Saint Lucia
Travel Guide > Caribbean > Saint Lucia
In this Article
- Introduction
- Brief History
- Geography
- Regions
- Cities
- Sights and Activities
- Events and Festivals
- Weather
- Getting There
- Getting Around
- Red Tape
- Money
- Work
- Study
- Language
- Eat
- Sleep
- Drink
- Health
- Safety
- Keep Connected
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Introduction
While the spectactular twin Pitons that rise up on Saint Lucia's west coast appear a little out of the ordinary on a Caribbean island, most of Saint Lucia's attractions read like a list of a dozen other Caribbean destinations: watersports, diving, deep sea fishing and, of course, simply lazing by the beach. But Saint Lucia definitely has its charm. An avid nightlife thrives in the more populated areas, with many bars and clubs presenting live entertainment. An attractive national park at Pigeon Island boasts the largely intact remnants of Fort Rodney, a strategic fort used both by the French, British and Americans in their time. But Saint Lucia's most clear-cut edge over its fellow Caribbean islands are undoubtedly the Pitons: two majestic volcanic peaks jutting 2,000 km above sea level.
Brief History
Geography
Saint Lucia is an island between the Caribbean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean. It is located north of the islands of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and south of Martinique. The island consists of an area of 620 km² (239 sq mi), which is about one and half times the size of the Isle of Wight. It has a mountainous terrain and the highest peak is Mount Gimie at 950 metres above sea level.
Regions
Saint Lucia is administratively organised into 11 quarters; Anse la Raye, Canaries, Castries, Choiseul, Dennery, Gros Islet, Laborie, Micoud, Soufrière and Vieux Fort
Sights and Activities
Pigeon Island National Park
Pigeon Island National Park is more a historical monument than a nature reserve. There are ruins dating to around 1750, including a fortress, barracks and some rusting cannons. The grounds are beautiful with lofty trees, including a few big banyans, and you'll get fine views of the coast and even nearby Martinique when the weather is clear. The island's history starts somewhere in the 1550s when St Lucia's first French settler, Jambe de Bois used Pigeon island as a base for raiding passing Spanish ships. During the 18th century the British admiral George Rodney fortified the island, using it to monitor the French fleet on Martinique. After this, the fort was not in use anymore except as a small signal station by the USA during WWII.
Pitons Management Area
The Pitons Management Area is the only sight on Saint Lucia which is on the Unesco World Heritage List. This 2900 hectares big area near the town of Soufriere includes the Pitons, two volcanic cones rising from the sea at more than 700 meters above it. They are linked by the Piton Mitan ridge. There is a geothermal field with sulphurous fumeroles and hot springs. The Marine area includes coral reefs. The area has a high biodiversity with 168 species of fish and 60 species of cnidaria, including corals, molluscs and sponges. The dominant vegetation is tropical moist forest and subtropical wet forest and there is dry forest and wet elfin woodland on the summits. Here you can also find almost 250 different species of plants, of which eight are rare tree species. The Gros Piton is home to some 27 bird species (five of them endemic), three indigenous rodents, one opossum, three bats, eight reptiles and three amphibians.
Malgretout Waterfall
South of Soufriére at Malgretout you can find a quiet, undeveloped beach (heaven if you know how touristy some beaches in Saint Lucia can be) and mineral waterfall. This beautiful waterfall has a real Garden of Eden-like setting, but visitors are allowed to shower in its warm volcanic waters. And this is something you can't do at the more touristy waterfall at Diamond Botanical Gardens. So if you have to choose, go to the Malgretout Waterfall instead.
Central Rain Forest Reserve
The Central Rain Forest Reserve is a mountainous, 7600 hectares big well maintained park in the highlands of the interior of Saint Lucia and is real natural paradise. Unfortunately, the only way to get here is by joining an organized rainforest hike through one of the main tour agencies. Hiking by yourself is not permitted because of safety reasons and also to safeguard the forest's sensitive ecological balance.
Other sights and activities
- Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception - Castries
- The Sulphur Springs
- Diamond Falls and Mineral Baths
- Turtle watching - for example at Grand Anse Beach in the north, where you might see dolphins and whales as well
- Maria Islands Nature Reserve - off the southern coast, great for bird watchers
- Climbing - Gros Piton and Petit Piton
- Frigate Islands Nature Reserve - birds, including the Frigate
Events and Festivals
- St. Lucia Carnival (21 to 22 July 2008) - Street parade starts in Choc and ends in the Capital Castries. Titles such as Carnival Queen, Calypso Monarch, Panorama Champions (steel pan), Party Monarch are titles givens foir the best performers. Revellers take to the streets in a bouillion of colour and music as each band strives to capture the coveted title of "Band of the Year".
- St. Lucia Jazz Festival (1 to 10 May 2008) - Since 1992, the major Jazz and soul festival in the eastern Caribbean with a number of showcase bands. Takes place in Pigeon Island National Park.
- Food and Rum Festival (30 October to 2 November 2008)
- St. Lucia Bill Fishing Tournament (11 to 14 September 2008)
Weather
Saint Lucia has a pleasant tropical climate with hot and humid weather but a nice sea breeze to cool things off a bit. Daytime temperatures average around 28 °C to 30 °C year round and night temperatures are just slightly lower at 24 °C to 26 °C. Although rain is possible anytime, the wettest period is from June to December, with peaks in August and November with almost 400 mm of rain.
Getting There
By Plane
Hewanorra International Airport (IATA: UVF, ICAO: TLPL) near Vieux Fort is where all long haul flights arrive and depart. Air Jamaica flies to this airport from several main cities in the United States, Jamaica and Barbados. Other airlines flying in from the USA include American Airlinies, Delta Air Lines and US Airways. From the United Kingdom, British Airways, Virgin Atlantic and XL Airways fly direct from London. There are also direct flights from Toronto and Frankfurt and a charter from Rome.
George F. L. Charles Airport (formerly Vigie Airport) (IATA: SLU, ICAO: TLPC) near the capital Castries mainly caters regional flights from neighbouring islands. LIAT and Air Caraibes have connections to Dominica, Martinique, Guadeloupe, Barbados and Saint Vincent.
By Boat
Saint Lucia - Guadeloupe vv
Brudey Freres (french only) has 2 sailings a week between Guadeloupe and Saint Lucia on Fridays and Sundays. Although most ferries stop on at Martinique along the way, there are direct services in high season. L'Express des Iles has services as well.
Saint Lucia - Martinique vv
Wednesdays and Fridays at 1.30pm and Sundays at 3.30pm, L'Express des Iles travels from Fort-de-France to Castries on Saint Lucia. In the opposite direction, ferries leave 5 times a week. Both crossings take about 80 minutes.
- Saint Lucia - Dominica vv
L'Express des Iles has 3 to 5 weekly sailings between the capitals of Dominica and Saint Lucia, Roseau and Castries respectively. All of them stop on their route in Fort-de-France, Martinique (see above). Most boats leave around 10am and take about 4,5 hours to complete the total journey.
- Saint Lucia - Barbados/Saint Vincent vv
From October 2009, BEDY Ocean Lines, will have a ferry in operation for residents only, connecting Saint Lucia with Barbados and Saint Vincent.
Getting Around
By Plane
There are helicopter transfers between Hewanorra and Vigie airports, Vieux Fort and Castries respectively.
By Car
Car rental agencies have offices at both airports and at Rodney Bay. It's a good way to cover a lot of the island and roads are generally in good condition although there are many hilly parts and speed is slow therefore. You need a special local driving permit which can be obtained at the rental agencies or local police station. Driving is on the left.
By Bus
Minibus services connect many places with the capital and there is a good service from Castries to Gros Islet in the north of the island with buses departing every 30 minutes during the day. Note that there aren't much services on Sundays. You can flag busses down or get of the busses almost anywhere. Taxis have fixed prices (agree upon price before leaving) and is affordable when you don't use them too much and with several people.
By Boat
Although there are no regular passenger services, there are boat charters available at Castries, Marigot Bay and Rodney Bay.
Red Tape
Most western nationalities do not need visas. For a full list of people requiring a visa or not, check the Saint Lucia Governmental website.
To apply for a visa, go to the nearest embassy or consulate.
Money
The currency of Saint Lucia is the Eastern Caribbean Dollar, or EC$. It has existed since 1965 and is used by 7 other states of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States as well. Only the British Virgin Islands (the nineth member) doesn't use it, but uses the US$ instead. The EC$ is subdivided into 100 cents and has been pegged to the United States dollar at US$1 = EC$2.7 since 1976. The EC$ comes in coins of 1, 2, 5, 10 and 25 cents and a coins of 1 dollar. There are notes of 5, 10, 20, 50 and 100 dollar.
Work
Study
Language
Eat
Sleep
Saint Lucia has one of the highest densities of all-inclusive resorts of all Caribbean Islands. Most are located in the northwest, at Gros Islet and especially near Rodney Bay. But there are many other types of accommodation to choose from, ranging from hidden treasures along the west coast to more simple guesthouses in towns like Castries or Soufriere. As the west coast is the most popular area to stay, these are mentioned below. If you like to stay more to the south and east, you can always check the official Saint Lucia Tourism Board for more details.
Gros Islet and Rodney Bay
Castries and surroundings
- Auberge Seraphine
- Rendez Vous - couples only
Marigot Bay
Anse La Raye
Soufriere and surroundings
Drink
References
- 1 Mid 2005 estimate, The Central Statistical Office of Saint Lucia
This is version 22. Last edited at 14:50 on Sep 18, 09 by Utrecht (+640). 21 articles link to this page.
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Saint Lucia Travel Sites
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St Lucia Vacation Guide
A broad site with information on hotels, beaches, waterfalls, weddings, real estate and more. -
St. Lucia - Official
The Tourist Board's site. What to do, where to stay, etc. And, for the young lovers out there, info on tying the knot in the Caribbean.
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