Saint Lucia splashes in the warm waters of the Caribbean and the Atlantic. There are high-class hotels and spas, excellent beaches and a unique underwater world – at appropriate prices, of course. National parks and reef diving – all about St. Lucia: tours, map, photos and weather. See Citypopulationreview for weather information.
The island of Saint Lucia is part of the Lesser Antilles and is washed on one side by the Caribbean Sea, and on the other by the Atlantic Ocean. Tropical forests and small bays, healing mineral springs and underwater volcanoes, beautiful beaches and a unique underwater world – these are the things that made the island a real Mecca of elite tourism. Many of the local hotels have SPA centers that use local natural mud in combination with healing baths and massages. In addition, St. Lucia is home to the famous jazz festival, which gathers musical talents from all over the world in early May.
Chair – Castration.
About when is the best time to go to the country and what to do on the spot is described in detail on the tours to Saint Lucia page.
The main resorts of Saint Lucia
The east coast of Saint Lucia is a string of small hotels, bungalows and guesthouses stretching between Micoud and Anse Noire. The beaches here are quite secluded.
The west coast, washed by the Caribbean Sea and located between Vieux Fort and Gros Iles, are resorts that look more like the Mediterranean than a tropical island. There are many first-class hotels, restaurants and well-equipped beaches framed by tropical vegetation.
How to get there
There is no direct flight from Moscow to Saint Lucia. The flight is operated by British Airways with a connection (and an overnight stay in the case of an outbound flight) in London. Travel time – about 16 hours (excluding docking). The island’s two main airports are the international Gewanorra and the airport in Castries for local airlines.
Find cheap flights to Saint Lucia
Visa to Saint Lucia
Citizens of Russia, if the period of stay on the island is no more than 6 weeks, a visa is not required. For your own peace of mind, you should take out travel medical insurance for the entire duration of the trip in advance.
When departing from the country, an airport tax of 40 XCD is charged (often already included in the ticket price).
The climate of Saint Lucia
Tropical trade winds, flat throughout the year. The average annual air temperature is +26 °C during the day and +20…+24 °C at night. The average water temperature is +22…+25 °C. The dry season runs from January to March, and the rainy season runs from May to August. Tropical hurricanes are possible in late summer and early autumn.
The beaches of Saint Lucia
Almost the entire coastline is one continuous strip of beaches stretching for more than 1100 km. The natural beaches of the island are covered with black volcanic sand, but most hotels cover them with white sand from above. The beaches are usually municipal, but there are hotels (for example, the Sandals “chains”) that have their own beaches.
Saint Lucia Hotels
Hotels are presented for every taste. There are small family hotels, luxury all-inclusive hotels, and exclusive hotels and villas. The mains voltage is 220 V, 50 Hz.
Money
The currency of the country is the East Caribbean dollar (XCD), in 1 dollar 100 cents. Current exchange rate: 1 XCD = 21.32 RUB (1 USD = 2.7 XCD, 1 EUR = 2.84 XCD).
In tourist areas, US dollars are universally accepted for payment. Credit cards of the main payment systems (Eurocard, MasterCard, Visa, American Express, etc.) are accepted in most restaurants, in almost all hotels and in many large stores.
Usually, 8% service tax and 10% VAT are automatically added to the bill, but in the cheapest hotels and restaurants no additional payments are required. In restaurants, it is customary to tip 10-15% of the bill, tips for maids – 1 USD per day for each room, for taxi drivers – about 10% of the amount.
Shopping and stores
Most shops are open daily from 8:30 to 12:30 and from 13:30 to 16:00. There are many duty-free shops on the island offering a wide range of goods: jewelry, jewelry, watches.
National parks
Pigeon Island National Park is more of a place for fun and entertainment than a conservation area. Here are the ruins of a Spanish fort of the 16th century. You can enter the park from 9:00 to 17:00.
The Frigate Island Conservation Area in the middle of the East Coast is a nesting site for numerous frigatebirds, herons and two rare native bird species, the Ramier pigeon and the St. Lucian oriole. It is also the habitat of the boa constrictor and the dangerous fer de lance, the spear viper.
The Maria Islands Reserve, east of Fort Vieux, is the only habitat for the cow snake, one of the rarest snake species, and the rare Maria Islands ground lizard. As this site also hosts thousands of terns, gulls and other seabirds, this reserve is not accessible during the entire summer season, but is open at other times of the year.
