Room 1
Soufrière holidays
To see how stunning Soufrière really is, take a boat out into the bay and look back over the town: colourful wooden buildings pour down the hillside to the wharf, rainforested hills surround them and the volcanic Piton peaks soar skywards. Then sail closer to the coastline, where coves come with sands of white, gold and a deliciously deep charcoal grey.
- Flight time
- 9h
- From London
- Currency
- EC$
- Eastern Caribbean dollar
- Time zone
- GMT -4h
Getting to Soufrière
There are two airports in St Lucia, but most flights come into Hewanorra International Airport (UVF) down in Vieux Fort. You can book direct flights here from London Gatwick which take around 9 hours. Regular flights also set off from New York, Miami, Boston and Chicago airports. The drive from the airport to Soufriere takes 45 mins – 1 hour, and if transfers aren’t provided by your hotel, you can hail a taxi from outside the airport or pre-book a transfer with a local company like St Lucia Taxi Service. Car hire is also available from the airport.
Average weather in Soufriere
- Temperature (°C)*
- Rainfall (Inches)*
Holidays in Soufrière
If only as an excuse to visit the like-no-other Anse des Pitons beach, sit and sip a drink or three at the Bayside Bar (we like the Sugar Beach Punch and Passion Fruit Mojito). Whispers is known for its TV screens, pool tables and karaoke nights, while night owls can dance into the early hours at Club Kokomo.
We love how the locals that run most of Soufriere’s restaurants come and chat to you as you arrive, giving a warm welcome and talking you through the dishes of the day. Martha and her daughter run Martha’s Table in the middle of the forest, where you can feast on tasty home cooking (like fish cakes and meats with Martha’s amazing secret sauce). For delicious regional, no-fuss grub, try Fedo’s. British head chef and owner Orlando is the heart and soul of his eponymous restaurant on Cemetery Road – he’ll tell you how he aims to make Caribbean cuisine as international as Chinese or Italian, and once you’ve tried his menu (which can cater for vegans, veggies and everyone else) you’ll see he’s got a good chance of succeeding. Sometimes nothing beats a good old pizza, and you can devour these as well as pasta and grilled meats at Ruby’s (which has a bouncy castle for big and little kids).
If you’re celebrating a special occasion or fancy pushing the boat out, book a table at the Boucan Restaurant run by Hotel Chocolat. They specialise in ‘cacao cuisine’, with dishes like cacao spiced beef and Yorkshire puds and cacao gin-cured Mahi Mahi. And the puddings… Let’s just say you’ll want to leave room for them – the Story Of Chocolate trio, sticky toffee pudding and mousse are the kind of things you’ll want to write home about.
Soufriere’s shopping’s all about market stalls and local stores – and we love it. Vendors at the Colombette Viewing Gallery sell souvenirs and fresh food, with awesome views over the Pitons to boot. There are similar stalls at the Sulphur Springs Park and by the Toraille Falls so you can pair a purchase or two with a trip to beautiful natural wonders. The beloved Debbie’s boutique in Soufriere centre was destroyed in the fire of November 2015, but thankfully manager Noelita opened The Image Tree nearby within a few months – you can find the same St Lucian crafts and souvenirs that Debbie’s was so loved for, including some beautiful wooden carvings. For more shopping, head down into Choiseul for the Art and Crafts shop and the Art Gallery, where Hattie and her husband create some amazing pieces using local materials.
Activities in Soufrière
Watersports
Diving in Soufrière
Our favourite spot for diving in St Lucia, Soufriere’s shores are swimming in spectacular reefs – many belonging to the Soufriere Marine Management Area (SMMA). The Piton mountains that tower overhead continue to slope under the water, with the foot of Gros Piton leading into the popular Coral Gardens, with their corals, barrel sponges, snappers and turtles. Petit Piton slopes down from the beach to a sheer wall covered in corals and populated by schools of tiny tropical fish, seahorses and turtles. The Superman’s Flight site is around here too, named for the fact that parts of the Superman II film (the bit where he flies down a cliff and over the sea) were shot here. You enter the water at the foot of the mountain and dive alongside a sloping wall past bright sponges, corals and tropical fish – sometimes humpback whales have been seen swimming by. For beginners, Rosamond’s Trench is a sheltered spot teeming with tiny tropical fish. One not to be missed is Fairyland, a diving dream world around a major headland where currents keep the corals and sponges fabulously clean, and the colours really pop. It’s a shallow site with turtles, schooling fish, stingrays and nurse sharks among common sightings. Nearby, Anse Chastanet is good for snorkelling and first dives, with bright sponges, brain and boulder corals as well as trumpet fish and turtles. There are deeper parts with stunning plate corals here too. For wreck diving, head up the coast to Anse Cochon for the Lesleen and Daini Koyomaru sites – two purpose sunk vessels brimming with brightly coloured marine life. If you’re planning to do PADI training or want to join a tour, look out for local companies like Eco Divers and Action Adventure Divers.
Surfing & stand up paddleboarding in Soufrière
The Soufriere seaside is too calm to surf – you can head southwest to Vieux Fort’s Anse de Sable for kitesurfing and windsurfing, or north to Gros Islet for good old-fashioned wave surfing (Windjammer, Commaret Point and Pigeon Point are the main breaks on the island). Last time we checked there weren’t any board rental companies on the island, so you’ll want to fly one in if you’re keen to spend time on the water.
Stand up paddleboarding on the other hand is perfectly suited to the sea here, and makes a brilliant way to explore the coast and look back over the mountains. Most of the bigger hotels and beach resorts have their own paddle boards for guests to use, or you can bring your own from home (the inflatable ones are getting quite popular here).
Windsurfing & kitesurfing in Soufrière
An hour or so’s drive south will find you at Anse des Sables, the closest kiteboarding and windsurfing spot to Soufriere. Here, the Reef Beach Café provide everything you’ll need – gear, lessons, supervision and a good bar to watch the action from. Downwind from the café is a stretch of reef-protected bay, where consistent cross-shore winds blow in from the left between December and July. With brilliantly warm waters and views over to the Maria Islands, kiting and windsurfing here’s an absolute dream.
Sailing in Soufriere
But for the bigger hotels which have their own set of sailing catamarans for guests to play on, most of the sailing in St Lucia takes place further up the west coast around Rodney Bay. A day trip here takes about 1.5 hours to drive each way, but if you pre-book your lessons, race experience or bareboat you can fill a fantastic day trip on the water. If your main priority’s experiencing St Lucia from the sea, look out for companies like Mystic Man, Feel Good Water Taxis and Joy’s Coastal Cruise that provide chartered tours along the coastline, whale and dolphin watching trips and fishing excursions.
Fishing in Soufrière
Soufriere harbour’s the set-off point for most deep-sea fishing tours, which take you as little as a mile offshore to troll for a bundle of big game fish: tuna, marlin, wahoo, snapper and many more. As well as vessel, captain and crew, packages usually include soft drinks and beer and run for 4, 6, and 8-hour sessions. You can often combine your angling experience with whale watching, snorkelling and sunset tours for an incredible day out on the water. If you fancy helping the ecosystem, ask your local dive company about spearfishing for lionfish which is becoming an increasingly popular - and environmentally important – activity in these parts.
Canoeing & kayaking in Soufrière
Most kayak tours in Soufriere set off from Anse Chastanet, taking you out into the bay or along the volcanic coastline to the base of the Pitons. The Bat Caves are a super place to stop off - a 40ft slit between the cliffs inhabited by hundreds of bats - and there are some stunning hidden coves along the coast where you can stop off for a beach picnic. Look out for speciality birdwatching and sunset trips if you fancy something a little different. If you’d rather paddle at your own pace, the bigger hotels and all-inclusives often supply sea kayaks for guests.
Land activities
Golf in Soufrière
Golfers based in Soufriere are better off heading up the coast to Castries or Gros Islet, where a 9-hole and 18-hole course await. The smaller goes by the name of Sandals La Toc, and though second in size it packs a punch when it comes to challenges – tight fairways, strategically placed trees and volatile sea breezes. Further north, the St. Lucia Golf Club’s 18 holes are spread out in the rolling hills of the Cap Estate, offering views of the west and east coasts with trade winds to keep you on your toes.
Cycling & mountain biking in Soufrière
Souf’s the island’s capital of two-wheel action, where Bike St Lucia have carefully created eight miles of trails in the Anse Mamin area. Varying in difficulty with rocky, rooty edges for experts, these jungle paths are an absolute hoot to blast down. Eastwards, there’s a super trail to the Dennery waterfall, or you can head down the coast to Vieux Fort or up to Castries. For a full island circuit, your best bet is heading anti-clockwise with a local who knows the paths inside out.
Walking & hiking in Soufrière
This is probably the best base on the island for walks and hikes, thanks to the nearness of St Lucia’s great hills and mountains. Gros Piton might be slightly taller of the twin peaks, but it’s not as steep... Hiking up to the top takes around 3-6 hours and is pretty easy, with just the odd steep stretch and some scrambling over rocks. With a guide in the lead and a good pair of shoes on your feet, you’re winning – just don’t do a Richard Branson and make sure you bring lots of water!
It is possible to hike Petit Piton, but much more challenging and you’ll definitely need a local expert in the lead. The same goes for St Lucia’s highest peak Mount Gimie, which takes 6-8 hours to scale and descend – through the rainforest, over a small river then up steep trails (there weren’t any proper footpaths last time we were here).
But it’s not all mountain hikes – if you’d rather be enjoying views of the peaks than scaling them, other routes include the Tet Paul Nature Trail which takes around 45 minutes and looks out over the Pitons.
