5 Days in St. Lucia: Soufriere and the Pitons

To infinity pools and beyond

I wish there was some great back story about why we chose to go to St. Lucia in June 2015. To be honest, we just had American Airline points, found a great Groupon and decided to make our first Caribbean trip.

I’m the kind of person who is always looking for some sort of adventure to spend my free time. Thor, on the other hand, loves chilling hard. St. Lucia is the perfect mix of beach and jungle so you can relax on the beach one day while hiking the next day.

Highlights:

• If you’re the kind of person who needs activities to relax, St. Lucia is the island nation for you. You can chill on the beach, but you can also zipline, hike or go fishing so there’s plenty to do.
• Renting a car will get you so much further. Even though they drive on the opposite side of the road from the U.S., there are very few roads and they are in relatively good condition.
• We had some problems with the ATMs in the country, including one that shut off on us while we were doing our transaction. A local person told us this was pretty regular, so if you can get money from your U.S. bank before you go or limit your ATM withdrawals it’s probably best.

Itinerary

Day 1:

• Flight from NYC -> Miami -> Vieux Fort Quarter
• We picked up car at the airport and took a leisurely drive to Soufriere. If you rent a car, you’ll be able to get around easily. There’s only one main road around the country so it’s hard to get lost, though there aren’t a lot of lights on the road at night.
• Check in at at the La Haut Resort in Soufriere. We loved how it was a short drive down the mountain to get to town, and there’s also a lot of resorts within driving distance around if you want to try new places for lunch or dinner. But if you’re looking for tons of restaurants and shops within walking distance you may want to consider the main city Castries.

Day 2:

• Today we beach hopped! First we snorkled and lay out at Anse Chastanet Beach and Reef.
• Then for a change of scenery, we lay out and smoked cigars at Jalousie Beach, part of the Sugar Beach resort.

Day 3:

• We drove to the other side of the island and ziplined at the Treetop Adventure Park in Dennery.
• Afterwards, we took a late afternoon soak in the Sulfur Springs.
• Finally we had dinner with a view at Jade Mountain Club.

Day 4:

• We attempted to climb Gros Piton. We should have been warned that it was going to be difficult, when we were required to hire a mandatory guide. Unfortunately we didn’t make it to the top, but I’d like to go back and try it again some day.
• We hired a private boat charter to take us to Castries to visit the market to pick up some souvenirs. We went through Feel Good Taxi and Tour, which proved to be a quick (and beautiful) way to get from Soufriere to Castries. It was also especially memorable, since Thor proposed along the way.

Day 5:

• We stopped by nearby Fond Doux Plantation & Resort, a chocolate plantation.
• Finally it was time to head home. We flew from Vieux Fort Quarter -> Miami -> NYC