Hi, <BR> My wife and I just returned from our honeymoon at Ladara. A lot of my research for the trip was from reading the Fodors messages, so a big THANK YOU to everyone who posts and replies. <BR> We had a super time, and many posters throughout this forum have covered a lot of topics and I agree wholeheartedly that it is a great spot. A few answers to questions I've seen in the past: <BR> upgrade: We'd booked a deluxe 1 bedroom suite with plunge pool. We were given villa B: three beds, 2 bathrooms (one with an open air shower), loft, waterfall, pool about 20 feet by 6 feet, 5 1/2 feet deep. Wonderful room. My wife said she didn't feel bad staying in the room so much! <BR> Other guests: Everyone we met said they were on their honeymoon, and all talked to were from the States, too. <BR> Geckos: We saw a few scurrying up the walls. Got so we'd recognize a couple. Biggest we had was about 5 inches, but someone in another room said they had one 10 inches long. They were quite shy and unlike the geckos I experienced in SE Asia, they made no sounds. <BR> Food: Included breakfast is great (try the porridge!). We had a few lunches there (split a sandwich and fruit salad - more than enough). Ate most of our evening meals out The front desk is very helpful in arranging taxi ($10US one way) and reservations. We'd usually ask where other couples were going and then tag along to share taxi cost and have someone to talk to. Best meal was the last night there when we ate at the Ladara restaurant, Danshee, and ordered off the menu. <BR> Bathrooms: Dark wood floors, walls and ceilings, so kind of dim. Shower on the loft that was open to the view (curtain can be pulled if one is modest) was super. <BR> Drive from airport: We had a delay of 2 1/2 hour on the runway in Jamaca, so we arrived after sunset. The hour long trip over the pot-holed, winding, hilly road in the dark made me carsick, so be forwarned. <BR> Compared to Anse Chastenet: We took the sea taxi to AC and spent a day on the beach snorkeling and getting massages (you can have a massage in your room at Ladara). Walked up all those steps (on a sunbaked hillside) to see the rooms. Ladara looked much nicer. <BR> Mozzies and etc: We always had a refreshing breeze blowing through our room. However, we were both bitten often at night by those little black mosquitoes, even though we used the netting. We didn't have any moths, but I did see a bat fly in, then right back out one evening. A few birds would come in (wife was feeding them!) <BR> Any specific questions, drop me a line. <BR>

My husband and I are leaving in a week for 6 nights at Sandals St. Lucia, and 5 nights at Ladera. I would also like to thank everyone for their great advice that helped us make this decision. <BR> <BR>A couple of last minute questions: <BR> <BR>Do the cabs take US$ or should we exchange? <BR> <BR>Any suggestions on transportation between Sandals and Ladera other than a cab? Would it be worth renting a car at Sandals and then having it while we are at Ladera? Since we are flying out on the north end it would mean driving back to the airport ourselves. I've seen pros and cons to having a car at Ladera... <BR>Do you wish you ate dinner at Ladera more than once? <BR>How was the weather? <BR>Thanks!

Karen, <BR> Answers to your questions: <BR> We always let the Ladara front desk book the cabs so the charge was to our room. I'd tip the driver in either US or caribbean dollars and was never refused. <BR> We did not go to the north of the island, so I can't comment on the drive. I personally would not like to rent a vehicle and try to drive the roads down there (drive on the left), but we did see some rented jeep type vehicles at Ladara, so folks do do it. <BR> I just asked my wife about eating more meals at Danshee, and we both wish we had eaten there more often (although every night would have been too much, since we do enjoy trying a variety of spots.) <BR> The weather was indescribable. I would rain almost every morning about sunrise. A couple of times it showered during the day: a very fine raindrop - really kind of refreshing. Always a breeze, usually partly cloudy. Never really very hot, but when the wind would lay, it would feel humid. Comfortably cool at night - did not need a jacket, though. Keith

Karen, Have a great time in St. Lucia. My husband and I got back at the beginning of this month from 9 days at Ladera. I have a post on this site if you're interested. We rented a car the entire time and had mixed feelings about it. While the cabs are a little expensive, so is renting a car, so I'm not sure if you can decide from that, it depends on how often you are going out. It is difficult to get around the island since the roads are so bad, it takes a long time to go everytwhere. So it was wonderful having the freedom of our own car, and it was nice to be able to offer rides to other people staying at Ladera, but it is awfully easy to get a cab anywhere anytime. And, we always took a cab at night anyway in case we wanted to drink. BUT going from Sandals to Ladera I definitely recommend not renting and driving yourselves. It's not worth the stress. Either have the resort find you a land taxi (make sure you get a price ahead of time), or better yet, check into a water taxi. It's hard coming from the states getting used to how often they depend on the water for basic transportation in St. Lucia. Water taxis are very prevelant, they run all time of the day or night from what I could tell and take a lot less time. It might take 45 minutes to get from Sandals to Soufriere, and then another 10 minutes to ladera, by water. By land it will take you AT LEAST 1 1/2 hours, probably longer. It took us 2 1/2 to drive from Ladera to the north side of Castries. While the ride was incredibly beautiful in many areas, it was very stressful and time consuming. Check at the front desk at Sandals when you get there and they will make recommendations and arrangements for you, I'm sure. Once you're at Ladera, think about renting a car for just a day or two rather than the whole time. And think about heading South from Ladera, rather than North. It's incredibly beautiful. We rented from Avis, but were not that pleased. We saw a lot of jeeps being delivered to ladera from Cool Breeze Rental and they looked much nicer than the car we rented. Check them out. <BR>We had dinner at Ladera 3 nights and lunch twice. Besides the fact that it's a great restaurant, it becomes so hard to even leave the resort once you get there. You'll see what I mean once you get there. We also love to explore and try all kinds of different restaurants, but honestly had trouble pulling ourselves away from Dasheene and Ladera. I wish I was going again this month! Check out my entry on this site for other restaurant recommendations. We had a lot of great meals, and one with really bad service. <BR>The weather when we were there, end of April, 2000, was awesome. We did have two days where it rained several times during the day, but the rain never lasted for more than 15 minutes, I don't think and since it's 80-85 you really don't care. There's always a palm tree to stay under to keep dry. In other words, it was always warm, and the rain never stopped us from doing whatever it was we had planned. One day we were snorkeling at the Hilton and I heard this weird sound that I couldn't figure out. Reached my hand up and realized it was raining. I had never heard the rain while floating just on the surface of the ocean before. It was kind of fun, actually and by the time we were done, it wasn't raining anymore. Also, watch for rainbows across the bay at Ladera after a rain storm, they are frequent and the most incredible rainbows you have seen, I'll bet. <BR>To all - don't worry too much about the jellyfish, but it probably depends on what time of year you go, just the same as anywhere on the East coast of America. <BR>Have a great time, Karen. I envy you!

My wife and I are considering Ladara in July for our 5th wedding anniversary. I thought I read something about mountain biking trails w/ bikes offered there as well as in room massages. Care to expand or verify? Thanks.

Ed, the mountain bike trails are actually on the Anse Chastanet resort grounds. There is a web site for it if you look up www.ansechastanet.com or search for mountain biking in st. lucia. I am going to AC june 7th and plan on mountain biking at least once. i also plan on scuba diving and snorkeling. Can't find the time to do too much mountain biking. Will post a request for info on AC when I get back so look for that.

http://www.bikestlucia.com/default.html