Miscellaneous information - St. Lucia

This section contains information on:

Travel to St. Lucia and getting around once you're there
Passport and visa requirements
Geography language and time zone
Weather
Electricity

Getting there and around

Getting there

International Flights

Apart from the main international airport - Hewanorra International Airport - in Vieux Fort, there's another airport - George F.L. Charles Airport - situated in the north of the island near to Castries. The latter handles, principally inter-island air traffic. View island map.

Internation carriers include: Air Canada, Air Liberté, American Airlines, British Airways, Britannia, British West Indian Airways (BWIA), bmi, Caledonian Airways, Condor, US Airways, Virgin Atlantic - and some of these fly daily direct.

Ferry/Cruises

St. Lucia is well serviced with ferries. These can be used to island hop, or to cross some of the larger bays, or to travel from various towns around the coast without resorting to taxis, buses or car rental.

From an island hopping point of view, the ferry services make St.Lucia very accessible to holiday makers switching from island to island for a change of scenery. Good news if you rent out your property.

Best thing to do is to get on the internet and check out services and times of day - there are so many options, we couldn't list them all here.

Most passenger from cruise ships arrive in Castries.

Getting around

Air shuttle services

The international airport at Vieux Fort offers both light aircraft (Liat) and helicopter shutlles (St Lucia Helicopter Services) to various locations around the island. Iif you are looking for ultra quick transfers and don't mind the price ticket, this could be the way to really arrive in style.

Taxis

There’s no shortage of taxis in the cities, towns and holiday resorts. It’s a good idea to fix the price before you accept the taxi, to avoid any shocks.

Many taxi drivers are more than happy to take you on a full island tour but again, agree where you are going and how much it will cost before you set off.

Buses

For an authentic island experience, catching a local minivan bus can be an inexpensive and enjoyable experience. Many fares are under US$5 – some of them only a dollar or two.

They run frequently on standard routes in northern St. Lucia (normally displayed on signs in the front window of the bus) from Castries to Gros Islet or to Rodney Bay.

Travellers can catch one of the privately owned, 14-seater minivans at marked bus stops or by flagging one down along the three major bus routes on the coastal road: The Vieux Fort - Soufrière Route; the Soufrière - Castries route; and the Castries - Vieux Fort route.

If you are away from a designated bus stop but see the bus you want, you can flag them down. So long as there’s room for the bus to pull over, they’ll pick you up.

Check with the driver the times of buses for your return. Visitors can catch a bus on main routes around Gros Islet as late as 10:00 p.m., but buses heading back to Gros Islet and Castries from the southern portion of the island make their last runs in the mid-afternoon.

Often it’s easier to get a cab back.

Car Rental

Avis, Budget, Courtesy Car Rental, Dollar Rent a Car, Hertz, National Car Rental and New Frontier Auto Rentals all operate in St. Lucia. Most often, visitors arrange these either at the airport or via their hotel.

You’ll need a local driving licence which is issued by the rental company on sight of your normal full driving licence.

Discounts are usually available for rentals of three days or more - and best rates are usually available if your pre-book.

Although the roads may not be as good as you might be used to, you don't need a 4 X 4 unless you plan to do some serious off-road driving.

Driving is on the left. If this is the "other side" for you, take it easy for a few days until you get used to it.

Passports and Visas

In general terms, foreign nationals intending to visit Saint Lucia for business, pleasure or study are required to have a valid passport from their country, a return air ticket and to obtain a valid Saint Lucian visa.

There are some visa exceptions, particularly for British passport holders.

There are plenty of sources of up-to-date information on the internet. Visit this web and, once there, click the Visa tab in the menu and select your passport country to get the correct details for your passport.

Other passport/visa resources.

Geography

North of Trinidad and Tobago and fairly close to the equator, St. Lucia is a Caribbean island situated between the Caribbean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean. It is one of many small land masses making up the group of islands known as the Windward Islands.

Physically the island is remarkably beautiful… high peaks and rain forest in the centre of the island, broad fertile valleys elsewhere and soft white sandy beaches and natural harbours along the coastline.

The highest peak in the central mountain range– Mount Gimie – rises to 958 metres (3,143 feet) above sea level.

Island length: 27.1 miles/43.5 km

Island width: 14 miles/22.5 km

Total area: 382 sq. miles/616 sq. km

Coastline: 98.2 miles/158 km

Saint Lucia is in the tropical zone, although its climate is "regulated" by the northeast trade winds. (See Weather below.)

The capital city of Saint Lucia is Castries, where about one third of the island’s population lives. Major towns include Gros Islet, Soufrière and Vieux Fort. (See local info for more detail on towns.)

Time

Standard Time is four hours behind Greenwich Mean Time (GMT-4).

Daylight Saving Time (DST) does not operate here.

Language

English is the official language and is very widely used but a substantial proportion of the population also speaks a French-based Creole.

Weather

Due to its proximity to the Equator, St. Lucia’s temperature doesn’t vary much between summer and winter. The north east Trade Winds make it more comfortable, too.

Average daytime temperatures are around 29°C, and average night time temperatures are typically in the region of 18°C. As you’d expect, it’s much warmer at sea level than it is up in the mountains.

There's seasonal rain during July to November, although almost three times more rain falls on the mountainous interior than on the coast.

Daily sunshine is around eight to nine hours per day.

Electricity

The standard is 220 volts/50 cycles (Hz) usually using standard UK three pin plugs. Most hotels can provide adapters for electric razors, hair dryers, tongs, etc.

A few hotels have 110 Volt, 50Hz supply.