Hotels Overview

A group of locally owned and operated small hotels, comfortable guesthouses, and self-catering apartments market themselves through the St. Lucia Tourist Board as INNtimate St. Lucia (758/452-4094. www.inntimatestlucia.org). Accommodations, ranging in size from 3 to 71 rooms, have attractively reasonable room rates and are a delightful alternative to the large resorts.

Luxury villa communities are also an important part of the accommodations mix on St. Lucia. Several of these communities opened recently and others are under construction at this writing. The villas themselves are privately owned, but nonowners may rent a unit from the management company for a family vacation or short-term stay. For example, the Plantation on Cotton Bay (Cas En Bas. 758/457-7872. www.plantationbeach.com), which opened in December 2007, has 74 luxurious, individually designed and decorated villas and town houses situated on 9 idyllic acres wedged between a quiet ocean beach and the St. Lucia Country Club. Guests also enjoy a community pool and may patronize the spa, restaurants, bars, and shops.

For rentals of private, individually owned villas, contact Tropical Villas (Box 189, Castries. 758/452-8240. 758/450-8089. www.tropicalvillas.net).