Greg

Just got back from a week at the Ladera and had a great time. St. Lucia is a beautiful, lush island. My first day there someone came up to me and said, "Are you Greg from the Internet? I told my husband I knew it was you." I was pretty surprised. She had overheard my name and guessed it was me. Hello Eileen! <BR> <BR>Room: <BR>We stayed in a Deluxe 1 bedroom (Room Q) The room has a very nice view of the hillside, Gros Piton and the Bay, although the view of Petit Piton is partially obstructed. If you get a room farther down on the alphabet you might get a better view but I really couldn't complain with the view this room had to offer. This room also had a lovely view of the Soufriere Valley from your bed. Also, don't worry at all about the open air concept. There were few bugs in the room at night and the few birds that came into the room during the day were cute. The patio and plunge pool were great to have and were very private. Nobody seemed to have what I would call a truly heated plunge pool. When you turn on the waterfall the water becomes warmer but never really gets warm. I used the pool every day though, in the morning and at night under the stars and found it very enjoyable. If you feel like splurging go for a spa treatment (massage/facial )in your room at sunset. I did and would highly recommend it. Ladera works best for those who just want to relax and enjoy the view. <BR> <BR>I checked out the other two hotels, the Hilton and Anse Chastanet. I was not too impressed with the Hilton. Although I overhead guests at the Hilton say that their rooms and the staff there were impeccable. The beach is nice enough but small. It's in a nice setting at the base of the Pitons but I thought the Ladera had a better setup, primarily because of the view and privacy. The Hilton seemed to have a lot of kids. The Ladera, very few. I thought Anse Chastanet was very nice, it has a nice laid back feel to it. Although the views of the Pitons were not as immediate as those at Ladera. In the end I was glad I made the choice I did. <BR> <BR>The complimentary water shuttle over to Anse Chastanet was great fun and a little adventure unto itself. Great water views of the Pitons from the boat. I found I preferred the beach at Anse Chastanet to the Hilton but the complimentary shuttle leaves Ladera at 9:30 and you have to commit to staying there until 3:45. With the Hilton there was more flexibility with the length of stay. <BR> <BR>Snorkeling: I had a lot of fun snorkeling at the Hilton and Anse Chastanet. Snorkeling at Anse was superior. It would have helped if I had brought a book on caribbean fish so I would have known what I was looking at. If you go to Anse, make sure you go to the other end of the beach too. I found I enjoyed snorkeling more at the far end versus just snokeling at the marine preserve near the dive shop. I've had better snorkeling in the US and British Virgin Islands though. <BR> <BR>Food - Dinner at Dasheene was good. You could not ask for a better location or view. I thought more effort went into the presentation over the taste though. Some entrees such as their lamb or shrimp entrees were delicious while others were more average. Dessert was fine but nothing to rave about. The complimentary breakfast in the morning was very good, you could get everything from yogurt and cereal to omlettes and french toast and bacon and sausage. During my stay I ordered lunch from my beach chair at the Hilton (excellent Cheeseburgers and fries $8.50), had lunch at the Hilton's beachside restaurant (excellent Tuna fish sandwich and fries $11.00) ate at Bang for dinner (food okay, spicy bony chicken , make sure you go on the night they have the show; gymnasts, limbo dancing, music, fire eating) had another dinner at the Old Court House on the Soufriere waterfront (excellent food, had a yummy chicken coconut curry, good calamari, excellent apple pie with ice cream. Unfortunately a persistant beggar wouldn't leave us or the other two couples alone while we were eating. Also ate at Captain Hook's just past the waterfront. Simple food but very tastey. The town is fairly poor but in a nice setting. We were approached a few other times by peole asking for money but it wasn't too bad, just slightly depressing. On the whole I found the St. Lucian people to be very pleaseant and proud of their island. <BR> <BR>Transportation: <BR>The road from the airport takes 50 minutes. If you're lucky you'll get picked up in a Toyota Camry like car. If you're not you'll get a minibus. The roads are primarily one lane wide, pretty twisty and have many potholes. I didn't find the ride too bad. Although I heard that it made another couple sick to their stomachs. I took a dramamine about a half hour before our plane landed and I didn't feel queasy at all. A man by the name of Harrod drove us around quite a bit and I would recommend asking for him at the Ladera front desk. <BR> <BR>Tours: <BR>Rainforest - Good morning tour. Although the drive there requires much patience because of the terrible potholes. The drive is 45 minutes and very,very slow. But I found the hike worthwhile. Saw three St. Lucia Parrots. I also did a three hour combo tour which was good - the volcano, the botanic garden, and a waterfall. <BR> <BR>Remember your sunscreen - be obsessive about it. I noticed a lot of people walking around with painful looking sunburns. <BR>hydracortizone - the bugs were not bad because of the breeze but I did get several mystery bites. I never felt I needed to use the bugspray in the room though. <BR>pants & light sweater - I felt pretty cool at night while eating dinner up at Dasheene and in my room at night and could have used a light sweater or long sleave shirt. <BR> <BR>If you have any questions feel free to email me. <BR>

Brian

Your trip sounded wonderful. My fiancee and I are going to St. Lucia for our honeymoon in August. I have two questions for you. How much cash did your bring with you? If not cast, did you use travelers checks? <BR> <BR>Thanks!!

Lynn

Hi Greg, <BR>We are staying at ladera for our honeymmon. My fianc'ee and I are pretty excited about it. My only concern is security because just recently on another board(caribbean-online) there was a post from a man who was attacked by four men in his room at 3am. He's given many details to support his claim, he's even posted to call the hospital and the owners of ladera who live in the US. Did you feel safe when you were there? He also said that all the security guards ran away and he believes he was set up(i also think he was traveling by himself). They caught the men but they were never prosecuted because this man had to pay for his own trip down there to testify, and as you can imagine would not do that. Have you heard anything about this or have any input on security there. <BR>Thanks, <BR>Lynn

Greg

Brian, <BR> <BR>I think We brought around $300 total in cash which was sufficient and didn't use travelers checks. There is a safe in your room. Typically everything I did (taxis ($20 round trip to town), purchases in the gift shop, tours, massage, dinner) I had charged to my room through the front desk which made things much easier. I know the hotel restaurants all took credit cards but I used cash for in town restaurants. <BR> <BR>Lynn, <BR> <BR>I heard nothing of the incident of which you speak. I felt very safe at Ladera and thought that the land dropped off quite steeply past the open wall and would be fairly difficult, but not impossible, for someone to sneak in. Ladera seemed to be heavily staffed and there is a security checkpoint for cars entering into the resort as well.

Hi greg,

thanks, you put my worries at ease. Sounds like it was an isolated incident anyways, also sounds like some one had it out for this guy. They took off all the posts on the other forum that had to do with the incident, they said it was basically frightening people and it was just an accusation. Besides it could happen anyware. Can't wait to go! <BR>Thanks, <BR>Lynn