St.
Lucia is the sort of island that travelers to the Caribbean dream
about--a small, lush tropical gem that is still relatively
unknown. One of the Windward Islands of the Lesser Antilles, it is
located midway down the Eastern Caribbean chain, between
Martinique and St. Vincent, and north of Barbados. St. Lucia is
only 27 miles long and 14 miles wide, with a shape that is said to
resemble either a mango or an avocado (depending on your taste).
The Atlantic Ocean kisses its eastern shore, while the beaches of
the west coast owe their beauty to the calm Caribbean Sea.
In
natural beauty, St. Lucia seems like an island plucked from the
South Pacific and set down in the Caribbean. Its dramatic twin
coastal peaks, the Pitons, soar 2,000 feet up from the sea,
sheltering magnificent rain forests where wild orchids, giant
ferns, and birds of paradise flourish. Brilliantly-plumed tropical
birds abound, including endangered species like the indigenous St.
Lucia parrot. The rainforest is broken only by verdant fields and
orchards of banana, coconut, mango, and papaya trees.
St. Lucia has been inhabited since
long before colonial times, and its cultural
treasures are a fascinating melange of its rich past and its many
different traditions. The island's people have earned a
well-deserved reputation for their warmth and charm, and the
island itself is dotted with aged fortresses, small villages, and
open-air markets.
There is a broad array of exciting
and exotic activities
available on St. Lucia. The island's steep coastlines and lovely
reefs offer excellent snorkeling and scuba diving. The rainforest
preserves of St. Lucia's mountainous interior are one of the
Caribbean's finest locales for hiking and bird watching. Of
course, the island also possesses excellent facilities for golf,
tennis, sailing, and a host of other leisure pursuits. Not to be
missed is St. Lucia's Soufriere volcano, the world's only drive-in
volcanic crater.
St.
Lucia is the sort of island that travelers to the Caribbean dream
about--a small, lush tropical gem that is still relatively
unknown. One of the Windward Islands of the Lesser Antilles, it is
located midway down the Eastern Caribbean chain, between
Martinique and St. Vincent, and north of Barbados. St. Lucia is
only 27 miles long and 14 miles wide, with a shape that is said to
resemble either a mango or an avocado (depending on your taste).
The Atlantic Ocean kisses its eastern shore, while the beaches of
the west coast owe their beauty to the calm Caribbean Sea.
In
natural beauty, St. Lucia seems like an island plucked from the
South Pacific and set down in the Caribbean. Its dramatic twin
coastal peaks, the Pitons, soar 2,000 feet up from the sea,
sheltering magnificent rain forests where wild orchids, giant
ferns, and birds of paradise flourish. Brilliantly-plumed tropical
birds abound, including endangered species like the indigenous St.
Lucia parrot. The rainforest is broken only by verdant fields and
orchards of banana, coconut, mango, and papaya trees.
