Travel Guide: Saint Lucia
Rooftop Yoga at Jade Mountain! | Tasc Performance Capri | Spiritual Gangster Tank (limited sizing, similar here)
Jade Mountain is a "green resort" - here is where the water goes and is then cleaned!
The best beach to snorkel at! It is located at the bottom of the Anse Chastanet resort, which is Jade Mountain's sister resort.
Outside the front of Hotel Chocolat's restaurant Boucan! | Olive Green Dress | Show Me Your Mumu Kimono | Gold Feather Earrings
Another shot from Anse Chastanet's beachfront.
A fountain at the mineral pools - where King Louis XVI used to bathe!
Excuse the clay from the mud baths still in my hair! This is a waterfall at the mineral baths. | Chambray Shirt | Black One Teaspoon Shorts
A look into the botanical gardens.
Star fruit at Emerald Farm.
Acalypha Hispida plant - it ooks and feels like a cat's tail!
Near the drive through Volcano and hot springs!
The view from the Jade Club.
The view from Apsara, Anse Chastanet's waterfront restaurant.
Happy last Friday of 2016, friends!! If you're tired of my Saint Lucia posts, don't worry, they are almost complete! I just have a couple more posts after this. I love creating travel guides, because it give real life application. Not that I don't love outfit posts...travel is just the only thing you can buy that makes you richer! Nick and I were lucky enough to travel quite a bit this year and we hope next year is the same. Of all the trips we took, though, Saint Lucia has been our favorite. It might have something to do with the fact that it was our honeymoon ;) We kept saying "we are SO glad we came here for our honeymoon", while we were on the island, because we did toy with different options. There is just something about it that can't be explained - only experienced. So, here's our thoughts on our trip!
Transportation
- Ben's Concierge. Also known as West Coast Jeeps. We used Ben for the majority of the trip and could not recommend him more! He and his guys are professional, on time, and get you where you need to go. At our second location, we needed some fresh fish for dinner and one of his drivers was able to find it for us when no one else could! Overall a very nice guy and service.
- Saint Lucia Executive. They were recommended to us by a friend and were the ones who picked us up from the airport. Our driver greeted us with local beers, water bottles, and cold wash cloths, as it is very sticky and hot. He also took us on a nice little tour of Saint Lucia and even bought us some traditional food, as we were exploring!
Where to Stay
- Jade Mountain Resort. This was the first place we stayed. I wrote my review for the resort here!
- Villa Piton Caribbean Castle. This was the second place we stayed. I wrote my review for the residence here!
Where to Eat
- The Jade Club. I mentioned this in my Jade Mountain review, but the Jade Club restaurant was amazing! Their pumpkin risotto was my favorite dish; however, their breakfast bread basket is so good. Their banana bread and chocolate croissant are both out of this world!
- Apsara. This is one of the other restaurants near Jade Mountain. It is technically a part of Anse Chastanet and is their waterfront restaurant. It is so close to the water, that when the tide comes in, they can't turn certain table lights on, because the water could splash it! They had yummy food, with a more traditional Saint Lucian flare, in comparison to the Jade Club.
- Boucan Hotel Chocolat Restaurant. So, this is actually a hotel! Nick and I loved eating around town, because we got to see other hotels / parts of the island! This hotel is all about chocolate, so it was a MUST for us, plus it also came highly recommended. The menu is fun, because everything has at least a little chocolate in it. We had the chicken and it was amazing. Like life changing chicken - get it if you can!
- Sugar Beach Restaurant. What makes this restaurant appealing, is that is located beach-side, in between the Pitons. (where these photos were taken!) I think my favorite part was that these beach cats came up to our table and wouldn't leave me alone, haha! Not to worry if you are allergic or don't like cats...they don't mess with you. I just fed them and they loved me for it! The food was good, but the scenery is why you go there!
- Hummingbird Resort. We stumbled upon this place for breakfast one day. It wasn't busy and was nestled at the foot of the hill, below Jade Mountain! It was a beautiful breakfast view, for sure! Nick and I could not get over their pancakes. So good!
- Dasheene at Ladera. Sad story, Dasheene re-opened our last night in Saint Lucia. Super bummed we didn't get to go here, but they close every year for a couple of months, to perform routine maintenance, as it is an open air concept. They have the only Saint Lucian 5 Star Chef on the island!
- The Beacon Restaurant. We didn't get to go here due to time of day, but it was recommended to us by one of my followers (thanks, Rachel!). You should at least try some local food, and this is where to do it!
- Orlando's. Again, we didn't go here, but it was on our list if we had time. I'm such a planner, but I tried not to plan every second of our honeymoon, just so we could go with the flow. Hopefully next time! It is supposed to be really good fine dining!
- La Petit Peak Restaurant and Bar. This was another on our list that we didn't make it to, but I did get a picture! It is supposed to be a fun atmosphere and is near the water.
What to Do
- Diamond Falls, Botanical Garden, Sulphur Springs, Drive Through Volcano, and Mud Baths. We did this and LOVED it. We booked it through Jade Mountain, so we got to do everything other services offer, plus tour their Emerald Farm. Emerald Farm is their organic farm where they grow everything for the dining. They had so many amazing fruits, fresh herbs, and yummy things you've never heard of! Also, we got private tours, so it was a lot more intimate. You don't want to do this with a tour bus! Keep in mind, this will be around 4-5 hours, so pretty much half a day.
- Explore Downtown Soufrière. It really is a cool little town! There's a lot to see and discover. You can see some of our pictures from there, here!
- Snorkel. The water is very clear and perfect condition for this. All the beaches we went to had gear nearby for you to use!
-Water Activities. We didn't get to really go on the water, with the exception of a quick water taxi. This is the one thing I think we would have liked to do, but didn't get a chance to. Be sure to budget it in this excursion, because they tend to be pricier than most From private sailing, to dinner cruises, there are a lot of options to choose from. This will be a the top of our list when we go back!
-Piton Hikes. Yes! You can climb the piton mountains. These are guided tours for sure. We liked the idea of doing them, but when it came to time and money, we wanted to spend it elsewhere.
-Massages. I mean you're there to relax, right?! We did our massages at Jade Mountain and they were wonderful. We opted to have them in the spa, but you can have them in your room, if you want!
-Yoga. There are so many well-being activities! Jade also offered yoga, which was just amazing. They time it to coincide with sunrise, so it is simply breathtaking and very peaceful.
-Father Nature Tour. This is a tour only at Jade Mountain, over at Burger beach. We missed it, but would love to do it, when we go back! You get to learn about local plants, animals, and history.
-Biking. I loved biking when I was in Hawaii, so we considered it while we were at Saint Lucia! It came down to the fact that we didn't want to have adventure after adventure planned to the minute. We wanted to relax and take it easy.
-Zip Lining. It exists there, but we didn't even look into it. If you have never done it, do it! I have done it across the jungle in Costa Rica and I'm not sure anywhere else could top that experience. The company that I linked also offers things like horseback riding, too!
-Tour Castries. This is another thing that I wanted to do, but we just didn't have time for. I wanted to go on the Sugar to Rum Revelation tour, which looks at sugar cane plantations, banana exports, coffee, and over all history. We did a good job of exploring where we were, but I wanted to make at least one trek to the other side of the island.
Tips:
-Choose other transportation than the local taxis. If you don't want to use a service like I mentioned above, rent a car. Keep in mind roads are windy, rocky, and can be dark.
-Go first class. If you can swing it! Whenever we were buying tickets, it really wasn't that much of a difference anyway. Most people don't realize where Saint Lucia is anyway! It's literally right above South America. We flew to Miami, then to Saint Lucia. If you are more of an absolute direction type of person, picture Florida, then the Bahamas, then Turks and Caicos, THEN Saint Lucia. FAR OUT. Literally!
-Street vendors harmless, but they will expect a tip. There are lots of fun vendors in downtown; however, if they offer to help you find something, be prepared to spot them some change.
-Stay on the Caribbean Sea side of the island, not Atlantic ocean side. It's okay if the ocean side is where you want to lodge, but you will need to travel to the Caribbean Sea side to enjoy the beach. The Sea side is warmer, prettier, and less choppy.
I hope you enjoyed the photos and the guide! These are honestly so time consuming, so you better like them;) We are planning our 2017 travel, this weekend, so get ready!!
Have you ever ventured to Saint Lucia? Did I leave anything out? Would love to know for the next time we go! To read my other Saint Lucia posts, check these links out: honeymoon packing list, New Name, New Purse: Personalized Crossbody Pouch, I wore the Same Workout Clothes for a week and this is what happened, The Art of Versatility: Floral Dress styled for summer and fall ,Thanksgiving Blues, Now Trending: Maxi Skort Romper, Stay in Saint Lucia: Villa Piton Caribbean Castle , Stay in Saint Lucia: Jade Mountain Resort, what's the difference between TSA Pre-Check and Global Entry, and monogram gift guide/ downtown Soufrière.
If you have any questions or want to know about something I missed, don't hesitate to ask!
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