Trip Report: St Lucia

[scubazlot]

Lottie375 - We drove from the airport in the south (can never spell it) to Sandals on the East coast of the island. I am shocked 2 cars were able to pass going in opposite directions. It was my first experience in the Caribbean, so maybe it is the norm, but I thought outside of Castries the streets were very narrow. And because of lack of signs and with all the mountains, the roads are not safe to drive for people who are not from the island - in my opinion. Just letting visitors know, probably do not rent a car, just try to arrange transportation with your resort.

As far as the hiking, the Gros Piton hike is well worth it. We asked the guide about the Petite Piton. He said the parks dept has yet to clear an official path, so it is basically bushwacking and finding your own trail. The parks department will not provide a guide for the Petite hike either - so hike at your own risk. He also said the mountain is more narrow making it a steeper and more dangerous climb in general. Lastly, he mentioned there is much more wildlife on that mountain due to its climate. So he said you would run into mountain goats, snakes, lizards, etc. It was freaky enough when we saw a tarantula at the top of the mountain!

We did not dive in any of the protected areas, maybe Sandals does not have access to those marine parks? I am not sure. We wanted to do the wall dive, but with our flights, New Years, some golf, etc we just could not find a day to head down there.

 

[Lottie375]

We drove from the airport in the south (can never spell it) to Sandals on the East coast of the island.

the east coast!!! - I would have thought they would have taken you via the west coast as its got the more stunning views and scenery (albeit the roads are more bendy lol). The roads aren't as wide as they are in the UK - did you by any chance see the dual carriageway along the john compton highway (the one with the concrete barriers in the middle?? - now that road is way too narrow!), but i do agree that if anyone else will be coming out to st lucia, to use a taxi to explore around the island.

We did not dive in any of the protected areas, maybe Sandals does not have access to those marine parks? I am not sure. We wanted to do the wall dive, but with our flights, New Years, some golf, etc we just could not find a day to head down there.

I'm sure Sandals have access to the dive sites within the SMMA parks as i've seen their boats when i've been out diving. Maybe with the other stuff that you were doing while you were here, you just missed being in the right place at the right time.

Lottie

 

[scubazlot]

We flew out of NYC, so of course we were 3 hours delayed, even though we had a 7am flight! So with the stop over in Grenada, then to St Lucia, then get our bags, etc we did not get into the Sandals van until close to 6 and it was already dark. During the drive up the driver pointed out some sights but it was too dark to see anything. And he did mention it is quicker to go up the east side with less traffic, so that is the route he was taking us. So we missed everything on the ride up to the resort. On the way back I slept most of the ride, but I did wake up in time to see the new Ritz Carlton being built. Looked HUGE!

 

[trigfunctions]

We wanted to do the wall dive, but with our flights, New Years, some golf, etc we just could not find a day to head down there.

Golf? Over diving? That was your first mistake right there

 

[scubazlot]

Ha maybe you can call it a mistake, but I actually enjoyed golf. It was actually a vacation of firsts - first Caribbean trip, first SCUBA trip, first time playing golf, first time drinking electric blue drinks (I usually stick to my beer), etc. So I guess I had a few activities lined up in case one of them did not suit my fancy.