I recently went on vacation with some family and friends to the breathtakingly beautiful Caribbean island of Saint Lucia. I loved absolutely every second I was there and HIGHLY recommend you go if you ever have the chance. I'm not sure I have ever been to a place with more stunning views. In this blog, I want to tell you all about my favorite restaurants and the best hotel on Saint Lucia to give you a head start on planning your next vacation!
Where to Stay:
Sugar Beach, a Viceroy Resort-
We looked at several different hotels while planning our trip, and I am so glad that we chose the one we did! The Sugar Beach Viceroy Resort was absolutely phenomenal! All of the rooms are actually little houses - some are down on the beach and some are higher up in the mountains. You can choose to either walk the hotel property or take one of the many hotel shuttles the hotel's restaurants, beach, gym, spa, and more.
I know a lot of people don't like to hit the gym while on vacation, but going to the yoga and pilates classes here are an absolute must! These classes are held on the Sunset Deck right outside the gym and have the most gorgeous view in the entire resort. From the deck you can see the Pitons (Saint Luica's mountains) on either side of you with the ocean stretching between them. I honestly could have spent the entire day up there just looking at the scenery! The trainers are also incredible and will definitely give you a good workout! Also, be sure not to miss the beautiful rainforest walk! The trailhead is located right across from the reception area!
As far as the beach goes, I am convinced that the Sugar Beach Viceroy Resort has the best beach out of all the hotels on the island. I say this because we took a boat out a couple of times to see the coast-line, and none of the beaches we saw compared to where we stayed. Not only does the beach have fine, white sand, but there are also lots of things you can do. It is perfect whether you want to lay out and relax or do activities like paddle boarding, kayaking, scuba diving, snorkeling, sailing, riding on what I called a floating sofa attached to a speed boat (SO MUCH FUN!), and more! I highly recommend snorkeling here because the reef right off the hotel's beach is one of the prettiest I have ever seen! You should also make sure to walk to the far right side of the beach (if you are facing the ocean) to the small area where locals come to sell their goods. We met an amazing man named Jimmy who makes animals out of palm leaves and another man who had a farmers market on a boat (my favorite)!
Where to Eat:
In my family, we pretty much plan our vacations around where we are going to eat! Food is a big priority! Most of the days we ate breakfast and lunch at the hotel which was really good, but my favorite meals were at dinner when we would go to other restaurants around the island. We found some pretty amazing places to eat and met some incredible people along the way! Below are the best of the best restaurants we found in Saint Lucia.
Martha's Tables- This local restaurant was hands-down the best meal I had during my entire trip (and one of the most affordable)! It is definitely a hole-in-the-wall - owned and operated by an incredibly nice family. Be sure to call ahead to make sure they will be open because business hours vary! I had the grilled Jack fish with mild creole sauce served with broccoli, beans, basmati rice, carrots, plantains, and a few other local specialties!
Orlando's- This local treasure was also incredible! It is a fixed-price five course meal, and everything I had was delicious! I was so thrilled when Orlando came to talk to us for a little while. He has cooked all around the world in London, Miami, Singapore, and now here in Saint Lucia! He talked about how he is trying to get other people in Saint Lucia to believe in the importance of eating local ingredients, which needless to say, only made me like him more!
Boucan- I cannot rave about this food enough! This restaurant is located on a cocoa plantation that started in 1745, and every single item on the menu has some form of cocoa in it (don't worry... raw and less processed forms of cocoa do not taste like chocolate). They were also very mindful of food allergens and dietary restrictions and had their menu items labeled accordingly. As an appetizer, I got the Tuna-Dorado Tartare which has papaya, mango, red pepper salsa, and cocoa nib croutons (AMAZING)! I then ordered the Market Fish Fricassee (Mahi Mahi that night), which was served with roasted pineapple and a coconut milk and cacao butter sauce. It was honestly one of the best seafood dishes I have ever had! My favorite thing I ordered here was the side of warm cacao spiced eggplant! It was heaven on a plate! We actually had to order a second one for the table because everyone loved it so much! Finally, for dessert (because who doesn't get dessert at a cocoa plantation?), I had a few bites of the Chocolate Mousse and the Magnificent Piton (a meringue surrounded by a dark chocolate sauce, sliced bananas, and almonds). The mousse was a little too sweet for me, but I definitely recommend trying the meringue!
Dasheene-Although we went to this restaurant after sunset so we didn't get to see the view, the pictures look phenomenal! Like Boucan, this restaurant also works with people with food allergies and dietary restrictions. I got the catch of the day (Jack fish) served with grilled vegetables, plantains, and tomato salsa. The cappuccino was also fantastic!
Jade Mountain Club -I'm not sure there is a single place in the world with a more breath-taking view! Located up in the hills and directly across from the Pitons, this restaurant has a perfect view of the two mountains with the ocean in front of them. Get ready to take LOTS of pictures! They have a four course fixed-price menu, and once again everything I had was delicious! I got the Blue Fin Tuna Sashimi, Gazpacho, Champagne and Honey Glazed Dorado (a white fish), and mango and passion fruit Sorbet. I recommend taking a water taxi here because not only is it much faster, but also the boat ride back has the most magical view of millions of stars surrounding the Pitons! I wanted the boat ride to be about ten times as long!
We had the most amazing time in Saint Lucia and wished our vacation would never end!! Please let me know in the comments section if you have any questions! Saint Lucia is definitely a place you should add to your bucket list!
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