We’re back!! We had the most amazing honeymoon in St. Lucia! We left October 28 and got home in the wee hours of November 4. The honeymoon went by so fast (as they usually do), but every moment was a blast and spending our first week together as a married couple in such a beautiful place was so great!
So this was David’s first trip abroad and my second. We honestly didn’t know what to expect, but we’re so glad we went because I think we both have a bit of wander lust now, which is fantastic! We honeymooned at Sandals Halcyon Beach and took a few excursions that I’m going to share with you! However, even though we had fun, there are definitely a few things we would do differently or wish we had known before we went. So keep reading for our St. Lucia travel tips!
Go All-Inclusive!
This as the best decision we made for our honeymoon! Sandals has 3 all-inclusive resorts in St. Lucia and we stayed at Halcyon Beach. We checked out the other two resorts and were glad we chose Halcyon. La Toc seemed like a major party resort and not as well maintained as our resorts. Grande was double the price of Halcyon and definitely seemed like it was more for an older crowd (with deep pockets). Halcyon was a nice mix of younger and older couples celebrating tons of different occasions.
A huge benefit that we enjoyed about our all-inclusive was the fact that you didn’t have to take your wallet anywhere. Food, drinks, and beach activities are already paid for! Loved that! However, we did wish we brought more cash and here’s why…
… You have to tip people on your excursions! We went on two excursions and both times tips were highly suggested and we didn’t want to be rude (plus, we really enjoyed them!) By the end of our first excursion we decided we needed to find an ATM to pull out more money so we could tip the tour guides and our butler.
Is a Butler Worth it?
Yes, we splurged and got a butler at our resort. And it was AMAZING. I will say that if your budget simply doesn’t allow for it, then do NOT get one. Stay within your budget and you’ll still have a great time! But, our butler just made our stay that much more special and convenient.
Our butler, Maverick, did things like reserving spots for us at the beach or pool, bringing us drinks while we were on the beach, grabbing us nachos to eat poolside (that was totally amazing in case you were wondering,) planning and making dinner reservations for us in the evening, bringing breakfast to our patio (photo below of the deliciousness), and even decorating our bed each evening with a fun message.
What Excursions You Should Take
We didn’t want to spend the entire honeymoon in a pool, so we booked excursions. The first one we went on was a half day tour of the rain forest ending in natural mud baths. October is rainy season in St. Lucia, so the weather didn’t always cooperate. Our tour group piled into an open air, old Land Rover and headed into the mountains to make our way to the rain forest. By the time we got there, we were all soaked from rain. But it was worth it. The rain forest was incredible! We hiked to a waterfall and jumped in to cool off. Ok, David jumped in, I did not. I’m not adventure girl.
After the waterfall, we made our way to sulfur springs near an active volcano. Luckily, it wasn’t too active or I wouldn’t be writing this. Unfortunately, due to the excessive rain that season, the mud baths were closed and we weren’t able to get in. That’s one major thing we took away from this trip- the Caribbean has a rainy season that will literally shut everything down. For example, all beach activities at our resort were stopped due to strong currents in the water.
Our other excursion was a catamaran and snorkel experience below the Piton Mountains! It was incredible! We left the city of Castries around 1pm and sailed to a natural reef where the Piton Mountains drain into the water. Snorkeling and just watching the fish was so relaxing and peaceful. Once we got back on the catamaran, they had rum punch and tapas for everyone! We sailed back to Castries and docked around 7pm. It was definitely a full day but something I would do again!
If you want to check out the company we went with for our rainforest tour, here it is! Here’s the link to our snorkeling tour!
What We Wore
So…. I brought tons of cute dresses, rompers, shorts, and blouses, but take a guess how much of it I actually wore? Hardly any of it. Honestly, you spend all day in a swimsuit and beach cover up and then in the evening you change into something nicer and ideally flowy to hopefully cover the food baby you’re sporting thanks to the lunch buffet. I wish I were kidding. I wanted to share tons of cute outfits with you all but honestly, I did’t even wear them! We took photos right before dinner one evening and I can tell you my pink dress is by Do+Be and it fit so well with the scenery around us. David wore tons of Hawaiian print shirts from Tommy Bahama and J. Crew. He’d literally been saving up shirts to wear for this trip.
I would 100% recommend taking double the number of swimsuits and loose clothing you think you need and cut down on the number of tees and shorts you bring. Also, bring water shoes. Yes, they look goofy, but you’ll want them for all of your excursions.
I think that’s about it. We really loved the island and are ready to start planning our next trip! Just go and enjoy the people and the culture. Be respectful to their customs and remember you not only represent yourself, but also your home country when you travel abroad. Travel really is a gift and has the ability to expand your mind. David and I loved every second of it.
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WITTY 'N' PRETTY 