We love the Caribbean islands, and for our upcoming 35th anniversary…wanted to try an island we had not been to before. We like to relax but also definitely need options for adventure or things to do, so we wanted to choose an island that had both options.

We ultimately chose St. Lucia – because the landscape is so varied. There are breathtaking mountains, lush rainforests, and volcanic sand beaches.

St. Lucia is located in the West Indies of the Caribbean Sea, and is a beautifully unique island. It’s home to the Grand Pitons, fishing villages, sulphur springs, and great beaches. We went in May (which is on paper is perfect, because high season ends in April, so prices are a bit lower, and May is generally their dryer month, but not this time…we had a few days of rain, a few days of sun.)

Getting There

You’ll want to fly into Hewanorra International Airport (there are 2 airports, be sure to choose this one)

Our hotel provided connection to a shuttle service (for a fee) or the local services at the airport can drive you. It’s safe and possibly more relaxing than driving yourself. However, if you get car sick, riding in a van on the roads could be an issue. My husband is comfortable driving on the other side of the road and has had experience driving on climbing, winding roads…so we opted to rent a car.

At first, I wasn’t sure about that decision, but ultimately SO glad we did this. It was easier than I anticipated (very adventurous though, don’t get me wrong) and we were glad to have the car to explore whenever and wherever we wanted. It took a day of consciously reminding ourselves to “stay left” but we had no issues.

Where We Stayed in St. Lucia

We chose Sugar Beach, a Viceroy Resort. Nestled between St. Lucia’s iconic Piton mountains. It was about a 45 minute drive from airport.

They have multiple room types..some on the beach, some on the mountain. Many with their own splunge pool or hot tub. This is a 100 acre property! And since this was a big celebration…we splurged and chose a luxury beach front villa. And we are SO glad that we did. We were near everything and just opened up our room to the beach, water and beach chairs. It was fantastic!

The rooms are all beautiful, with a colonial charm blended with modern amenities. Also each room type comes with personalized butler service. Which at first, sounds a bit extra, but was truly an enhancement! She was so personable, and made dinner reservations for us, then shuffled them due to weather, arranged shuttles when needed, etc.

This resort has everything you could imagine. We truly could have not left the property and been fine. And that is saying a lot, because we like to do things, and only do the beach or pool a little.

There are 8 restaurants on property, pool, tennis, pickleball, beautiful gym, water sports, the rainforest spa is other worldly! In addition, you can book excursions straight from your beach chair, all vetted by Sugar Beach so you know it’s safe and wonderful.

Our favorite restaurants, the ones we ate at repeatedly were Bonte – this is beach front and the vibe at night is spectacular with tiki torches etc. Also Jetty Burgers – this is a 5 minute walk away along the coastline. The BEST burgers!! A little beach bar on the jetty, very windy though because of location. So be mindful of that.

Our room came with breakfast buffet every morning at The Terrace Restaurant. Huge buffet, or you can order a la cart.

This is a great honeymoon spot, we met lots of them, but also a great anniversary spot and family friendly – we saw several families while there.

What We Did in St. Lucia

Again, there is enough at the resort itself but we did venture out a couple of days.

We drove our car through the nearest town, Soufriere, which was great to see/experience the culture, see the vibrant colors of the buildings and rooftops while driving up above along the coastline. We drove over to visit the black sand beaches near Anse Castanet Resort and Jade Mountain Resort. We weren’t able to see the resorts without lunch reservations but we were able to see the beaches which were beautiful.

Fishing Excursion – From Sugar Beach Resort, we chose to do a morning fishing excursion with 2 locals and it was great! We bottom fished like locals, no rods, just dropped lines with bait and caught snapper and grouper. We took those back to the kitchen at Bonte and chef prepared those for our lunch…fabulous!

Sunset Cruise – Also from the resort we chose to do a sunset cruise – highly recommend! You can chose a private or group charter, we went group as this wasn’t the highly busy season. No better way to see the Pitons than from the water with drinks in hand.

Volcano/Mud baths – we drove our car a short 10 min drive to the active volcano for a quick “tour” I would say semi interesting. Very inexpensive and is a 15 minute deal. At the same location was the mud baths – inexpensive, felt a little touristy but also skin felt softer afterwards, lol. TIP:: take a swimsuit you don’t really care about. Mine had white trim and it was ruined after the “black water”

Waterfall – drove a short distance to a nearby waterfall that you can get in. It was beautiful, felt like Hawaii or Costa Rica.

Dinner at Hotel Chocolat – highly recommend. Get there prior to sunset as the views of the Pitons are AMAZING. You are high above the Cacao trees that they grow there and there is lots of information on how they grow and roast chocolate there. Almost the entire menu is build around chocolate. The apps they bring to the table incorporate chocolate! The restaurant is open air and stunning – the views, you can’t beat. Ask for a table along the railing.

Sugar Beach Rainforest Spa – Truly other worldly! A spa literally IN the rainforest. Head to my Instagram here to see visuals of all mentioned here. (You can also view the Highlight bubble on my IG that is titled St. Lucia where it is a compilations of my Instagram stories while there) You almost can’t believe this spa. Your butler can book it for you, we booked ahead of time in case busy. Be sure to book a time for the steam sauna (no extra cost, but need to book the time) it was unreal. You had to crouch down to enter then you stand up in what felt like a tribal room that might seat 15 on the perimeter and the hot rocks in center, they turn the sauna on for you for 20 minutes. Again, other worldly experience.

Tet Paul Nature Trail – short drive from resort. Highly recommend! This was a 1 hour hike round trip, a guide goes with you. It’s a rainforest type hike. They call it moderate, it definitely is a ton of steps, lots of elevation but the views from up top!!! Views back over Sugar Beach – just stunning. They do give you a walking stick.

Visited black sand beaches – near Jade Mountain resort

Snorkel – they say some of best snorkeling is right on Sugar Beach. Terry snorkeled on both left and right side and saw several great things.

Masseys Grocery – there are a few on the island. We stopped and got snacks, drinks, ice to fill the soft side cooler we packed.

There’s lots more to do, but this is what we fit in in 6 days. Easily could have stayed a day or two longer and ventured up the island to the fishing communities, and to see the marinas with big boats etc.

St. Lucia Travel Tips:

• rent a car, bring a soft side cooler, stop for ice, drinks, snacks
• there are taxis on island or hotel can arrange drivers
• safe to drive & walk around island
• almost everyone speaks english and is friendly
• bring cash for tips, excursions USD is fine
• high season – Dec – April, dry
• low season – May – Nov, (green season but risk of rain/hurricane)

You can also find a link to all of my outfits that I packed and wore to St. Lucia here!

And here is a link to my absolute favorite travel bags! I’ve tried several and these are landslide winners!! The wheels on the medium checked bag are worth it! So easy, and the handle is extremely comfortable. Upgrades that are truly worth it! The carry on is the most useful carry on I have ever carried. Holds SO much, lots of pockets to separate things which make things easy to find. And, fits under your feet if you’d like.