From: jwc@netx.com (Jeff Comer)
Newsgroups: rec.travel
Subject: Re: St. Lucia
Date: 19 Aug 92 21:59:35 GMT
Organization: The Chaos Bobs

helen@b30.ingr.com writes:
>Anybody got any information on St. Lucia?
>(things to do, restaurants, best views, etc.)

gkirikos@epas.utoronto.ca (George Kirikos) writes:
>I'll be spending the last week of August in St. Lucia. My travel agent
>is sending me my tickets and a brochure today, so I can summarize the
>interesting parts to the net (or by mail, if you prefer).

I just returned from a week in St Lucia. I'll relate some of the things 
you might want to know. First, try to see the Pitons (Gros Piton and Petit
Piton). They are two vertical rock forms on the SW coast of the island.
Best view is from sea; I believe you can take a cruise from Marigot Bay
(S of Castries). You can also see them from the road if you want.

The roads are terrible. It doesn't look like a big island, but you must
allow at least two hours to traverse from Vieux Fort (far S) to Castries.
Roads are strewn with potholes, contain many switchbacks, and have lots
of traffic. I actually enjoyed zipping around the switchbacks. Avoid road
driving after dark unless you're in town or in the north.

btw, the west coast road from Anse La Raye to Soufriere is closed, at 
least to anything less than 4-wheel drive vehicles. Actually, it is now
open from Soufriere ("soo-frere") to the next town up, whose name escapes
me now.

Soufriere is the cauldron (caldera) of an ancient volcano. It is dormant,
so you will see steam, bubbling water, and really strange rocks. Plus,
the smell of sulfur is very strong. Nearby is the Diamond Falls, which
is nice, and their gardens, which is worth the $5EC admission price.

Try to arrive into Vigie Airport in Castries. It's much closer to most
of the action. The ride from Hewanorra Airport (far S) is 2 hours and
will run you around $40US. Vigie handles only LIAT and American Eagle
small plane flights; Hewanoora is the destination for the larger jets.
I understand you can take American Eagle from San Juan to Vigie, but I
suspect this is a long ride. As for Hewanoora, I think AA and AC fly
from the States and from Toronto daily or several times a week. There
is a 1-stop on AA from DC area.

Currency is Eastern Carribean dollar, denoted $EC or $E. It exchanges at
$2.67EC to $1US. When purveying prices, be sure you know which currency
the prices are in. Hotels will exchange money easily; many places will
accept $US directly. Note that EC$ is also used in Antigua, Anguilla,
and several other Grenadine islands.

Pigeon Island is a park area in the far N. I understand many locals make
their way there for picnics and the like. It is in the most developed
tourist/resort area of the island, Rodney Bay and Reduit Bay. We stayed
at the nearby St Lucian hotel for around $80US a night. It is a bargain
comapred to the winter rates. Expect to run into a lot of German nationals.

There is duty-free shopping at the area near where the cruise ships come
in. Its name is Point Seraphine. Nothing spectacular, but if you're in
the area, check it out.

I found the people of SLU to be very nice, and was able to spend a lot of
time with a family there. I hope your trip is as rewarding. Please e-mail
me if you want more details.

---
Jeffrey W Comer * jwc@netx.com * 703-749-2369 (v) * 703-749-2375 (fax)
"We will, we will, rock you!" -George Bush (U-2)