We stayed at Captain Olivers for a week in January 2008. The hotel is VERY nice. The rooms are large and we got the ocean view superior room to guarantee a king size bed. The bed is a real king (single mattress). The view is wonderful and we go the Continental Plan to get breakfast included, which was very good (scrambled eggs, bacon/sausage, pastries, fruit, juice, pancakes).

The single major problem was the VERY loud music coming from the restaurant late every night. Closing windows and doors in the room did not help. Saturday night was extremely bad, with a mediocre band performing at a VERY loud level until well after midnight. It was so loud that it drowned out the TV in our room. I asked at the front desk when the music would go off, and the staff only replied "in a while", and then they asked the restaurant to turn down the bass. Shortly after that, the band TURNED UP the volume even higher. So I wore -28decibel earplugs every night (these are made for working around jet engines) and that reduced the sound a little.

Parking is cramped but the hotel staff would come out and help people move cars around to try and get into a space. We never found the lot full, although there are only about 20 spaces.

The sliding glass doors are very wide and offer a great view of the ocean. It would be better if the door had screens to keep the mosquitoes out, so that we would not have to run the air conditioner all the time.

With the loud music problem, I can't recommend staying here.

Captain Oliver's delivers what it promises: a nice getaway with a laid back atmosphere.

If you are expecting a vibrant nightlife and multiple options dining out, you might want to consider a more lively area. Frankly I'm surprised that some reviewers would rate the food at CO's the best on the island. In our opinion, the fare on offer during lunch/dinner was average at best. There's a huge discrepancy between price and quality. For example, the mahi-mahi / swordfish dinner options were way overcooked and bland. The breakfeast buffet, on the other hand, was great, as many others here have already noted. Pancakes, sausages, fruits, etc. What a way to start your day, with the resident toucan "singing" in the background!

There's a handful of other restaurants nearby, e.g. Le Planteur on top of the hill (which is also a bit pricey regarding overall quality). On the other side of the bay close to Dawn Beach there are cheaper beach hut options, which were ok. All in all the food in the area was probably the single semi-disappointment of our stay.

And now on to the better stuff. The view from our ocean view room was excellent. We really enjoyed watching the pelicans do their daily fishing routines right under our eyes. But be aware: this is not your traditional beach view with white sands; it's a dock area with sailing boats and other marine vehicles. Along with the ocean view you also get a view of the hotel extension being built on the opposite side of the bay.

The room itself was very clean and the cleaning up was done on a daily basis (fresh towels, linens, etc.). Somehow they were unable to fill up our minibar, though, and I don't mean beers and wines, but just plain bottled water. The orange juice in the minibar seemed to have been in there for years, and we were afraid to open it due to the greenish-brown residue packed at the bottom.

The room was quite spacious as well with a lovely terrace to sit and relax. Hot water was a bit iffy; it ran out quite unexpectedly at times.

The pool area is brilliant, with great views over the bay and the ocean. The glass wall on one side of the pool is an amusing extra touch. Also, the ubiquitous breeze makes it a good place for sunbathing. We also enjoyed the mini-zoo with the lizards and birds, although there is always something heartbreaking about caged up birds. Keep them company, as they are there anyway.

Getting around requires you to either rent a car or a taxi. We did trips to Philipsburg, Marigot and Orient Beach by taxi, which was effortless and fairly priced. Highly recommended is a day trip by ferry to St. Barth, which leaves straight from CO's own dock area. St Barth is an odd mixture of beautiful nature and luxurious yachts and boutiques.

The friendliness and efficiency of the staff seemed to depend on the person. Some were extremely helpful, others a bit more aloof. All in all we had no problems whatsoever getting the service we needed. But don't come expecting high class services; this place is run a bit more with a family establishment mentality than a hotel chain mentality.

All in all our stay at CO's exceeded our expectations, and we can recommend it highly to anyone who is not looking for five-star pampering, but a unique, relaxed atmosphere.

We stayed at Captain Oliver's for only three nights. What a worderful experience. The only challenge we experienced was to find it at night after our flight was delayed and we rented a car at the airport. The map they handed us was not showing too many details. If you go there the first time, you need to get on French side of Oyster bay. Turn LEFT just as you get down the steep hill, don't go in direction to Oyster Bay Resort. Accomodation was better than we hoped for. Our cottage had magnificant ocean view, clean bathroom and kitchen. Our 12y old was not too happy with her (added) bed the first night, but slept well after. We were bothered by mosquitoes inside our cottage the first night. Breakfast was great, fruits, juices, pastry, yogurt and excellent coffee. There is a little beach right in the resort and nice pool on the deck. We opted for one minute boat ride to Dawn Beach every day. You can also reach Orient Beach by the car in short time. We are glad we took a little hike up the hill above resort. What a view! We didn't eat dinner at Captain's, we opted for little restaurant on Dawn Beach - Busby's. Very good food and friendly staff too. This was our first visit to this island and we are already making plans for our next visit. Great experience!

From Bradenton, FL USA.
We have been to Captain Oliver's twice and would love to come back again! The rooms were always clean. The view from the waterfront bungalow, the pool and iguna bar is awesome! Always a wonderful breeze. Captain Olivers has an awesome staff. The front desk, maid, restaurant and bar and activity desk. They took very good care of us. The food at Captain Olivers is the best in St. Martin. The breakfast buffet is also really nice. Our teenage son does not like to eat breakfast. He ate breakfast every morning at the buffet and looked forward to it every a.m. The food at the dinghy dock is very good and less expensive when you want to take a break from your wallet. The beach water taxi is nice and convenient. It will take you to Dawn Beach for snorkeling. We rented a boat with a captain from the marina that took us to St. Bart's for the day. We highly recommend doing that. The day we went over to St. Bart's the water was very rough and the captain handled it very well. The captain of the boat knew what he was doing! The on-site beauty salon was too cool!. We had massages and pedicures and both were the best! We can't wait to go back!!!!!