This was our first time staying on the French side, at Esmeralda. Overall, it is a decent resort; it consists of small villages, each containing four guest rooms. The rooms themselves are spacious and clean, and every village shares a swimming pool among its four units. The resort grounds feature a French restaurant serving very delicious food. Another nice perk is that the resort has its own private beach area, for which you can make reservations. There is a designated parking spot right next to your village, which is very convenient. Now, for the things we didn't like: First, beach towels are issued only at the reception desk, which is located quite far from the beach itself; if you need to exchange a towel, you have to walk all the way back to reception. Second, regarding the "included breakfast": in reality, it does not correspond to a "continental breakfast" as we understand it in the American sense. The breakfast offering consists of coffee, a small croissant, and jam, along with one type of cereal and a yogurt-like product that tastes more like sour cream. There is no cream cheese, no eggs—nothing of the sort; you have to pay extra for all of those items. We have stayed on the Dutch side many times, and the included continental breakfast there was a completely different experience. Third, beach reservations must be made either at the reception desk or directly at the beach itself. We made our reservation immediately upon arrival
