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St.
Lucia City Guide
Castries
St. Lucia's busy capital, commercial center and main port,
Castries (pop. 60,000), is on the island's northwest coast.
Most of its sights can be seen in half an hour, but it's
fun to walk around -- it's a real city and not an area
designed specifically for travelers. Souvenir shops aren't
unheard of, but they're tucked in between banks, offices
and stores that sell household goods.
The liveliest part of the city is just southeast of the
port, at Jeremie and Peynier Sts, where the Castries Market
houses scores of produce and handicraft stalls.
 You'll see several old Creole-style
buildings and homes on the square's south border, Brazil
Street. One of the Caribbean's largest churches, the Cathedral
of the Immaculate Conception, built in 1897, sits on the
east side of the square. It's worth a peek inside to see
the brilliant murals painted on the wood ceiling and walls.
Opposite the cathedral, on the eastern side of the square,
is a lofty saman tree that's estimated to be 400 years
old. William Peter Boulevard, north of the square, is
lined with boutiques and shops.
Southeast of Castries is Morne Fortune (Hill of Good Fortune).
The road up is a series of switchbacks punctuated with
bright pink and purple bougainvillea. The view of the
city and the sea is fabulous from atop Fort Charlotte.
Built in 1764-1784, the fort is worth a look -- it's full
of cannons, barracks, stables and tombstones.
Soufrière
 The bayside town of Soufrière
(pronounced su-FREE-er) was founded by the French in 1746
and named after nearby sulphur springs. As you approach
the town of Soufriere, you'll drive through the island's
breadbasket, where most of the mangoes, breadfruit, tomatoes,
limes, and oranges are grown. Soufriere is near some of
St. Lucia's most interesting geologic features, most notably
the twin Piton volcanoes. The town has some French-colonial
charm, but an architectural restoration is planned should
help liven some of the older buildings. The highlights
are the marketplace on the waterfront, where cruise passengers
arrive, and the small 'Our Lady of the Assumption church',
with its interior painted in three shades of blue.
Close to the city is La Soufriere, St. Lucia's active
volcano. Until recently, it was possible to drive a car
into the crater, but that's no longer allowed. You can
enter the crater on foot, however, and watch pools of
furiously bubbling mud. There's also a boardwalk that
allows you to observe the activity at close range (open
daily 9 am-5 pm). Expect hot vapors, gases and a strong
sulphur smell (anyone with a sulfite sensitivity should
sit this one out). Though smoky and smelly, the volcano's
activity is controlled and constant, and it's not considered
likely to erupt.
If you want to take a therapeutic sulphur mud bath, venture
to the springs located just below the car park. The lower
pools are best for bathing in the warm, mineral-rich mud.
Head to the top pool and the small cascading waterfall,
naturally heated by the volcano, to rinse off. Sulphur
can stain, so be sure to wear an old bathing suit and
bring an expendable towel.
Nearby is Diamond Falls and Botanical Gardens, with its
mineral baths that St. Lucians say take off 10 years and
10 pounds. King Louis XVI of France had such great faith
in the healing powers of the baths that he had the beautiful
pond and waterfall developed as a spa for his troops.
To visit start at the square in Soufriere, and take the
road that runs east. It's about a 15-minute walk. There
are signs along the way.
Also worth seeing near town are two old plantations. The
Soufriere Estate is an award-winning restoration of a
sugar factory.You can take a short tour of its cocoa and
copra (dried coconut) harvesting and processing operations,
dating from 1713. The plantation ruins, including a working
waterwheel, are surrounded by beautifully landscaped tropical
vegetation. There's also a small zoo on the grounds. Open
daily from 10 am. Phone 452-4759 or 454-7565.
Just outside of town, nearer the sulphur springs, is Morne
Coubaril, the island's first major estate. Female guides
dressed in brightly colored French colonial costumes lead
90-minute tours of the working cocoa plantation and the
ruins of an 18th-century sugar mill. A re-created Carib
village has eight styles of buildings, and a re-created
plantation house and an old-time bus provide peeks into
later times. Phone 459-7340.
Head south out of Soufriere toward Vieux Fort. The roads
pass through a beautiful, lush rain forest that's especially
nice near Fond St. Jacques. Allow yourself the better
part of a day to make the drive to Vieux Fort so that
you can feel free to stop, take pictures and swim in the
sea.
If you would like to do some hiking, you will find many
of the island's best trails are in this area, including
the Edmund Forest Reserve Rain Forest Trail. You are required
to have a guide if you want to hike this route, and it's
recommended that you have a guide for most of the other
trails on the island as well. Contact the Forest and Land
Department about hiking on the island: Phone 450-2231
or 450-2078 for more information. The department conducts
regular field trips to the Edmund Forest Reserve and other
destinations.
Among the spectacular sights along the roads are Gros
Piton and Petit Piton, the island's two huge conical volcanic
peaks, rising about 2,500 ft/760 m from the sea. Gros
Piton can be climbed in an afternoon, but only by serious
climbers who are accompanied by a guide -- this is not
for the novice. Petit Piton is more dangerous and climbing
it is not recommended, even though some guides will offer
to take you. The volcanoes are best seen from the water,
however: Most boat trips sail around the Pitons. Divers
will find undersea caves and giant sponges in the waters
near the Pitons.
While driving to Castries from Soufriere, stop along the
beach at Anse La Raye to see fishermen repairing nets
and boatbuilders at work, and then have lunch at Marigot
Bay, one of the most scenic bays on the island. From there,
head north to the capital along the beautiful Cul de Sac
Valley. But if you're there on a Friday, consider hanging
around for the village's weekly Friday Night Fish Fry.
The very popular event draws locals from all over the
island. In addition to fried fish (dorado, mackerel, tuna
and more), there's lambi, lobster, octopus and even green
fig and saltfish, all prepared seven different ways. Be
sure to get there before dusk for the best selection.
Local bands often perform, so expect dancing in the streets.
Soufriere is 12 mi/20 km south of Castries.
Rodney Bay
About 15 minutes north of Castries, Rodney Bay, named
after Admiral Rodney, is an 80-acre manmade lagoon surrounded
by hotels and restaurants. Reduit Beach, a long stretch
of beige sand renowned for it's watersports, is also home
to many of the island's established hotels and resorts.
North of the lagoon, Gros Islet (pronounce it "grow
zeelay") is a quiet little fishing village not unlike
Anse-la-Raye to the south. If you hear a conch shell being
blown, it's the signal that fishing boats have arrived
with catch to sell. But on Friday nights, Gros Islet springs
to life with a wild and raucous street festival ('jump-up')
to which everyone is invited. Pigion Point, jutting out
on the northwest coast, was Pigeon Island until a causeway
was built several years back, connecting it to the mainland.
Tales are told of the pirate Jambe de Bois (Wooden Leg),
who used to hide out here. This 40-acre hilltop island,
a strategic point during the struggles for control of
the island, is now a national park, with long, sandy beaches,
calm waters for swimming, and area for picnicking. On
the grounds you'll see ruins of barracks, batteries, and
garrisons dating from the French and English battles.
St Joseph's Church is a formidable structure at the northern
edge of town.
Marigot Bay
Marigot Bay is a lovely sheltered bay that's backed by
green hillsides and sports a little palm-fringed beach.
The inner harbour is so long and deep that an entire British
fleet is said to have once escaped French warships by
ducking inside and covering their masts with coconut fronds.
The bay was the setting for the 1967 musical Doctor Dolittle,
starring Rex Harrison.
Marigot Bay is a popular anchorage for yachters and the
site of a marina with a customs office, a small market,
water, ice and fuel.
Vieux Fort, Anse Islet
At the very south ot the island is Vieux Fort, St. Lucia's
second-largest city and home of the Hewanorra International
Airport, also features a long, secluded, white sand beach
whose emerald green inshore waters are protected by a
fringe of coral reefs. Take a short drive out on the Moule
a Chique Peninsula, the southernmost tip of the island.
From here you can see all of St. Lucia to the north and
the island of St. Vincent 21 miles south. Looking straight
down, you can see where the clear waters of the Caribbean
blend with the bluer waters of the Atlantic Ocean. South
from Vieux Fort, the Atlantic coast road takes you past
Honeymoon Beach, a wide, grassy, flat Anse Islet peninsula
jutting into the ocean. A few miles off the southeast
coast is the Maria Islands Nature Reserve. Consisting
of two tiny islands in the Atlantic - the 25 acre Maria
Major and its little sister, 4 acre Maria Minor, are inhabited
by rare species of lizards and snakes that share their
home with frigate birds, terns, doves, and other wildlife.
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