My original plans were to visit St.Lucia over the MLK weekend, but the last-minute booking and late covid test derailed that idea. I now realize I couldn't go regardless. I had not done a travel authorization.
Things to get before your Visit to St.Lucia
A Travel Authorization: You need to log onto the St.Lucia website and prepare a travel authorization no later than seven days before your flight. If you run into any issues, please email tic@st.lucia.org.
A negative covid test is uploaded to your travel form no earlier than five days before your trip. The test needs uploading into St.Lucia.org to get your travel authorization approved.
A Health Assessment: This can be downloaded and filled out before boarding.
Now that you have these three things, you are all set to go. Your documents will be checked at the airport and once again in St.Lucia.
After you clear the health screening, you go into customs. After customs, you will seek your covidsafe transportation to your hotel.
If you're staying to the north, this is a time to get some good rest as the driver is roughly 90 minutes.
St.Lucia has a wide array of hotels to stay. I chose the Harbor Club by Hilton as it was closer to my budget. (We all wish we could stay at Jade Mountain) I arrived at the hotel a little before 6 pm. After getting the paperwork out of the way, rum punches are the welcome drinks.
The first night was pretty simple. I got settled into a great dinner at the hotel's main restaurant Julia's. Appetizers were conch fritters with mayo. Dinner was the Dennery Catch of the day (Mahi-Mahi) served with vegetables. After dinner, I sat poolside for entertainment while having a few drinks. Friday night fish fry is popular in St.Lucia. No one could confirm it was being done through the pandemic, I stayed at the hotel.
The Next morning I headed out at 8:15 am for a Catamaran.
The catamaran headed down the west coast of St. Lucia, pointing out points of interest along the route until it landed at Soufriere. Once In Soufriere, we visited the sulfur springs, had lunch at an old plantation, and visited a waterfall.
Back on the boat, we headed to one of the nearby beaches for a bit of swimming and snorkeling. We then made a loop into the famous Marigot Bay Marina before heading back to the docks. I then made the 15-minute walk to Rodney Bay to check out the activities.
I later returned to the hotel for a two-part dinner. I ate Market Street Sushi at the hotel to try a few local rolls. They didn't have the Lucian rolls, so I settled for softshell crab. Dinner was supposed to be the duck at 14 North, but I opted to have a local experience nearby with grilled Lambi.
On the last day in St. Lucia, time was spent at Pigeon Hill National Park and Pigeon Island Beach. The beach has an array of bars and shops to kill time. It's a good time to have a cold Piton lager while you are at it.
The taxi took me back to the hotel and then to the airport.
All in all it was a successful trip and I do see a return soon.
Editors Note: Opinions expressed here are the author's alone, not those of any parties mentioned. None of the entities mentioned has reviewed, approved or endorsed the content listed in this post.
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