered by Francis Point, and can be very calm when Cinammon is quite rough. This might be a big plus for Maho if you have small kids or just don't like wind and waves.

If snorkeling interests you, I have had my very best snorkeling experiences around Cinammon Cay, in two differnt years. The one time I snorkeled at Maho, it was disappointing, but I'm sure I wasn't in the best spot for it.

Both beaches are gorgeous. Cinammon happens to be my favorite, though I haven't seen them all.

I haven't stay at either but visited both. I believe Maho has a shuttle bus that runs between the campground and town, which is a big plus if you aren't going to rent a car.

I just came back from Cinnamon Bay. I agree that if you are not renting a car, transportation can get pricey. I can't remember exactly, but it's roughly $7 one way to get to town. It adds up if you want to go into town and eat/hang out every night. Cinnamon Bay does have a restaurant, but the food is pricey for what you get and it's average at best. Not much of a selection. They do have a small store that has food you can buy if you're planning on cooking out. We did buy some steaks there that were reasonable and tasty. They had pork chops and burgers as well. Some things are high and some aren't bad. For instance, a can of Pringles was about $3. Single beers were $2.50. There aren't any other restaurants/bars, etc. within walking distance. You can get great food in Cruz Bay and good happy hours, but you need to take a taxi. We brought our own tent, so I can't comment on their tents. They have group camps which I would stay away from if possible. They group a bunch of tents together in a row/circle. Not much privacy even though they are closer to the beach. The site we had was up a hill in the forest. It was very scenic, but shady and you could hear the ocean at night which was nice. It was only a 2 minute walk to the beach. The donkeys don't seem to hang around the more remote areas either. I didn't participate in any of their activities, but they did have a list posted by the office. They did offer a guided hike for about $12 that alot of people seemed to enjoy. The beach at Cinnamon Bay is beautiful and you can walk down a ways (down the beach and over some rocks) to Little Cinnamon Bay which is a nice little area that is more private. The showers there are outside in the open and the water can be a little chilly. I would recommend what I did on another island - use an empty gallon of drinking water and use water from the bathrooms to fill it up, leave it in the sun all day and that will be your warm shower. One last thing. Don't leave any unprotected food in your tent. A mongoose ate a hole through the side of our tent to get at a styrofoam container of pizza. I hear the donkeys will come a visiting for your food as well. Enjoy.

Hello,

My wife and I have stayed at maho 2 times now and will be going back to the camp the first week in August. The tents are actually screened in platforms. each tent has its own camping stove and food locker and all the pans and dishes you will need. they provide you with a box fan for cooling. The camp has its own restaurant serving breakfast and dinners daily. The camp also has a store where you can purchase food and snacks. They also have glass blowing demonstrations and pottery classes. If you like real camping this is for you. if you don't like bugs you may want to consider something else. Big maho bay is a short hike down the hill and you can swim between Little Maho and Francis bay quite easily. Fretts taxi does run between the camp and Cruz bay. we Like to be a little more independent so we now rent a car for the week while we are on Island. We love the place! If you ave any other questions send me an e-mail.