St. Lucia: Garden of Eden

by Paris Permenter & John Bigley

Jagged peaks wear a drape of velvety tropical greenery. Towering palms shade honey-colored beaches. Around every bend, colorful blooms promise romantic walks in a true garden of Eden.

This is St. Lucia, a place where the two of you will feel like Adam and Eve in a tropical wonderland, a destination where every hill, valley, and roadside is a veritable garden. Orange, lime, lemon, mango, breadfruit, plum, and coffee trees cover the landscape. Pineapples sprout alongside the highway. Spices like vanilla, nutmeg, and cinnamon grow in thick profusion. Miles of banana trees stretch to the horizon. Tall flame flowers, orchids, and hibiscus explode with color.

Romance comes easily in such a fertile environment. You'll find plenty of excuses to kiss in the shade of a tall coconut palm, beneath the spray of a mountainside waterfall, or atop a hillside lookout.

The symbols of St. Lucia are the Pitons, rugged mountains that climb from the sea to lofty heights. Located on the island's southwest coast, the verdant slopes of Gros Piton and Petit Piton are among the Caribbean's most recognizable landmarks.

One of St. Lucia's most romantic hideaways, Anse Chastanet (800-223-1108, 758-459-7000), overlooks these mountains with rooms that strip away the barriers between resort and nature. Many rooms have open air showers and three-walled bedrooms where tiny birds make chattering roommates.

Even if you don't stay at Anse Chastanet, you and yours might enjoy an open-air happy hour at the resort's Piton Bar, with its own view of the peaks. Try the house specialty: Stairway to Heaven, concocted with Seventh Heaven liqueur made of ginger and bois bandé (which locals swear is a powerful aphrodisiac), rum, coconut cream, and orange juice.

Nature lovers find plenty of diversion in this part of St. Lucia starting with the sultry rain forest. You'll need a guide to enter the restricted rain forest region, so sign up for a tour to walk through the dense foliage, swim in a tropical waterfall, and learn more about the plants that make up this fragile ecosystem. And, if you're lucky, you may have the opportunity to see the rare St. Lucian parrot.

This area is also home to a unique Sulphur Spring volcano, often called the "drive-through volcano." The two of you can walk to the edge of the volcano which last erupted two centuries ago. The smell of sulphur is heavy in the air, thanks to water black with ash that bubbles with gases released from deep in the earth's core.

Near the volcano, the Diamond Waterfalls and Gardens bloom with tropical splendor. A flower-lined trail winds to Diamond Waterfalls, a cascade that leaves a spray of "diamond" twinkles suspended in the air. Nearby, slip into steamy mineral baths built among ruins of the first baths commissioned by French King Louis XIV for use by his troops.

For all its fascinating attractions, the southern end of the island holds only part of St. Lucia's romantic treasures. On the north end of the island lies the capital city of Castries, surrounded by many of the island's top romantic resorts and beaches made for walking barefoot, two by two.

A good place to unwind after the stress of the wedding and the flight is the luxurious Royal St. Lucian (800-255-5859, 305-471-6170), an all-suite resort with a full service spa. Feel like a king and queen in the Royal Spa, where you can work out the kinks with a Swedish massage, body scrub, or a body treatment with soothing mineral-rich muds. A special honeymoon package pampers newlyweds with deluxe accommodations, a candlelit dinner on the beach with wine, a romantic sunset cruise, two spa treatments each, and more.

For those seeking around-the-clock action, Sandals St. Lucia Golf and Spa Resort (800-SANDALS, 305-284-1300) is a veritable honeycomb of all-inclusive activity. From the bars and billiards room in its elegant lobby to the tennis, golf, spa and watersports offerings, guests have plenty of fun from which to choose. Nearby, Sandals Halycon St. Lucia (800-SANDALS) is a quiet cousin, with rooms nestled in one- and two-story buildings, most outlined in trailing vines and fragrant tropical plants. Beautiful grounds offer couples plenty of quiet, shady nooks for time together.

When it's time to take a break from the beach, Castries, the island's largest town, is also its top shopping area. Here you'll have a choice between malls and markets for everything from fine jewels to handmade crafts that capture the island spirit. The busiest place in town -- especially on Saturdays -- is the Castries market where for over a century vendors have sold everything from fruits to local spices and crafts.

For duty-free treasures, head to the city's portside mall. Like an overflowing pirate's chest, Pointe Seraphine is filled with duty-free baubles, golden and glittery reminders of a island shopping spree. And if you're shopping on the south side of the island, Choiseul, a town known as the crafts center of the island, is home to the Arts and Crafts Development Centre, perfect for locally made straw, wood, and clay handcrafts.

If all that shopping works up your appetite, have no fear: St. Lucian food is sure to please. Creole cuisine is the order of the day in restaurants across the island. Spices liven up beef, chicken, pork, and lamb dishes, all served up with favorites such as rice and peas, dasheen (a root vegetable similar to a potato), and plantains. Enjoy it with a taste of local spirits such as La Belle Creole, Bounty Rum, and Piton beer. A favorite in Castries is the open air Jimmie's, a hillside restaurant that offers saltfish, green fig, and plenty of other local favorites. If you're a little less daring, you can fall back on seafood dishes such as conch (yet another reported aphrodisiac), scampi, sautéed scallops, or even T-bone steak. And for an unforgettable setting in the south, try Bang, tucked right between the Pitons. Best reached by boat, the restaurant serves up local fare and spicy island barbecue.

As the sun sinks into the sea, don't think that the fun is over in St. Lucia, especially on Friday nights. Gros Islet, a small island off the northwest shore, is known throughout the Caribbean for its Friday night jump-up. Street side music blares and residents and locals alike jam to the sounds of reggae, soca, and calypso-- a true Caribbean celebration.