suzzyruzzy

My husband and I have decided on St Lucia for our first Caribbean experience in June, and I've been on an internet search for the perfect place to stay. We were hoping for a place with a kitchen so we can cook in some, but were also hoping for something around $100/night - it's proving to be not so easy to find... so I thought I'd stop wasting time looking at random websites and ask the experts. For those of you who have been to St.Lucia and enjoyed your time there, any suggestions on the best 1) area in St. Lucia to stay, 2) and any specific condo's/hotels/suites that you recommend? Thanks for your advice!

beachdreams3

The best area to stay depends on what you want out of your trip. For me, the best area for a non-AI property is Rodney Bay (Reduit Beach) because of the proximity of everything. Within short walking distance there are tons of restaurants, bars, shopping, the beach, and it is a good central spot for trips to Castries and island tours.

I stayed at the Coco Palm and would recommend it. It is a new hotel, a short walk from the beach, with a nice pool and bar. The rooms don't have kitchens, but my room did have a mini-refrigerator. You should be able to get a room around your budget or a little more at Coco Palm in the off-season. They include a continental breakfast. Their sister property, the Coco Creole, is a little less expensive. I don't know anything about their rooms. Some other hotels in the area that I have heard of, but have no real knowledge about but think they may offer some rooms with kitchens or kitchenettes are the Harmony Suites and the Ginger Lily. I'd suggest using Trip Advisor reviews; I usually find these very helpful to research potential hotels.

kellybeaches

I second checking out tripadvisor for reviews on specific places. Our review of St. Lucia is here (scroll down on page):

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR..._St_Lucia.html

We stayed at the Stonefield Resort and LOVED it!

http://www.stonefieldvillas.com/

However, it really all depends upon what kind of vacation you're looking for. STL offers many varieties. LMK if you want to see more pictures. Good luck!

suzzyruzzy

Thanks so much for the advice/links - very helpful and informative. KellyBeaches, your review of Stonefield Villas was great, I will definitely look into that place! Now I'll have to decide between Rodney Bay and Souffiere - Souffiere seems like it would be more crowded because of its proximity to the Pitons, but from those Stonefield Villa pictures, it looks like peace and quiet is still obtainable if we stay here... Thanks again!

kellybeaches

Actually, the south western side of the island (town of soufriere) is much less populated than the northern side of the island. It is really, really lush, mountainous and beautiful. We liked the southern side of the island more than the northern (Castries). The locals there are wonderful as well. Below is a link to some of our St. Lucia pictures. Hope that helps in your decision! If you’re looking for more of a hotel type setting, you can try Jalousie. That’s the hotel with the beach smack inbetween the pitons. That was nice too, but the Pitet piton blocks the beautiful sunset views which we love. We went to that beach for beach time. Enjoy!

http://www.kodakgallery.com/Slidesho...p;conn_speed=1

ejcrowe

If you want seclusion and stunning scenery, stay in the south near Soufriere and the Pitons. If you want a more traditional resort, check out Jalousie PLantation (great deals on LuxuryLink right now for that place). If you want something less traditional, check out Stonefield, Ladera, and Anse Chastenet in increasing level of cost.

You might also want to take a look at Ti Kaye Village for seclusion and really good value. It's about midway between Castries and Soufriere.

dominick2

Another relatively inexpensive but nice hotel in the Rodney Bay area is Bay Gardens. It's not on the beach but it's not too far. In Soufriere, the Hummingbird is a pretty nice small hotel right on the beach. (It is called the Hummingbird Beach Resort, but the use of the term "resort" is a little misleading. It's more like a small inn than a resort. Also, the beach is dark sand -- not the prototypical stretch of blinding white sand that you might be picturing in the Caribbean.) The southern part of the island is much less developed than the north. However, even the Rodney Bay area in the north is not nearly as "Americanized" as some of the other islands. I love St. Lucia (my wife is St. Lucian and we own a home there) but it's not for everyone. If you are looking for high-rise hotels with marble lobbies, casinos, a 7-11 on every corner and duty free shopping, St. Lucia is not for you. If, on the other hand, you are looking for a laid back lush beautiful island, St. Lucia might be just what you are looking for.

vinceygirl

The CoCo properties are very nice and reasonable. Don't believe either of them have efficiencies with cooking appliances. I spent a night this past Nov at the CoCo Palm. Nice rooms, quite inexpensive for how nice they are, beautiful pool area and located within walking distance of the beach and restaurants in the Rodney Bay area.