Castries is a unique blend of the past and the contemporary. Castries is the capital, commercial center and main cruise port of St Lucia a country in the West Indies. Castries is located in a flood plain and is actually built on reclaimed land. The city's design is in a grid pattern similar to a metropolitan city. It contains duty free shopping facilities such as Point Seraphine and La Place Carinage.
Castries may be architecturally dull, but its public market is one of the most fascinating in the West Indies, and our favorite people-watching site on the island. It goes full blast every day of the week except Sunday, and is most active on Friday and Saturday mornings. You can also pick up St. Lucian handicrafts such as baskets and unglazed pottery here.
To the south of Castries looms Morne Fortune, the inappropriately named "Hill of Good Luck." You can visit the military cemetery, a small museum, the old powder magazine, and the "Four Apostles Battery" (a quartet of grim muzzle-loading cannons).
Pigeon Island National Historic Park
St. Lucia's first national park is joined to the mainland by a causeway. On its west coast are two white-sand beaches. There's also a restaurant, Jambe de Bois, named after a wooden-legged pirate who once used the island as a hideout.
Pigeon Island offers an Interpretation Centre, equipped with artifacts and a multimedia display on local history. Pigeon Island, only 18 hectares (44 acres), got its name from the red-neck pigeon, or ramier, that once colonized this island in huge numbers. Now the site of a Sandals Hotel and interconnected to the St. Lucian "mainland" with a causeway.
Pigeon Island National Historic Park
St. Lucia's first national park is joined to the mainland by a causeway. On its west coast are two white-sand beaches. There's also a restaurant, Jambe de Bois, named after a wooden-legged pirate who once used the island as a hideout.
Pigeon Island offers an Interpretation Centre, equipped with artifacts and a multimedia display on local history. Pigeon Island, only 18 hectares (44 acres), got its name from the red-neck pigeon, or ramier, that once colonized this island in huge numbers. Now the site of a Sandals Hotel and interconnected to the St. Lucian "mainland" with a causeway.
Maria Island
Maria Islands are larger and more arid and are almost constantly exposed to salt-laden winds blowing up from the equator. Set to the east of St. Lucia's southernmost tip, off the town of Vieux Fort, their biodiversity is strictly protected. There is two largest islands Maria Major and Maria Minor are home to more than 120 species of plants, lizards, butterflies, and snakes that are believed to be extinct in other parts of the world. These include the large ground lizard (Zandolite) and the nocturnal, nonvenomous kouwes snake.
The Marias are also a bird refuge, populated by such species as the sooty tern, the bridled tern, the Caribbean martin, the red-billed tropicbird, and the brown noddy, which usually nests under the protective thorns of prickly pear cactus.
Gros Islet Quarter
Gros Islet is the newest town in Saint Lucia, having been recently promoted from a village to a town. It lies north of Castries, the capital of Saint Lucia, and features the Friday Night Street Party which is its major tourist attraction. Music can be heard through the old fishing village, and locals and tourist both dance in a central cross section in the small streets to the sounds of calypso, zouk, reggae and R&B. The Friday Night Street Party encompasses several blocks, which have to be informally cordoned off with the stalls of street vendors. Steamed fish, barbecue chicken and St. Lucia's own Piton beer can be purchased from these vendors.
Rodney Bay
Rodney Bay located on the north side of the beautiful island of St. Lucia, The local Reduit beach at Rodney Bay, with a water-sports hiring shop, covering Jet-Skiing, water-skiing, windsurfing, canoeing etc.
Rodney Bay Marina offers the perfect backdrop to your yachting lifestyle. While perfect white-sand beaches give way to emerald waters adding to the island’s captivating allure, Rodney Bay Marina is a yachter's delight, providing a very comprehensive range of yachting facilities. It is also the finishing point for the famous Atlantic Rally for Cruisers annual yacht race in December.
Wildlife
Two small islands off the coast of Vieux Fort, the Maria Islands are a nature reserve and the refuge of two species found nowhere else in the world. The Kouwes Snake, noted as the world's rarest snake, and the Zandoli Te, a ground lizard whose males display a brilliant blue tail. Frigate Island is a haven for frigate birds during mating season.
Birdwatching
In areas such as the Bois D'Orange Swamp, the Rain Forest and Boriel's Pond, visitors can observe some of St. Lucia's rare, indigenous species, like the St. Lucian Parrot, White Breasted Thrasher, St. Lucia Peewee, St. Lucia Oriole, and St. Lucia Wren. Arrangements can be made through the St. Lucia Forestry Department for early morning or late afternoon trips. Four-hour excursions cost US$40.00 per person and accommodate a maximum of ten persons, minimum of three.
Latille Gardens
This beautiful hidden treasure of St. Lucia is filled with luscious fruits, blooming flowers, thriving plants, shading trees, and vibrant waterfalls. A walk on the waterfall trails or a relaxing night under the moon and stars, amidst the scent of healthy vegetation, are adventures not to be missed.
Night Life
Friday-night "jump-ups" are Weekly Street parties where islanders let it rip. More jump-ups take place at Anse la Raye on St. Lucia's western shore. Rum and reggae flow from about six in the evening to midnight or beyond. You’ll keep jumping up throughout the night.
