Holidays in St Lucia, Caribbean St. Lucia is the sort of island that travellers to the Caribbean dream about - a small, lush tropical gem that is still relatively unknown. One of the Windward Islands of the Lesser Antilles, it is located midway down the Eastern Caribbean chain, between Martinique and St. Vincent, and north of Barbados. St. Lucia is only 27 miles long and 14 miles wide, with a shape that is said to resemble either a mango or an avocado (depending on your taste). The Atlantic Ocean kisses its eastern shore, while the beaches of the west coast owe their beauty to the calm Caribbean Sea. In natural beauty, St. Lucia seems like an island plucked from the South Pacific and set down in the Caribbean. Its dramatic twin coastal peaks, the Pitons, soar 2,000 feet up from the sea, sheltering magnificent rain forests where wild orchids, giant ferns, and birds of paradise flourish. Brilliantly-plumed tropical birds abound, including endangered species like the indigenous St. Lucia parrot. The rainforest is broken only by verdant fields and orchards of banana, coconut, mango, and papaya trees.St. Lucia has been inhabited since long before colonial times, and its cultural treasures are a fascinating melange of its rich past and its many different traditions. The islands people have earned a well-deserved reputation for their warmth and charm, and the island itself is dotted with aged fortresses, small villages, and open-air markets.There is a broad array of exciting and exotic activities available on St. Lucia. The islands steep coastlines and lovely reefs offer excellent snorkeling and scuba diving. The rainforest preserves of St. Lucia’s mountainous interior are one of the Caribbean’s finest locales for hiking and birdwatching. Of course, the island also possesses excellent facilities for golf, tennis, sailing, and a host of other leisure pursuits. Not to be missed is St. Lucias Soufriere volcano, the worlds only drive-in volcanic crater.   Visa and Foreign Office Information Health Information

Shopping Shop for cane furniture, West Indian crafts, pottery, wood carvings, woven straw and other locally made handicrafts. Duty-free luxury items are sold mostly in the duty-free shops in the cruise terminals. They offer good prices on the usual array of luxury items: perfumes, china, crystal, jewellry, watches, leather goods, liquor and cigarettes. (Your passport and cruise ID are necessary for duty-free prices.) Throughout the island, small shops and vendors sell T-shirts, costume jewellry and straw crafts.  Cuisine St. Lucia’s cooking is West Indian, hearty and filling, and heavy on the Creole. Spicy roasted or fried chicken, beef (not usually very tender), fish, crayfish or land crabs are accompanied by cooked breadfruit and other squash-like vegetables (for instance, dasheen and christophene). Curry goat is a tasty variation of beef stew, and rotis ("Caribbean burritos"), of East Indian origin, are a soft tortilla-type crepe filled with curried chicken, beef or goat and local vegetables. Dals are similar to rotis, but they’re wrapped in dough and deep fried or baked. Dals usually contain a mixture of curried lentils, local vegetables and saltfish.  Nightlife Folkloric shows and local reggae bands make up most of the entertainment in St. Lucia, found mainly at the hotels. In general, your best bet is to phone a hotel to see what’s doing and make a reservation if you like what you hear. During high season, hotels are crowded and non-guests can’t always walk in and find a table. Expect to pay a cover of EC$5-$25 at most clubs or bars with a deejay or live music.