7 days in Les Saintes

Since it didn’t work out for us to rent a car in Basse Terre, we decided on Feb 1st to head for Les Saintes, a idyllic group of islands just south of the main island of Guadeloupe. The only town, Bourg des Saintes, is on the largest island, Terre d’en Haut. After a two hour motor sail, with wind on the nose, we were looking forward to picking up a mooring, but all 80 moorings set out for cruisers in the main bay, were taken. We happened upon the only remaining mooring in another bay, off Pain A Sucre. It was a pretty spot where boats stage for the morning hustle to pick moorings off the main town, as other cruisers leave them.

The next morning we were able to pick up a mooring off Terre d’en Haut and get our dinghy deployed to go explore the town. The town is full of small shops selling original artworks, clothing and island made rum or coffee, as well as some of the best restaurants we have come across yet. The first restaurant we tried was Au Bon Vivre, a lovely place, run by a chef from Toulouse, with seating outside on the street or inside in the plant covered courtyard. There we had the best cod fritters ever, a cold Karett beer, an incredible tuna steak prepared with leaks and a ceviche in coconut broth.

Les Saintes Multi-Services is where you check in for customs in Les Saintes. You can also use their computers and wifi while watching a big screen TV and getting your laundry done. They are normally not open on Sundays, but on Feb. 3rd, they got so many requests to watch the Super Bowl, that they opened just for the rabid American football fans to grab a beer and enjoy the game. It was fun to meet new cruiser friends there, in addition to running into some of the folks we’ve been seeing all along the island chain.

It was at the game that we got tipped off to the best street side grilled chicken on the island and a barbecue planned on the smallest of the islands, Ilet a Capri. The next day, a group of Salty Dawgs took our dinghies along with drinks, an item for the grill, and an item to share, to the beach where we ate, swam and hiked to the fort at the top of the island for some spectacular views.

We, meaning mostly Andrew, got some boat projects done in Les Saintes, including getting the water maker running, whipping some lines that had frayed and remounting the fishing rod holder so that it didn’t interfere with the outboard motor mount, while I explored on my SUP. We rewarded ourselves with a dinner out at 1 Ti Bo Doudou, a fabulous place with tables set right on the beach and claims to “the top local chef, especially when it comes to seafood”. Andrew had ‘to die for’ mahi in passion fruit sauce and I had lion fish in a fabulous onion cream sauce. Yum! The next night we bought some fresh mahi right off the boat and Andrew tried to emulate his dish. Not quite the same, but good.

One of our last days in Les Saintes, we rented a green ‘electric’ car to motor around the island, the highlights of which were: 1) the Baie de Pompierre, a beautiful tree lined beach off a secluded bay, 2) the Bay de Marigot, a small fishing village w/ a quiet anchorage and 3) Fort Napoleon, with a great view of Billy Ruff’n in the bay and the entire island of Terre D’en Haut.

Key tip for cruisers: The best ice in the Caribbean can be found in Bourg des Saintes at the bakery near Carrefour. It’s made in a shape, which I can only described as an upside down bucket of sand, that resists freezing to itself and is easily broken apart for drinks!

Cheers to that!!