Question:
In Anguilla and St. Lucia you have two absolutely lovely islands which are lovely for entirely different reasons – so different that when I first read your question below about "combining the two", I thought that you meant combining the two islands rather than combining the condo and snorkeling. You could, of course, do that if you had the time and wanted to spend a huge amount on airfare, and because of the contrast between the islands it would make a perfect two week vacation. However, on second reading it sounds as if you need to make a choice between these two different versions of paradise, so here goes: I saw that you already had a response about Anse Chastenet on St. Lucia. The writer is clearly a connoisseur since she has chosen the exact spot that I would have chosen. (Please see my response to the post with the strange subject of "Golf on St. Lucia" for my thoughts about that island. The writer had already decided to stay in the north. And if he wanted a place to golf that is certainly where he needed to be. And he had already chosen his hotel, so I did not suggest an alternative. But for a truly unique experience, Anse Chastenet would be my choice. We were there ten years ago, but from what I have read it is still the winner on St. Lucia.) There are, however, several things to note about Anse Chastenet relative to your desires. It is a hotel rather than a condo, so you will not have a kitchen. And as a taxi driver said to me about a somewhat isolated resort on Antigua, "the only thing is, mon, when you are there, you are THERE". There is little close to Anse Chastenet, and the area is mountainous, so driving anyplace is a project. I have read that the road has been redone (or at least that it was BEing redone. When we were there is was a collection of impressive potholes losely connected by aging asphalt. You can drive, and you will see some magnificent views, but it is not relaxing driving. So what about Anguilla? We were there in ‘94, and if there had not been a hurricane between then and now, I could give you an unqualified, money-back guarantee on a place that you would be sure to love. I do not know that this is not still the case, but after I describe it, and you say, "That’s the place!", do some investigating to make sure that what I say is still true. It may very well be, but I know that the area took a hit. We stayed at the Carimar Beach Club. It is a two story condo built in a large U around lovely gardens and is right on the beach. The apartments are spacious and beautifully furnished. We were there about the same time of year that you will be. We had booked a less expensive unit that was not on the end of the U that opens on the beach but were upgraded to an end unit because things were not too busy. If you can, get one of those second floor, end apartments. As we sat on our sofa, we looked out on the incredibly wide, white sand beach to turquiose water framed by palm trees. We have been going to the Caribbean for 28 years, and this was the best view that we have ever had from our room. The beach sloped gently into the water, and the bottom was perfectly smooth sand. The beach was absolutely clean, and there were never many people on it. Carimar is toward the north end of it. About 200 yards further north is the Malliouhana, which is expensive even when compared to the other expensive hotels on Anguilla. The folks who stay there have to walk down the hill to get to the beach, you are already there. The rocks at the base of the Malliouhana’s cliff are great for some gentle snorkeling. There is (it pains me to even think "was", so I hope that is not the case) a "fish nursery" there – great schools of tiny, beautiful fish. At the south end of the beach, about 1-1/2 miles or so away is the Coccoloba hotel on a point dividing your beach from the next one. Snorkeling at the base of the cliff on the far side of the Coccoloba, we come upon a nearly invisible -but once you see it, spectacular- peacock flounder and a moray eel. We did not find them the next day, but that one experience just about paid for the trip. These two sites are rock rather than beautiful coral venues, but they kept us avid snorkelers happy. Between Carimar and Coccoloba there are several other hotels and a very well thought of (we had a very nice and a not quite as nice experience there) restaurant named Blanchards. I suspect that some of the best food you will find on Anguilla is at Cinnamon Reef Hotel on the other side of the island. We had a sublime breakfast there, and it has an excellent reputation. In general, dining is very expensive on Anguilla. So are hotels, but the hotels lower their rates during the off-season, and the restaurants do not (probably cannot, so I am not faulting them). The good news is that there is an unusual number of very good restaurants. In our frugal manner, we also found some moderately priced ones. One was Arlo’s, described by Birnbaum as "the island’s best Italian restaurant". I entered as a skeptic since I am from Philly where you have to really try to find a bad Italian restaurant, but I left with a smile. For about $8 we feasted on a pizza that could win medals in Philly or New York, and their other food looked great and was fairly priced. Another evening we ate at the Ferryboat Inn. You can spend a lot more there, but my five bucks bought a delectable cheese omelette. On the other hand, we stopped for lunch at Pimm’s at Cap Jaluca, thought about the $16.00 hamburger, found out that the price did not include having it fed to me bite by bite by a mermaid, and took our patronage elsewhere. (Cap Jaluca, however, is just the place for moonlit beach strolling.) Definitely rent a car. Everyplace on Anguilla is down a long road from everyplace else. Driving on Anguilla is very easy because it is virtually flat. The best coral snorkeling we found was at Shoal Bay in the north. (Note that there is also a Shoal Bay near Carimar – I could never understand why a small island had to confuse people by having two bays with the same name.) As with most islands where people say "snorkeling is great anyplace", it isn’t that simple. If you go to Shoal Bay – and you should, both for the snorkeling and to eat at Uncle Ernie’s and drink his $2 Heinekens – the good snorkeling is about 50 yards offshore a couple of hundred yards north of Uncle Ernie’s and is not that large an area, so if you don’t find it, ask. On the road about half way between Carimar and the town, there was a lovely lady who sold delicious mangos. They were perfect with our breakfast cereal. There is also a small central market with a bakery nearby. See, I told you that you would say, "That’s it!". Now get on those 800 numbers to Malliouhana, Coccoloba, and Carimar, and try to get some feeling for whether things are still the same. You might even want to ask the very friendly and helpful folks at Carimar to have one of their snorkeling guests call you back collect to report. That is the only way you will get a valid assessment. It’s not that the hotel people won’t tell the truth, it’s just that they never go in the water. And the people in the office at Carimar are so nice that I’ll bet they really would have someone call back. Well, that’s all the news from Lake Woebegone. If you get a chance, let me know about Grand Cayman. That is one of the few Caribbean islands we have missed. – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Some friends and I are looking into going to either Anguilla or St Lucia in May/June. What are the best hotels or condos/villas to stay at (nice rooms with good beach views) ? Where are the best snorkel spots? Can we combine the two? (2 years ago we stayed in a beautiful condo on Grand Cayman on 7 mile beach, and there was a lovely snorkeling spot directly off our beach. Anything similar on either St Lucia or Anguilla? I like to take trips around the island as well, but there’s nothing nicer than waking up in the morning and going for a little pre-breakfast snorkel 
And just in general, feel free to offer any info/advice as far as good/bad things about either island. Thanks for any input! -Ray
Response:
Nope. At least not for snorkeling, and we really tried. We went down to the far west end where there was a deep narrow cove that had been suggested. It was just OK. There is (was?) Scilly Cay where there was a restaurant on its own little island. There was supposed to be snorkeling there, but whatever might have been had been destroyed by clumsy snorkelers. We worked at it, but we could not come up with any beyond the ones I cited. You might post to rec.scuba for the shallow diving. If you want world class snorkeling, it looks like Bonaire (where we have seen it and been suitable awed) and the Caymans, where we have not been, are two of the best. – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Mike, Are there coral reefs in other areas of Anguilla for sorkling or shallow Diving?? I have never run into SCUBA people who have visited Anguilla in particular? JOhn xIn article : In Anguilla and St. Lucia you have two absolutely lovely islands which : are lovely for entirely different reasons – so different that when I first : read your question below about "combining the two", I thought that you : meant combining the two islands rather than combining the condo and : snorkeling. You could, of course, do that if you had the time and : wanted to spend a huge amount on airfare, and because of the contrast : between the islands it would make a perfect two week vacation. However, : on second reading it sounds as if you need to make a choice between these : two different versions of paradise, so here goes: : I saw that you already had a response about Anse Chastenet on St. Lucia. : The writer is clearly a connoisseur since she has chosen the exact spot : that I would have chosen. (Please see my response to the post with the : strange subject of "Golf on St. Lucia" for my thoughts about that island. : The writer had already decided to stay in the north. And if he wanted a : place to golf that is certainly where he needed to be. And he had already : chosen his hotel, so I did not suggest an alternative. But for a truly : unique experience, Anse Chastenet would be my choice. We were there : ten years ago, but from what I have read it is still the winner on : St. Lucia.) There are, however, several things to note about Anse Chastenet : relative to : your desires. It is a hotel rather than a condo, so you will not have a : kitchen. And as a taxi driver said to me about a somewhat isolated resort : on Antigua, "the only thing is, mon, when you are there, you are THERE". : There is little close to Anse Chastenet, and the area is mountainous, so : driving anyplace is a project. I have read that the road has been : redone (or at least that it was BEing redone. When we were there is was a : collection of impressive potholes losely connected by aging asphalt. : You can drive, and you will see some magnificent views, but it is not : relaxing driving. : So what about Anguilla? We were there in ‘94, and if there had not been a : hurricane between then and now, I could give you an unqualified, : money-back guarantee on a place that you would be sure to love. I do not : know that this is not still the case, but after I describe it, and you : say, "That’s the place!", do some investigating to make sure that what I : say is still true. It may very well be, but I know that the area took a hit. : We stayed at the Carimar Beach Club. It is a two story condo built in a : large U around lovely gardens and is right on the beach. The apartments : are spacious and beautifully furnished. We were there about the same time : of year that you will be. We had booked a less expensive unit that was : not on the end of the U that opens on the beach but were upgraded to an : end unit because things were not too busy. If you can, get one of those : second floor, end apartments. As we sat on our sofa, we looked out on the : incredibly : wide, white sand beach to turquiose water framed by palm trees. We have : been going to the Caribbean for 28 years, and this was the best view that : we have ever had from our room. The beach sloped gently into the : water, and the bottom was perfectly smooth sand. The beach was absolutely : clean, and there were never many people on it. Carimar is toward the : north end of it. About 200 yards further north is the Malliouhana, which : is expensive even when compared to the other expensive hotels on : Anguilla. The folks who stay there have to walk down the hill to get to : the beach, you are already there. The rocks at the base of the : Malliouhana’s cliff are great for some gentle snorkeling. There is (it : pains me to even think "was", so I hope that is not the case) a : "fish nursery" there – great schools of tiny, beautiful fish. At the : south end of the beach, about 1-1/2 miles or so away is the Coccoloba : hotel on a point dividing your beach from the next one. Snorkeling at the : base of the cliff on the far side of the Coccoloba, we come upon a nearly : invisible -but once you see it, spectacular- peacock flounder and a moray : eel. We did not find them the next day, but that one experience just : about paid for the trip. These two sites are rock rather than : beautiful coral venues, but they kept us avid snorkelers happy. Between : Carimar and Coccoloba there are several other hotels and a very well : thought of (we had a very nice and a not quite as nice experience there) : restaurant named Blanchards. I suspect that some of the best food you will : find on Anguilla is at Cinnamon Reef Hotel on the other side of the : island. We had a sublime breakfast there, and it has an excellent : reputation. In general, dining is very expensive on Anguilla. So are : hotels, but the hotels lower their rates during the off-season, and the : restaurants do not (probably cannot, so I am not faulting them). The good : news is that there is an unusual number of very good restaurants. In our : frugal manner, we also found some moderately priced ones. One was Arlo’s, : described by Birnbaum as "the island’s best Italian restaurant". I : entered as a skeptic since I am from Philly where you have to really try : to find a bad Italian restaurant, but I left with a smile. For about : $8 we feasted on a pizza that could win medals in Philly or New : York, and their other food looked great and was fairly priced. Another : evening we ate at the Ferryboat Inn. You can spend a lot more there, but my : five bucks bought a delectable cheese omelette. On the other hand, we : stopped for lunch at Pimm’s at Cap Jaluca, thought about the $16.00 : hamburger, found out that the price did not include having it fed to me : bite by bite by a mermaid, and took our patronage elsewhere. (Cap Jaluca, : however, is just the place for moonlit beach strolling.) : Definitely rent a car. Everyplace on Anguilla is down a long road from : everyplace else. : Driving on Anguilla is very easy because it is virtually flat. The best : coral snorkeling we found was at Shoal Bay in the north. (Note that there : is also a Shoal Bay near Carimar – I could never understand why a small : island had to confuse people by having two bays with the same name.) As : with most islands where people say "snorkeling is great anyplace", it : isn’t that simple. If you go to Shoal Bay – and you should, both for the : snorkeling and to eat at Uncle Ernie’s and drink his $2 Heinekens – the : good snorkeling is about 50 yards offshore a couple of hundred yards : north of Uncle Ernie’s and is not that large an area, so if you don’t : find it, ask. : On the road about half way between Carimar and the town, there was a : lovely lady who sold delicious mangos. They were perfect with our : breakfast cereal. There is also a small central market with a bakery nearby. : See, I told you that you would say, "That’s it!". Now get on those 800 : numbers to Malliouhana, Coccoloba, and Carimar, and try to get some : feeling for whether things are still the same. You might even want to ask : the very friendly and helpful folks at Carimar to have one of their : snorkeling guests call you back collect to report. That is the only way : you will get a valid assessment. It’s not that the hotel people won’t : tell the truth, it’s just that they never go in the water. And the people : in the office at Carimar are so nice that I’ll bet they really would have : someone call back. : Well, that’s all the news from Lake Woebegone. If you get a chance, let : me know about Grand Cayman. That is one of the few Caribbean islands we : have missed. : : Some friends and I are looking into going to either Anguilla or St Lucia : in May/June. : : What are the best hotels or condos/villas to stay at (nice rooms with good : beach views) ? : : Where are the best snorkel spots? : : Can we combine the two? (2 years ago we stayed in a beautiful condo on : Grand Cayman on 7 mile beach, and there was a lovely snorkeling spot : directly off our beach. Anything similar on either St Lucia or Anguilla? I : like to take trips around the island as well, but there’s nothing nicer : than waking up in the morning and going for a little pre-breakfast snorkel : : : And just in general, feel free to offer any info/advice as far as good/bad : things about either island. : : Thanks for any input! : : -Ray : :