Sun, sea and spectacular views, Jade Wright finds her tropical paradise in St Lucia...
I emerge, bikini-clad and glistening, from the turquoise Caribbean sea onto a dazzling white sandy beach, framed by swaying palm trees. At least, that's how I'd imagined it a thousand times, sitting at my desk or battling my way along the Dock Road, wind whipping my hair against my face.
It would be my Ursula Andress moment, and waiting on the beach would be my very own James Bond. Except, Ursula didn't have flippers on her feet, nor was she spitting sea water out of her snorkel. And I was sadly lacking my James Bond. Never mind, it may have been a shuffle rather than a sashay onto shore, but I'd certainly found my island paradise.
St Lucia is heaven on earth white sands, clear blue seas and weather that laughs in the face of even the most luxurious staycation. North west of Barbados and south of Martinique, it is the jewel of the picture-postcard Windward Islands, the most southerly part of the Caribbean. Britain and France went to war over it no less than 14 times, before finally in 1814, it became a British colony. Stepping onto the tropical paradise of a beach, I can see why. There are still French flavours throughout the island from the place names through to the patois spoken in the streets.
My home for the week was Windjammer Landings, one of the best established and friendliest resorts on the island. With breathtaking views overlooking the cobalt waters of the Caribbean Sea, my villa had a terrace with a jacuzzi, two bedrooms and its own kitchen. If the weather hadn't been so glorious, the sea not quite so tempting, I could have spent a week in the villa, marvelling at the luxury of it all.
Thankfully there's an array of activities on offer at Windjammer with everything from tropical jeep safaris to Hobie Cat sailing. I couldn't resist the offer of horse-riding along the Atlantic coast, at what has become known as Winehouse bay, after Amy Winehouse who spent her summers on the island.
We even dismounted from our trusty steeds for a drink in her local a fabulously secluded shack of a beach bar. The barman cut us down a ripe coconut from the tree, slashing it open, splashing in some rum and popping in a straw, before serving us up the fruit inside. This was fast food Caribbean style.
Relax, smile and drink rum and you're virtually a local. But sadly, as it's outside the resort, the pricing system is rather arbitrary. Expect lots of haggling and not to get any change, we quickly learnt.
Like all destinations, St Lucia has its drawbacks. Food and drink prices are high, as most supplies are imported from America. Expect to pay double what you would at home in their supermarkets, triple or more in the resort shops.
The hour-long wait to get through passport control wasn't the best start to the holiday, but was preferable to the legions of street vendors that tried to sell their wares every time we left the resort and sometimes even on the private beach. Their much-used phrase "no pressure, no problem" doesn't seem to apply to their sales techniques, but this is an issue across the Caribbean, not limited to St Lucia's golden shores.
The island is so romantic it's hard not to fall in love if not with that special someone, at least with the fabulous beaches, and the sea itself.
The best way to take it all in is by boat. Windjammer runs sailing tours down the scenic west coast on a catamaran, past the quaint fishing villages of Anse-la-Raye and Canaries, as dolphins swim in the boat's wake. Then it's on to the twin peaks of St Lucia's famous landmark the Pitons two mountains that rise out of the sea near Soufriere, the island's second biggest city, but still no bigger than Allerton.
The boat docks at the foot of the mountains, in the Sulphur Springs, the Caribbean's only drive-in Volcano, and then stops off at the Toraille Waterfall, where we dived in for a swim, went for a stroll through the tropical botanical gardens, and stopped off for lunch, served in a restaurant in Soufriere. On the return sail, we stopped off at the beautiful Anse Cochon bay for swimming and snorkelling. Snorkelling inches above the teeming coral is unmissable.
Back on deck the crew served rum punches, and we sat glass in one hand, camera in the other, taking in the spectacular views. The only thing missing was an extra hand to slap on the sunscreen.
Where's Bond when you need him?
