How to get to St. Barts
No long-haul flights land in St. Barts. Fly to a nearby gateway, usually St. Maarten (SXM) or San Juan (SJU), then take a small plane or, from St. Maarten, the ferry to Gustavia.
St. Maarten is the main route: 59% of the island’s air passengers in 2025 flew in or out through it. The ferry from St. Maarten takes about 45 minutes, and the airport on St. Barts closes 15 minutes after sunset.
Ways to reach St. Barts, by gateway
| Gateway | Share of St. Barts air passengers, 2025 | Last leg | Airlines and ferries |
|---|---|---|---|
| St. Maarten (SXM), Princess Juliana | 58.8% | Small plane, or ferry to Gustavia | Winair, St Barth Commuter; Great Bay Express and Voyager ferries |
| San Juan, Puerto Rico (SJU) | 17.7% | Small plane | Tradewind Aviation; St Barth Commuter charters |
| Guadeloupe (PTP), Pôle Caraïbe | 12.8% | Small plane | St Barth Commuter, with connections sold by Air Caraïbes |
| Grand Case, St. Martin (SFG) | 6.4% | Small plane | St Barth Commuter and St Barth Executive, with connections sold by Air Caraïbes |
| Anguilla (AXA) | 2.6% | Small plane | Trans Anguilla Airways |
| Antigua (ANU) | 1.2% | Small plane | Tradewind Aviation |
Passenger shares: Rémy de Haenen Airport data in the St. Barts tourism observatory’s 2024-2025 report. Airlines: St. Barts tourism board and the airlines’ own sites. Schedules change by season.
How to get to St. Barts, step by step
1. Fly to St. Maarten or San Juan
Both have nonstop flights from several US cities. Check each airline for the days it flies from your airport.
2. Book the last leg
Small planes fly to St. Barts from each gateway. If the last leg is on a separate ticket, leave plenty of time between the two flights.
3. Fill in the Sint Maarten form if you connect there
Anyone who enters Sint Maarten, including passengers only in transit to St. Barts, has to fill in the official entry form at entry.sx. Each traveler needs one. Winair says the form is free and asks travelers to complete it within the 7 days before arrival. St. Barts has no form of its own.
4. Land before sunset
The St. Barts airport opens at 7 am and closes 15 minutes after sunset, between about 6 and 7 pm depending on the season. If your long-haul flight lands late, the last plane may already have left.
5. Pick up the car
More than ten rental companies have offices at the airport, and some deliver to villas. Book ahead in high season. Taxis wait at the airport and at the ferry dock in Gustavia.
Flights from St. Maarten to St. Barts
Winair and St Barth Commuter fly the short hop from Princess Juliana. Winair carried 44% of the island’s air passengers in 2025, Tradewind Aviation 18% and St Barth Commuter 16%.
Winair’s site showed one-way fares from St. Maarten from $204 on November 4, 2026.
Check the bag rules before you pack. Winair takes checked bags of up to 50 lb (23 kg) each, with fees that depend on the fare. St Barth Commuter includes 50 lb (23 kg) of checked bags per passenger, charges for extra weight up to 70 lb (32 kg) and refuses anything heavier. Its Cessna Grand Caravans seat nine. A group of 10 or more will be split across planes, so book the seats together early, charter a plane for the group, or cross together on the ferry.
The ferry from St. Maarten to St. Barts
Two main companies sail from St. Maarten to the port of Gustavia: Great Bay Express and Voyager, which carried most of the ferry passengers in 2025. Smaller operators run the same crossing. The tourism board gives the crossing as about 45 minutes. A representative of the ferry company meets passengers at Princess Juliana Airport and takes them to the marina.
Great Bay Express leaves from Bobby’s Marina in Philipsburg, on the Dutch side.
More people use the ferry than the airport. The ferry carried about 253,000 passengers in 2025, against 232,269 at the airport.
St. Barts airport (SBH)
The airport has been called Rémy de Haenen since 2015, but many maps and booking sites still use its old name, Gustaf III. Its code is SBH.
| Detail | St. Barts airport |
|---|---|
| Runway | About 2,100 ft (650 m) long and 60 ft (18 m) wide |
| Aircraft | Small planes only |
| Hours | From 7 am to 15 minutes after sunset |
| Passengers in 2025 | 232,269, the airport’s best year |
| Busiest month | March 2025, with 29,037 passengers |
| In the terminal | A snack bar, a restaurant and more than ten car rental offices |
The runway is short and planes come in steeply over a hill.
Private jets and charter flights
Jets can’t land in St. Barts: the tourism board says the runway is reserved for small aircraft. Private jets land at a bigger airport nearby, such as St. Maarten or San Juan, and passengers finish on a small plane or a helicopter.
Tradewind Aviation runs private charters from San Juan and the US Virgin Islands, and St Barth Commuter flies charters from Puerto Rico. The tourism board also lists St Barth Executive and West Indies Helicopters among the island’s operators.
Private boat transfers
The tourism board lists several companies that run private boat transfers to Gustavia from St. Martin and Sint Maarten.
Passports and entry
You need a passport whichever way you arrive. US and Canadian citizens need one valid for more than six months, plus a return or onward ticket, and can stay up to 90 days without a visa. St. Barts is outside the Schengen area.
Full entry rules are on the St. Barts destination page. For where to base yourself once you land, see where to stay in St. Barts, and for timing, the best time to visit.
