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• Top 10 nude beaches for summer 2011 • The worlds best beaches • Hurricane Earl Update • Hugh Jackman on Shell Beach, St. Barts • New Accommodations Near Saline • I guess this is news? • Grand Saline Beach video • Shell Beach St. Barts video • What to Do About Disappearing St Jean Beach? • Affordable St. Barts? • Anse des Flamands • Grand Cul de Sac • Grand Fond • Marigot Bay Beach • Toiny Beach
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From the Toronto Sun:
Thursday, May 19, 2011 With great reviews of St. Bart's on TripAdvisor, the recurring theme seems to be: Stellar beaches, amazing water and full-sun. While there are many beaches in the area, Grand Saline Beach is naturist friendly and, according to one review, idyllic: "This beach is what the Caribbean must have been like thousands of years ago."
From Travel News:
May 3, 2011 The listing as published by the National Geographic book - The 10 Best of Everything:
8. ST. BART'S
One of many islands in the Caribbean Sea, St. Bart's stands out with its blend of French chic and island relaxation. With beautiful secluded beaches, fine French cuisine, and gracious hotels, this tropical playground is popular with the Jet Set. The 8-mile-long (13-kilometer-long) island is edged by 20 beaches and small coves for swimmers and sunbathers, with sparkling water and white sand.
Hurricane Earl, at category 3, hit St Barth on August 29 and 30 with strong winds and rough seas. The strongest wind gusts were measured at 105m/h. The south side of the island was hit the worse (Gustavia, Corossol, Public, Colombier). Five planes that had been left at the airport were damaged, two almost completely. All of the commercial planes had been flown to Guadeloupe, Martinique or CuraƧao. The airport was operational again by 9:00 am Tuesday morning, August 31. The electricity was restored for the most part by the end of Monday, with the remaining outages repaired by Wednesday. The project of putting the electrical lines underground certainly paid off for many residents and visitors. Hopefully, that will be completed island-wide before too long. Desalinated water from Gustavia was cut off Sunday afternoon but available again by Wednesday. Most of the damage was to trees and beaches. The sand on most of the beaches on that side of the island has been replaced with large boulders and rocks. Three months after hurricane Omar hit St Barth, the sand had returned to Colombier, so there is hope. The Collectivity had just completed adding sand to the beach at Corossol before Earl arrived and was preparing to start a project to add sand to Shell Beach. I guess the lesson learned is that nature is more powerful than man, and we should just let it take its natural course. Hopefully, the sand will find its way back to Colombier, Corossol, Shell Beach and Public with a little time. At right is a photo of the beach at Colombier after Earl. Still beautiful, just different.
If you can't get enough celebrities on beaches, this site has a ton of photos of Jackman in his bathing suit.
Fleur de Lune offers traditional-style cottages and guest rooms in a charming setting about a 10-minute walk from the popular and beautiful beach of Saline. Fleur de Lune has a covered terrace that serves as a common area, providing a dining table for up to 12 guests, a living area, a small library and a home cinema with a plasma screen. Guests are invited to use the fully equipped kitchen to prepare meals, if desired; Creole cuisine is also available. The 15' x 9' swimming pool is located between the cottage and the common area. The "Case" is an independent St. Barth bungalow that contains a king-size bed and two single beds, flat-screen TV, DVD player, iPod station, WIFI, a kitchenette, refrigerator, air-conditioning in the bedrooms, hair dryer, bathrobes and beach towels. Cottages and guest rooms start at 110 euros, including breakfast, round-trip transportation from the airport or harbor and daily housekeeping. For more information, visit www.saintbarthgitefleurdelune.com, email them at stbarth.prestigeservices@gmail.com, or call them at 05 90 27 70 57.
Topless woman on a beach on St. Barts
The sand on the beach at St Jean has almost disappeared between the hotel Eden Roc and the restaurant La Plage. A project to add sand to the beach is currently before the Collectivity. The Executive Council was solicited by Eden Roc at the end of July and by the Association of Hotels the beginning of September to determine what could be done to recover the sand. The Council has been working with experts to determine the current state of St Jean Bay, the causes for the disappearance of the sand and the chronic erosion of the beach, and possible solutions. Several beaches on the island are subject to great movement of the sand from September to April due to sea swells that are common during this period. The sand tends to be pushed to the east end of the beaches. From April until September, the opposite occurs, and the sand is redistributed to the west end of the beaches. However, since hurricane Luis in 1995 and those that came in the following years, none of the beaches on the northern side of the island have had the same quantity of sand as before, and St Jean was the only beach where sand was added after hurricanes Luis and Lenny.
Continue reading "What to Do About Disappearing St Jean Beach?" »
"Affordable" and "St. Barts" are not two words that you say in one sentence too often - but the NY Times has some ideas:
St. Barts on the cheap? Easy. Just attach yourself to Jay-Z's entourage, score an invitation aboard a megayacht, and sip Champagne all night in the V.V.I.P. section at Nikki Beach. If that fails, a seven-room villa at the celebrity-filled Carl Gustaf Hotel goes for 48,000 euros a night during the peak season. Luckily, for those who would rather splurge on a lobster dinner, this chic Caribbean Riviera still has a smattering of affordable options - relatively speaking, of course.
The article is full of good tips, and lots of links to check out.
A beautiful and pristine white-sand beach on the northwestern coast that is rarely crowded. You will often see locals flying kites or fishing off of the rocks at either end of the beach. A small grove of coconut palms provides some shade. For lunch or a cold drink, visit the Hotel St-Barth Ile de France or the restaurant La Langouste, both of which are next to beach.
This northeastern beach, located on a calm, shallow, reef-protected lagoon, is perfect for swimming and water sports. You can rent kayaks and windsurfing boards next to the restaurants La Gloriette and Le Rivage (now closed!). Several fine resorts and restaurants border the beach, making it a delightful place to pass a tranquil afternoon.
Located on the southeastern coast, which is often called the "cote sauvage", the beach of Grand Fond is covered with beautiful white coral rocks. The currents here can be quite strong, so it is not so much a beach for swimming as much as for enjoying the view along with a nice picnic lunch or early dinner.
The small cove of Marigot is on the southern coast and is lined by coconut palms, offering plenty of shade. The beach is popluar with the locals and is never crowded. Swimming in the calm waters is spectacular, and good snorkeling can be found near the rocks.
A popular beach for local surfers, located next to the Toiny Hotel on the southeastern coast. The currents can be quite strong, so swimming is not generally advised.
The fringing reef that protects this large bay ensures calm water. When snorkeling at the far right end, you will observe many conch in the sea grass. However, this is a marine reserve and harvesting the conch is strictly forbidden. Located on the northeastern coast of the island, this beach is usually quite secluded. Shade can be found under the palms at the far-right end.
Beautiful Shell Beach is located on the edge of Gustavia and shares the beach with the restaurant Do Brazil. Below the restaurant is a snack bar where you can buy cold drinks, salads and sandwiches. The beach is so-named because of the thousands of olive shells that carpet the sand. Saba and St. Eustatius can be seen in the distance. This is a popular place to watch the sunset and is the site where the burning of Vaval (at the end of Carnival) takes place.
Gouverneur Beach, on the southern side of the island, was chosen by Forbes as one of its ten picks for the best topless beaches of 2005. Although topless sunbathing is allowed on all the beaches of St. Barts, Gouverneur was chosen for its unsurpassed beauty and views of Saba, St. Eustatius and St. Kitts. In addition to all of this, it's also one of the most accessible beaches on the island with a good-sized parking lot just steps from the sea.
Forbes chose Gouvernour Beach as one of its ten picks for the best topless beaches of 2005. Among other choices were the exclusive, jet-setter beaches of Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro; Plage de Tahiti, Saint-Tropez; Paradise Beach, Mykonos; and Playa d'en Bossa, Ibiza. Pretty stiff competition! Although topless sunbathing is allowed on all the beaches of St. Barth, Gouvernour was chosen for its unsurpassed beauty and views of Saba, St. Eustatius and St. Kitts. In addition to all of this, it's also one of the most accessible beaches on the island with a good-sized parking lot just steps from the sea.
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 St. Martin - St. Barts Map by IGN
$19.95
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