St Lucia holiday accommodation

St Lucia holiday accommodation

How this holiday makes a difference

The main goal at our St Lucia holiday accommodation is to maintain and preserve the natural beauty, historic remains, and authenticity of the 70 acre estate. This alone is a monumental task, which is carried out by only a handful of individuals with no financial resources other than what the Estate generates.

However, as a family, we feel that it is our calling and responsibility to ensure that this special spot on earth remains an oasis of peace and beauty and creativity for present and future generations to enjoy. The estate has come a long way, from being a large sugar plantation in colonial times, to a diversified but struggling farm up to the early 1990’s, and finally to a multi-facetted small eco-tourism enterprise in the last 10 years.

We have an abundance of ideas, plans, hopes and dreams for this St Lucia holiday accommodation, which we are slowly but steadily realizing. We would like to further intensify our activities in the areas of environmental and spiritual awareness, arts and crafts, skills training, history and archeology, and eventually become a regional resource centre. Another objective is to become largely energy self-sufficient, as alternatives such as wind and solar energy become more available and affordable.

Up until just a few years ago, we were not connected to the island’s water distribution system. We now use a combination of river water, rainwater collected in cisterns, and public water. Hot water is generated through solar energy. We ask our guests to reduce energy use and wastage. We do not use high energy appliances such as air conditioning, microwaves, or TV's.We do not use any chemicals or fertilizers on the grounds or farm. We seek to grow our own produce as much as possible. Organic waste is composted and other items are recycled where possible.

We have made special arrangements with community members to build temporary homes on our land, graze livestock, plant gardens, and produce controlled amounts of charcoal. We offer discounted rates to locals for special events such as weddings and charities such as the Lion's Club Family Fiesta and the Annual Christmas Bazaar organized by the National Council for the Disabled.

All profits made from the Jazz Festival at the estate go back into the community and help pay for 4 free Jazz concerts in the South. We refer our guests to local businesses, restaurants, and attractions, and purchases goods and services from the local community.

As a member of the St. Lucia Heritage Tourism Association, we have implemented an Environmental Management System (EMS) which seeks to further minimize our impact on the environment. We work with other local and regional organizations such as the St. Lucia National Trust and the Caribbean Alliance for Sustainable Tourism (CAST) to ensure that our product remains of the highest quality.

St Lucia holiday accommodation

Reviewed 05 May 2008 by Lee Hoyland

1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?

The estate as a place and their beaches and our wedding there!!

2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?

Mosquito spray! Hire a car. Torch. Expect relaxation in a rustic style away from most of the tourists- stay down south of the island!!

3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?

Benefited the estate and local community - money wise!! Car not very eco friendly but helped us see more of this stunning island.

4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?

Brilliant, we had a fantastic time because of the location and people! The estate was perfect exactly what we hoped for and the wedding was low key and tranquil! Thanks.

Reviewed 16 Mar 2008 by Michael Bailey

1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?

Living in a tropical garden. Hummingbirds feeding on the fresh flowers on the table in our “cottage". The sounds at night. The warm sea. The relaxed, friendly, open hospitality. Picking star fruit from the orchard. A new friend climbing a palm and cutting young coconuts for us to enjoy. Staying at the estate was a joy. We have to mention the style of the estate; the food was lovely, the way we were looked after was warm, comfortable, relaxed. The style simple and beautiful. Uta, Verena & Anitanja Lawaetz are the best of hosts.

2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?

It's best if you like dogs and all flora and fauna. In the main living area of the cottage we stayed in, there were no windows - which we loved: more breeze, lovely to be open to the smells and sounds and plants and animals. Probably need to hire a car. We were told local "mini" buses have no timetable and get cramped.

3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?

Yes, as it contributed to the running of the estate which is run in a principled and thoughtful way. A number of local people use the estate for themselves, gardening and gathering fruit, and some live there in their own cottages. There are no agro chemicals used, and much of the estate is left uncultivated, with paths winding through. Around the estate house and living areas, the gardening style could loosely be called natural - vast trees remaining, wonderful palms, bouganvillia. No bulldozing here, unlike some of the island, which seems hell bent on destroying all its assets with golf courses, huge ones and holiday developments.

4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?

Very special. We felt blessed to be able to stay at the estate.

Reviewed 07 Aug 2006 by Paul McNamara

I think we felt that the comments and pictures of this accommodation did not really give the whole picture. It was indeed very beautiful, peaceful and interesting, and the owners were lovely people, helpful and friendly. We felt, though, it was not a place you would stay for 2 weeks with a child - the lack of anywhere air conditioned proved to be a problem, there was nowhere we could be cool. The kitchen area was not properly equipped, or really very clean - the living and cooking area was open with no windows or doors or cupboards, just a half height wall and a bit of trellis in places, so food tended to attract animals, including rats. There was also a degree of lack of privacy, which would not be a problem in such a quiet place, but they do hold public events there, such as weddings, and provide tours for the public, so there were times when we preferred not to use the open air toilet!

So, yes, it was lovely, but only for a few days, and even then with some fairly basic facilities lacking that we would have liked to have known about before hand. We moved after three days, to other accommodation, which meant compromising our holiday somewhat.

Reviewed 20 Feb 2005 by Mrs Carol Silvey

The hotel is situated at the quieter Southern area of the island. Most of the big hotels are sited in the North. The hotel is quiet and unspoilt a real 'away from it all place'. The owners are very friendly and we had everything that we needed available, nothing was too much trouble. Natanya is a brilliant cook - I don't think we've ever enjoyed so much fresh, local, healthy and delicious food!

We have 2 children aged 8 and 11 and they loved the holiday. They were free to explore the estate and loved the extensive grounds. The owners have several pets which were a great hit with our children - the dogs often accompanied us to the beach and the tortoise was quite a character!

There are 3 beaches accessible from the estate, all just a few minutes walk away. These were small sand/shingle but we found the sea quite rough on this part of the coast. There's a lovely beach about 5 minutes drive away at Laborie (much calmer), but perhaps the best beach we found was approx 20 minutes further on at Vieux Fort.

I would definitely recommend hiring a car for this holiday. We hired the most basic available, another time I think we would spend a little more on a 4x4. The main roads are well-surfaced but incredibly steep on the West Coast and flatter but very pot-holed on the East. Most tourist attractions are a few miles away from the main highway and secondary roads are both pot-holed and steep - we had quite a few hair-raising moments!

Beware the lack of sign-posts! It took us several attempts to get through Soufriere in one go - the first time we picked up a 'guide' who showed us to the botanical gardens and then accompanied us for the rest of the day to other attractions (he wanted US $150 (£78) at the end of the day, but we negotiated him down considerably!).

We managed to drive all the way to Pigeon Island in the North. This was a very long drive (over 2 hours), but well worth it. Over our 9 days we covered most of the island. St Lucia has the most spectacular and amazing scenery and is very green and lush.

The hotel does have a slightly 'ramshackle' appearance, however this all added to the charm and character of the estate. We stayed in Banyan Cottage. We had wondered how we would fair with no air-conditioning in such a hot environment? However, this was never a problem - the estate is shaded by many attractive shrubs and mature trees. There were lovely breezes from the sea, at night the wind would gently blow through our curtained, unglazed windows as we lay serenaded by the night-time creature chorus (or the clatter of rain on the tin roof!).

I would recommend this holiday to anyone. Families with older children would love the estate as much as we did (perhaps not suitable for under 5's who could all too easily wander off!)