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2^nd October 2011

Coconut Bay

After a pleasant flight to St Lucia, we arrive at 2pm local time. We swiftly make our way through passport control and head for our 10 minute transfer to Coconut Bay Resort and Spa. We were greeted upon arrival with a cool towel and a fruit punch, very refreshing after an 8 hour flight! We quickly check in and head to see the rooms that we have for our 2 night stay at Coconut Bay. I was lucky enough to be accommodated in a Harmony Deluxe Ocean View Room. The room was very spacious; it came with a king size bed, flat screen TV, and had a very modern feel to it. One of the great features to Coconut Bay is that it is split into 2 sections; you have the Splash side which is the family-friendly part of the resort, and the Harmony section, which is the adult only part of the resort, so it has the best of both worlds. In the Splash part of the resort you also have a water park with slides for the children (and grown-ups too!) The hotel also features a brand new Kai Mer Spa, and its own Water Sports Complex featuring Kite Surfing.

On our first evening in St Lucia, we dine at the Calabash Restaurant which is a Caribbean specialty restaurant showcasing Creole and Caribbean cuisine, and then its straight to bed as we have a busy day ahead tomorrow! continue reading…

Wednesday 4th May 2011

Leighton (and the girls) in St Lucia

I find myself travelling down to London on Virgin Trains the night before my trip to St Lucia. I stopped at the Sofitel which is connected to the North terminal at Gatwick airport the night before to catch my early flight. The Sofitel hotel was very nice, my room was a decent size and my bed very comfortable; it’s very convenient as it is a few minutes walk to the British airways check in desk inside the north terminal. Click here for more information regarding booking airport hotels.

Thursday 5th May 2011

I woke up before my early morning wake up call as I was excited about my trip. Up at 6:00am… I have not been up this early for a long time!

We meet Chelcie Lewis from the St Lucia Tourist Board, who where hosting our trip, at the BA sales desk. The St Lucia Tourist board had invited its top 10 agents on the trip. Chelcie handed out our boarding passes and we were treated to Club World (business class). Our flight was at 10:10am so we had a few hours to spare as we went through fast track security. We had use of the BA lounge which was very comfortable and relaxing, away from the hustle and bustle of the airport. I would recommend a lounge before you travel as you can sit back and relax and enjoy the refreshments. Click here for more information regarding booking airport lounges.

Boat Trip

At 13.10pm we arrive at St Lucia ahead of schedule. The weather outside looks delightful. I was feeling very relaxed and raring to go after my first experience in Business Class.  We collect our luggage and meet up for our complimentary transfer to the Landings Hotel where we will be staying for two nights. The driver was very good, telling us all about St Lucia and its history.

The journey to the North of the Island takes 90 minutes through the hills. The views of the island are stunning and the most spectacular I have seen. If you are not the best traveller by road, there is the opportunity to travel by helicopter and I have been told that this is the way to travel as the views are amazing. You will also fly over the famous Pitons.

We arrived and checked in at The Landings. The resort is stunning and very luxurious. I shared a 3 bedroom suite with two others, it was like a mini apartment and it is a great location for families, friends and groups. I had the bedroom which had the Jacuzzi straight outside my room… result!

We then all meet for a few drinks in the lobby to get acquainted before we head of to ’Blues at the Beach’ for our evening meal. The evening was great, the food was very nice and the local drink, ‘Piton’, went down very nicely. After the meal we listened and danced to some Blues music, the entertainment was very very good. I tried to stay up late to get myself used to the time zone.

Friday 6th May 2011

I awoke early so I decided to get up and have a jog… only kidding; I took stroll along the beach instead. The sky was clear and the sun was rising. What a beautiful day we are going to have.

Breakfast & then Site Inspection at ‘The Landings’

The Landings

Situated on Rodney bay, in the northwest of the island overlooking Saint Lucia’s most breathtaking beach and with the islands only private harbour. The resort is ideally located for all the superb restaurants and shops in the Rodney bay area. The Landings offers a great self catered holiday with the convenience and facilities of a modern luxury resort. Great location for water-sports plus you can also enjoy the complimentary membership of the St Lucia Golf & Country Club.

The resort has two & three bedroom villa suites with a few one bedroom suites. Each suite is beautifully furnished and finished to a high quality. All bedrooms feature an en suite. Many suites offer a private plunge pool which I was lucky enough to get.

What you need to know…

• Quality Accommodation, prime location on St Lucia’s best beach.
• Accommodation: 122 rooms.
• Luxurious suites are great for families or even small groups.
• Complimentary shuttle to Rodney Bay where you will be able to sample some great local restaurants.

We meet the driver and then transfer to Rendezvous for a site inspection accompanied by cocktails and canapés.

Rendezvous Site Inspection – All Inclusive

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28^th September – UK

I drove down to Gatwick from Stoke late so the journey was uneventful as I’d missed most of the traffic on the motorway. I arrived at the hotel around mid-night, checked in with the night porter who also showed me where to check my car in for the meet and greet parking. The room was small and very basic but clean and the bed was comfortable (not that I slept much as I was too worried about oversleeping so woke up every 40 minutes to check that I wasn’t late!?) continue reading…

Click here to book Sandals Regency St Lucia from £1689pp

The whole St Lucia experience started for us the day before we were due to fly out from Gatwick. We had been told that British Airways have a facility where you can check-in online 24hours before your flight is due to depart (actually 24 hours and not just the day before), so my first challenge even before we left Stoke for the airport was (once I’d got our passports and confirmation number) to check-in, pre-book our seats and print our boarding card so we could just drop our bags at the check-in desk at Gatwick the following morning. continue reading…

Hotel & Room

We stayed in a Deluxe Room which had two sizeable double beds. It was evident the room had been recently been refurbished and the use of bright colours helped create a fine, bright ambiance. The modern air conditioning unit had it’s own remote control which enabled us to set the room temperature to that which most suited us.
The amenities were typical of a 5* property and included satellite tv, CD/DVD player, i-pod docking station, coffee maker hairdryer etc. There we even bathrobes & slippers ! Room service is provided 24 hours per day
The mini-bar, which was re-stocked on a regular basis, contained beers, soft drinks and bottled water.
My wife was very pleased to find a hairdryer in the room. Even though she had taken her own with her, the low voltage in Dominican Republic meant it would not work to it’s full potential.
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