Travel to Guadeloupe

GUADELOUPE TRIP

The Caribbean consists of a number of islands with warm climates and local populations known for their equally warm welcome. A trip to Guadeloupe, which consists of five main islands, is a case in point. There is, first, Basse-Terre, where you will have the chance to hike the foothills of the Soufriere. At 1467 metres, this volcano dominates the landscape and offers a spectacular panorama. 

From your hotel in Guadeloupe, you will enjoy incredible scenery including countless cascades, waterfalls, ponds, plantations, parks, etc. These same attractions exist on Grande-Terre, the island that completes the other wing of the butterfly that the Guadeloupe archipelago forms in the Caribbean Sea. Of  limestone formation, this region is home to amazing beaches that give way to a turquoise sea with many lagoons. Swimming, surfing, diving, fishing, or just relaxing: all activities to be enjoyed with abandon! Afterwards, let yourself be seduced by the local, fragrant Creole cuisine. Don't forget to visit the smaller islands that constitute Guadeloupe: La Désirade, Les Saintes, and Marie-Galante, each with its unique and wonderful charm. 

Basse-Terre Island

Dominated by the highest peak at 1,467 metres, Soufrière – also known as “The Old Woman” – Basse-Terre is one of the butterfly wings that form Guadeloupe.

Basse-Terre is a mountainous massif covered by a magnificent tropical forest of 17,000 hectares, classed as a National Park since 1989. It is home to many marked hiking trails of varying intensity. Its lush vegetation (including more than 3,000 species of trees) is home to exotic fauna, albeit without poisonous animals. Its extraordinary natural charms come to us through its waterfalls, cascades, pools, parks, and various plantations! It is also lined with pebble beaches of tan, brown, black, and pink sand, not to mention a fabulous world-famous reserve: Réserve Cousteau (with an underwater bust of Jacques Cousteau). Basse-Terre is a place of cultural diversity: Catholic church and Hindu temple, the archaeological remains of the first inhabitants and the seventeenth-century military fort. The main city and capital of the department, also called Basse-Terre, is a veritable history book ...

Grande-Terre Island

Grande-Terre, also known as the Little Brittany of the West Indies, is the other wing of the Guadeloupe archipelago “butterfly.” Unlike its twin, Basse-Terre, it is flat and composed of limestone.

Grande-Terre Island is a limestone plateau perfectly suited to growing sugar cane, which indeed covers most of the island. A visit to the Gardel sugar factory or the Bellevue distillery, located in the town of Moule (the former colonial capital), allows you to appreciate the importance of this agricultural activity. The island's coastline is lined with magnificent shaded beaches of white sand, offering sun-bathers incomparable sites to relax and work on their tans. Tranquil turquoise sea lagoons as well as ocean waves attract surfers and windsurfers alike. The many restaurants and hotels offer Creole culinary art and a wide variety of nightlife activities (casino, nightclubs, shows ...). 

With its natural sites (the Pointe des Chateaux, the cliffs of the Grande Vigie, the Grands Fonds, etc.), Pointe-à-Pitre – the economic capital with its monuments from another eras –  museums, spice markets, and flowers with intoxicating scents, and the sugarcane country in Port-Louis, Grande-Terre Island offers even the most recalcitrant visitor a variety of pleasures and activities. 

La Désirade

From the Pointe des Chateaux, you can see La Désirade, an island very much desired indeed! From a distance, it looks like the keel of an overturned ship. La Désirade lives outside of time. This flat rock sticks out from the other islands of the archipelago for its tranquility and simplicity. Nothing seems to disturb the peaceful atmosphere on the island, or modify the authenticity and warmth of its inhabitants, descended from Bretons, Normans, and Poitevins. Eleven kilometres long and two kilometres wide, it has beautiful white sand beaches protected by long coral reefs that will delight both swimmers and divers. Only the southern coast is inhabited. Only one road links the main town of Grande-Anse to the communities of Les Galets, Le Souffleur, and Baie-Mahault. ... La Désirade, like the wild islands of Petite-Terre that surround it, offers surprisingly diverse vegetation. There are also beautiful and important colonies of endangered animal species, such as the iguana, the agoutis, the tropicbird, etc. Little by little, the island is modernizing and preparing for tourist development in keeping with its scale: beaches, groomed hiking trails, hostels, nice restaurants ...

Les Saintes

Life is peaceful here. Only history books remember the archipelago's turbulent past and the bloody naval battle between the English and French fleets off the coast. Terre-de-Haut is known for its beautiful bay with turquoise clear waters, its spectacular Pain de Sucre mountain, and its charming village of quiet streets lined with pretty houses. The inhabitants of Breton and Norman descent have a long tradition of fishing that they practice in boats called "saintoises." You will want to visit Fort Napoleon that houses a museum and a surprising exotic garden. The island's restaurants are supplied with fresh produce daily and serve a tasty tropical cuisine. Terre-de-Bas – with its beautiful beach at Grande-Anse, the remains of an old pottery works, and strolls through the small village of Petite-Anse – deserves to be better known! Less frequented than its neighbouring island, Terre-de-Bas offers visitors its calm, relaxed way of life and the hospitality of its inhabitants. 

Marie-Galante

Forty-three kilometres from Pointe-à-Pitre is Marie-Galante, an island with a surface area of 158 square kilometres, was called Aichi by the Carib people as is now nicknamed “Big Cake,” in reference to its round shape. With its quiet roads and diverse vegetation, the island is primarily known for cane sugar. Called “the island of a hundred windmills” in the 18th century, it was already renowned for rum. Most of the land is still occupied by vast fields of sugar cane. You will encounter ox-carts on the roads that still serve as locomotion and transport for farmers. Considered the land of the best rums in the world, Marie-Galante's restaurants jealously guard their culinary secrets. Its white sandy beaches are among the finest in the Caribbean! With the legendary kindness and hospitality of the locals, Marie-Galante is a testament to the authenticity of the Guadeloupe archipelago.

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Frequently Asked Questions

The average duration of a direct flight from Montreal to Guadeloupe is 5 hours.
The length of an ideal stay in Guadeloupe is 7 days to enjoy a relaxing holiday; if the purpose of the trip is to travel to discover the island, plan a minimum duration of 10 days.
Guadeloupe is a French overseas department https://www.guadeloupe.gouv.fr/
First the capital, Pointe-à-Pitre to discover its history, its culture, its local population, its lively markets; then Sainte-Anne sur Grande-terre, for its market and the beaches; Le Gosier, for its warm and lively atmosphere; Les Abymes, the most populous city in Guadeloupe; Basse-Terre for volcanoes and hiking sites;
Bananas remain the primary operating product in Guadeloupe, as do sugar cane and its derivatives. Agriculture is therefore the most important economic activity, as is tourism.
Although the destination of Guadeloupe can be visited year-round, the best time to go considering the ease of obtaining flights which can be direct from Montreal, and having a drier tropical climate, is from December. until early May. During the summer months, from June to November, it is the wet season with more frequent tropical showers.
Guadeloupe is in the same UTC-4 time zone as Quebec; however, during the time change in Quebec in winter, you have to allow one hour difference since Guadeloupe does not change its time.
It is quite safe to travel to Guadeloupe. But as for all the countries of the world to visit, it is necessary at all times before departure to consult the Canadian government site which issues the updates for all the countries of the world; do not hesitate to consult the website: https://voyage.gc.ca/destinations/guadeloupe
The two islands are quite similar, both in their vegetation, their gastronomy, their hotel facilities, services, etc .; the island of Guadeloupe is larger than the island of Martinique. Martinique is 'wild', flowery and colorful, it is called the flower island. Guadeloupe is also 'wild', more mountainous, several territories to discover, beautiful areas of beaches, including Grande Anse and Sainte-Anne, among others.
You have to move around the island to appreciate its beauty; diving of all kinds, sailing sports, sugar cane or coffee plantations, sea kayaking, deep sea fishing, visiting Pointe-à-Pitre for its history and culture, discovering the markets locals, taste Creole gastronomy, take an excursion to the Soufrière volcano, enjoy the beaches of Marie-Galante, Les Saintes, La Désirade, bathe in hot springs, visit the Parc des Mamelles with the family, or go on a cruise on a catamaran, there are many activities.
Apart from the multitude of different birds (notice to Ornithologists ...), you will see in Guadeloupe raccoons, iguanas, lizards, turtles, humpback whales, crabs, sea urchins, several species of fish.
Bananas remain the primary operating product in Guadeloupe, as do sugar cane and its derivatives. http://www.odeadom.fr/banane/
The beaches of Guadeloupe are paradisiacal bathed by limpid waters; depending on the sectors of the archipelago, the beaches are lush or lunar, sometimes in a discreet or more touristy cove, small or of good extent like the beach of Grande-Anse, or wild like La Désirade, or of golden sand like the beach from Marie-Galante, or white sand like Sainte-Anne, Guadeloupe is a haven of relaxation and natural beauty.
The fastest and most popular means of transportation from Pointe-à-Pitre to Saintes is the ferry; some local companies offer shuttles, the crossing time of which varies from one hour for a 'fast' shuttle or around 2:30 a.m. for a regular ferry, once or twice a week.
To get from Pointe-à-Pitre to Fort-de-France in Martinique, the fastest transport is a flight of just under an hour offered by Air Caraibes; it is also possible to get there by ferry for about 5 hours; the distance between the two capitals is 188km.
Pointe-à-Pitre is located on the island of Grande-Terre in Guadeloupe, an archipelago located in the Caribbean Sea.
Although the destination of Guadeloupe can be visited year-round, the best time to go to Pointe-à-Pitre, considering the ease of obtaining flights which can be direct from Montreal, and the island having a tropical climate drier, is from December until early May. During the summer months, from June to November, it is the wet season with more frequent tropical showers.
Guadeloupe-Pôle Caraibes Airport (PTP) is Guadeloupe's main airport, and the only international one, located in the heart of the archipelago. It used to be called Pointe-à-Pitre - Le Raizet.
Guadeloupe is in the same UTC-4 time zone as Quebec; however, during the time change in Quebec in winter, allow a difference of one hour since Pointe-à - Pitre in Guadeloupe does not change its time.
The good places to choose to stay in Guadeloupe are the village of Club Med La Caravelle, the Toubana Hotel & Spa, the Créole Beach Hotel, the Auberge de la Vieille Tour, the Relais du Moulin, the Langley Resort Hotel Fort Royal. Other suggestions: www.voyagesaquaterra.com
All-inclusives are not very common in Guadeloupe, with the exception of Club Med La Caravelle on the superb Sainte-Anne beach; most of the hotels on the island offer breakfast or half-board stays, such as La Toubana or La Créole Beach.
Pointe-à-Pitre being the economic center of Guadeloupe, a visit to the colorful local markets, the large park of the Place de la Victoire, the Le Gosier marina, the Museums, the Cathedral, the shopping streets, the terraces, are some of the activities to discover.
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