Out of the submitted pictures for the 2026 Event Calendar Photo Contest, a winning picture was selected this week by the St Maarten Hospitality and Trade Association (SHTA) in conjunction with main sponsor Amstel Bright. The association congratulates Richard Santaga, winning the contest with a photograph capturing the Black Pearl in Simpson Bay, overlooking Coco’s Beach Bar at Simpson Bay Resort.
Mr. Santaga’s picture will be on display on the SHTA 2026 Event Calendar. As of its first edition, the SHTA Events Calendar aims to be a platform for local artistry, both by photography, design and celebrating a local cultural icon on the calendar. The calendar and Mr. Santaga’s picture will also be featured in the 2026 edition of VISIT St. Maarten / St. Martin Magazine, the official in-room magazine of SHTA in hotels on the Dutch side and French side.
With his winning picture, Mr. Santaga wins a weekend at Seaview Beach Hotel in Philipsburg, a beachside cabana day, in the same hotel with a bucket of beer by Amstel Bright.
Daniella de Windt of main sponsor Divico, exclusive distributor of Amstel Bright on St. Maarten, supports the choice for the winning picture. “The photo combines various aspects of St. Maarten as a great destination: yachting, beach relaxation, luxury resorts, and gorgeous sunsets. Enjoying a Caribbean beach is exactly what Amstel Bright, our Caribbean-born beer stands for.”
To qualify, the photo needed to portray the island’s attractiveness through landscapes, culture symbols or art. The SHTA would like to thank all candidates who participated in the contest and shared their artwork.
In July, SHTA selected National Institute of Arts (NIA) as the Cultural Icon to be highlighted on the association’s 2026 Events Calendar. They will continue a tradition featuring St. Maarten creatives like Clara Reyes, Isidore York, King Beaubeau, Ruby Bute, and Zillah Duzon-Hazel. By adding multidisciplinary institute NIA to its tradition of highlighting cultural icons, SHTA underlines St. Maarten’s creative talent reaches beyond established art branches like painting, music, dance, photography and writing alone.
SHTA looks forward to jointly working on the calendar with Divico, their famous brands Amstel Bright, as well as Grant Thornton, Telem, Amasterdam, the St. Maarten Tourism Bureau and l’Office du Tourisme. The association calls on companies, NGOs and Government entities planning events to submit their dates for the 2026 events calendar to events@shta.com before the end of this week. As always, island residents can reserve free copies via the same e-mail address.