SETTING down my champagne glass, I step off the private boat into the warm turquoise waters.

As I reach the golden sand, a bronzed Johnny Depp lookalike escorts me to a table in the shade of a palm tree where my lunch of freshly caught lobster is ready and waiting.

No, this isn't a dream. I'm in the Caribbean paradise of St Martin, and I'm finding out how the other half live.

The boat belongs to La Samanna, St Martin's most exclusive hotel and my home for the week.

The hotel boasts a celebrity guest list which would make Elton John green with envy, from Jackie Onassis to a bevy of Hollywood superstars.

Except it doesn't. Boast, that is. La Samanna is far too tasteful for that.

La Samanna likes to describe itself as "upscale". That's posh, to you and me. But one of the wonderful things about the place is that, whoever you are, you get the A-list treatment from the moment you arrive. La Samanna makes you feel like a star.

The staff: guest ratio is 2:1 and your every whim will be catered for.

The rooms and suites are comfortable and stylishly furnished, equipped with a TV, video and CD player.

There is only one restaurant, but what a restaurant. Here, guests enjoy a buffet breakfast overlooking the ocean.

At night it features a delicious French menu - cooked by a French chef, using fresh ingredients flown in from Paris.

That's because this side of St Martin is part of the French Caribbean. The other side, known as Sint Maarten, is Dutch, and an invisible line divides the two.

At 37 square miles, it is a small place for two such different cultures to rub along, but they co-exist in perfect harmony.

However, they are very different. While the Dutch side is all casinos, neon signs and fast food joints, the French side has fine dining and designer boutiques.

The town of Grand Case is known as "the gourmet capital of the Caribbean", and rightly so, with seafood the speciality.

The capital, Marigot, has tree-lined boulevards lined with upmarket stores, from Hermes to Ralph Lauren.

If you fancy a change of scenery, take a drive to Orient Beach, a beautiful expanse of sand on the eastern side of the island. This being St Martin, the little beachfront hut where we stopped off for a lunchtime snack had caviar on the menu.

But the highlight of a stay at La Samanna is a trip on its private 37ft boat to the tiny island of Pinel.

You can walk around the island in little more than 10 minutes and it only has one restaurant, a ramshackle palm-fringed shack on the sand. It may be simple, but its food rivals any Michelin-starred establishment. We feasted on lobster followed by rum-soaked bananas and a chocolate cake.

Back at La Samanna, I rounded off my exhausting day at the spa. Massage tables are in the open air next to a tinkling waterfall.

The more energetic can spend time playing tennis, enjoying the complimentary watersports or visiting the state-of-the-art gym.

La Samanna is popular with honeymooners, and there can be few more perfect places to start married life. Many guests are so taken by the romance of the place that they get married here - a quick ceremony on the Dutch side (for legal reasons) followed by a lavish reception at the hotel.

With a room service menu that features bottles of Cristal for £500-plus, La Samanna doesn't come cheap. Let's face it, La Samanna doesn't even come moderately priced.

But despite the cost, the hotel is delightfully free of snobbery. Chanel shades and Versace swimwear may abound, but nobody looked down on me in my Top Shop bikini. The wine cellar may stock over 12,000 bottles, but the staff will cheerfully serve you a beer to go with your dinner.

And if the gourmet menu doesn't always take your fancy, the hotel does a great burger. Sometimes we all need a bit of luxury.

Yes, you could have five foreign holidays for the price of this one. But start saving up. Some things are worth the money.

Anita Singh travelled with Caribtours. A five-night stay at La Samanna with Caribtours (020 7751 0660 and www.caribtours.co.uk) starts at £1,290 per person (two sharing).

Price includes five nights' B&B, return scheduled BA flights, use of executive lounge and private car transfers. Caribtours also provides free connecting regional flights for clients flying with BA.

More information on La Samanna is available from your local ABTA travel agent