Snapshot of St. Barth’s

St Barth's 2010

Oh yes, the lovely, beautiful, picturesque island of Saint Barthelemy in the Caribbean.  St. Barth's is a little European oasis nestled amid the French West Indies.  As you walk down the streets past the shops and cafes, with mopeds and compact cars and trucks whizzing by, you could easily be fooled into thinking that you were in Europe.  Only a map would tell you otherwise.  In my case it was a nautical chart, since I had the pleasure of spending several months in Saint Barth’s while working on a private yacht. 

I can’t even tell you how many times we pulled into and out of Gustavia’s harbor on the West side of the island.  But every time, the excitement ran high among the crew.  We never tired of St. Barth’s.  As soon as you sail in, you see and feel the immediate difference from the other surrounding islands.  St. Barth’s truly is a little piece of Europe.  Being a territory of France, the inhabitants there are actually French, and as one can imagine, there is plenty of high fashion, amazing food and wine, charming architecture, and beautiful people.

Did I mention the beautiful people?  I am not kidding; everyone living in St. Barth’s is worthy of being a supermodel.  The girls working in the shops?  Models.  The men pouring concrete on the side of the street?  Models.  Tanned, lean, and gorgeous, all of them.  We had to chuckle to ourselves, that of course, only in St. Barth’s would every delivery boy, bartender, and dishwasher be deemed worthy of the cover of Vogue.  The women of course had the classic understated, natural French look; wearing little to no makeup, with tousled, messy, yet sexy hair.  And in classic French style, all the women, young or old, had a certain sex appeal that American culture for whatever reason does not embrace.  So don’t forget to pack your self-esteem in your handbag, or you’ll shrink like a wallflower next to these beauties.

The fashion itself was very classy and what one would expect from the combination of France and the Caribbean.  Very laid-back, no-fuss attire; flowy dresses, linen tops and pants.  For women, a straw hat and stylish belt were essential. The men wore fitted T’s, linen pants or capris.  Everyone, of course, wore designer sunglasses.  It was very easy to pick out the locals from the cruise-shippers.  No offense, cruisers.

Shell Beach 

Oh my, I haven’t even mentioned the beaches yet.  The beaches are also very French, and not for the shy, as you are sure to see topless women (of all ages), as well as the occasional person completely in the nude (both men and women, and yes of all ages).  You have been warned.  Besides the eye-candy (and the not-so-much eye-candy), the beaches themselves are breathtaking.  Shimmering blue-green water and soft white sand to dig your toes into. Every beach is surrounded by steep hills creating a safe harbor for the many sailboats that come in to anchor.  It’s the perfect setting for a lovely afternoon picnic.  Chilled pink wine is optional, but highly recommended.

Getting around is easy, as nearly everyone in St. Barth’s speaks English.  There are plenty of cabs, or you can walk between certain towns, as long as you don’t mind hiking up very steep hills.  There is a huge tourist draw to St. Barth’s, many smaller cruise ships anchor there, yachting is very popular, and the rich and famous love to vacation there as well.

So far it sounds great, right?  You are probably ready to pack your bags and book your flight to come and mingle with the celebs and lovely locals.  Yes?  Well, unfortunately, there is one drawback.  St. Barth’s is, without a doubt, obscenely expensive!!!  Everything is in the euro, and because it is so pristinely well kept, imports lovely wines, cheeses and other products across the Atlantic from France, and being it is a tourist’s paradise, the cost for anything and everything is high. 

On example of how expensive it is in St. Barth’s is the cute little shop where we’d buy our provisions for the yacht.  We called it the “Million Euro Shop” because you could never get out of there without spending oodles of money.  Example: one avocado cost us €5.  Five euros!  For ONE avocado.  That is roughly $7 for an avocado!  Is that insane or what?  And this is where we did the majority of our grocery shopping.  Gorgeous vine-on tomatoes from France, cooking sauces from Japan, organic milk from the States, fresh lobsters just caught that morning off St. Barth’s shores, oh, and kettle potato chips for the crew, all added up quite quickly.  Thank goodness the yacht was paying, otherwise we would have starved while in St. Barth’s. 

As for any other shopping, one might have guessed it, expensive.  A random (but beautiful) linen flowy top would cost, minimal €200, going on up to €500, easily.  That’s $280-$710, for a top similar to the ones Target is now selling for $30 in their new Calypso St. Barth line (which was very clever of Target).  Similarly, any beauty product, lotion, or perfume was equally as expensive, but I did indulge in some Ligne St. Barth’s perfumes and lotions, which are divine, F.Y.I.

If you can foot the bill, or have a wealthy relative who will fund you, St. Barth’s is worth the trip.  It is one of my favorite places in the Caribbean, and I’d love to have the chance to go back.  Who wouldn’t love visiting a quaint little piece of France, speeding mopeds, lovely wines, beautiful people and all, set in the picturesque Caribbean?  Yes, point made, I do believe.

Here’s a list of some of my favorite places on the island:

Image from www.lignestbarth.com

Bar de L’Oubli – Lovely coffee, wines, and amazing french fries!

Baz Bar- Great drinks, live music (most bands were from NYC, go figure).

Le Select- Home of the famous “Cheeseburger in Paradise”, also the ONLY inexpensive place to get a drink- $3 (yes dollars) for any beer, wine, or mixed drink.  

Any of the beaches, but I frequented Shell Beach the most.

Ligne St Barth lotions and perfumes