Susan Serven

Beautiful St. Barth’s!

Friends had been, my sister-in-law had been so we finally a booked a trip there in July 2023.

We booked rooms at the oh-so-very-chic Le Barthélemy Hotel & Spa, quite possibly the most luxurious hotel on the island.

St. Barth’s is a lovely (but pricey) island in the French West Indies. It has a long and interesting history, transitioning from an indigenous settlement to French and then Swedish rule before returning to France.

Initially inhabited by Arawak and Carib peoples, the island was claimed by France in 1648. In 1784, it was traded to Sweden, becoming a Swedish colony and a free port under the name Gustavia. It’s the only Caribbean island to have spent any length of time as a Swedish colony.

Le Barthélemy Hotel & Spa is located at the eastern end of Grand Cul-de-Sac, one of St. Bart's most scenic beaches. This beautiful place offers beaches with shallow water perfect for kayaking, snorkeling, and windsurfing, as well a jet ski option that we booked (definitely crazy fun, especially if you're playing the theme from 007 in your head as you careen out of the lagoon into the ocean, barely skimming the waves).

You can travel there easily from the New York or Miami area and will usually fly into St. Martin and then take a 15 minute flight on a teeny tiny plane with propellers to glide onto the short runway at Gustavia Airport (the prettiest airport I've ever seen). The prop plane flight is fantastic actually, and IMO the smaller the plane, the bigger the fun (some people disagree).

The hotel's “secret-hideaway” location, right on the water between beach and lagoon, gorgeous large rooms, clean and simple architecture, a friendly staff and wonderful dining all make this a place worthy of its acclaim.

The main restaurant, Amis St. Barth, is an open-air restaurant with wonderful options – full breakfast buffet (I love buffets for breakfast) plus cooked to order options if you wish.

The hotel borders the St. Barth’s Nature Preserve which totals about 25% of the island and includes a turtle sanctuary and coral reefs.

Except for the resort’s pool lights the entire island is very, very dark, perfect for star gazing from any one of a number of sky-top hills or just a quiet corner of where you’re staying.

There’s a small town for shopping, wonderful restaurants, and if you can bear to leave this beautiful place you can take a ferry to St. Martin / St. Maarten for some local sightseeing and shopping.

St. Barth's is absolutely beautiful, wonderful restaurants, fabulous beaches and, although it's very pricey, if you can travel there once, even for only a few days, it's well worth the experience.