Guadeloupe TRAVEL GUIDE AND DEALS

Guadeloupe , an island in the eastern Caribbean, is a French overseas department. It is located southeast of Puerto Rico.

Regions

• Basse Terre: green and lush vegetation, mountainous with a sulphuric volcano.
• Grande Terre: flat and dry with a lot of beaches, some of them very touristic.
• Marie Galante: the biggest island out of mainland Guadeloupe.
• Les Saintes: composed of Terre de Haut and Terre de Bas, one of the most beautiful bays.
• La Désirade: dry and cliffy.
• Petite Terre: uninhabited and untamed.
• Saint Martin: the French part of Saint Martin adjacent to Sint Maarten, the Dutch part.
• Saint Barthélemy: the jet set island.

Cities

Basse Terre

• Basse-Terre: the administrative capital of Guadeloupe. If you are in the city, the fort Delgrès is worth to see and the entrance is free. At St-Claude next to the police station (Gendarmerie) begins a tray to a little fall named Vauchelet among the opulent vegetation. It takes 20 minutes to walk there. If you like water sports, go to Le CNBT (Centre Nautique de Basse-Terre), Marina de Rivière Sens 97113 Gourbeyre, Tel & Fax 0590 81 39 96, cnbt@wanadoo.fr, www.cnbt-cdpn.org. You can do Kayak, Hobie Cat, hunt monsters, Optimist, Windsurf, Diving, Hiking. 3 Nightclubs in Basse-Terre: DreamClub Baillif, zi Pères Blancs Baillif, 0590 80 26 83; La plantation, Blanchet Gourbeyre, 0590 81 23 37; Le Swing, zone artisanale Morin Saint Claude 0590 80 76 91: mainly Zouk, Ragga Dancehall, RnB, Merengue, Salsa... Entrance 20€ with a Drink.
• Vieux Fort: the southern point of Guadeloupe mainland, with its lighthouse. From here, you can enjoy the sight of Les Saintes islands, and when the weather is clear, you can also see Dominica island.
• Bouillante, on the west coast of Basse Terre. From Malendure beach, you can go to the islands Ilets Pigeon, 30 minutes in canoe kayak or 5 minutes by motorboat. The zone surrounding the islands is protected and known as reserve Cousteau named from the famous Commandant Cousteau. It's the best spot of the island to snorkel and of course to dive.
• Morne Rouge, from this place, you can reach many tiny islands like ilet la Biche and ilet Caret, by boat, sea motorbike or kayak (but if you want to go to ilet Caret, you must be very sporty). ilet Caret really deserve to be seen, it's a tiny stripe of sand in the ocean. To hire a Kayak, call Frank at 0690 75 70 02 it's 15€ half a day, and 20 € a whole day. Another address: Christian-Rando-Passion 0590 28 98 73.
• Bananier is not really a pleasant beach but if you like surfing, it's one of the scarce spots in Basse Terre (when waves are there).
• Trois Rivières: Grande Anse is a black sand beach trimmed by luxurious vegetation. Waves can be entertaining. From the port, you can pick the boat to visit Les Saintes islands. One nightclub: Le River Side: mainly Zouk, Ragga Dancehall, RnB, Merengue, Salsa... Entrance 20€ with a Drink.

Grande Terre

• Pointe-à-Pitre: with its suburbs, it is the economic capital of Guadeloupe.
• Gosier: maybe one of the most animated places of Guadeloupe to enjoy nightlife (Beware: You can't enter most nighclubs without proper clothes, that is, no sneakers, no shorts).
• St François if you go at the eastern point of Guadeloupe, you will reach La Pointe des Chateaux, a scenery made of cliff and rocks which have vaguely the shape of a castle. From there, you can look up at the islands La Désirade, Petite Terre, Marie Galante, Les Saintes, La Dominique but also have a perfect view of the mainland Grande Terre and far away Basse Terre.
• St Anne a very gorgeous but also very tourist beach (maybe the tourists area of Guadeloupe). L'Americano, bd Georges Mandel, 0590 88 38 99: bar/restaurant offers free salsa courses on Saturdays and live performances some days. You will find all kind of resorts. You can try Club Med, 0590 85 49 50 fax: 0590 85 49 59 (for instance, others resort may propose this formula too) for a one day all inclusive (buffet, drinks, beach volley, windsurf, boat, gym, dance courses...) for about 46€, so it may be a good deal (as it costs 7€ one hour of windsurf).
• Morne à l'eau, renowned for its amazing cemetery composed of burial places made of black and white tiles.
• Anse Bertrand, not far from there, you can visit La pointe de la Grande Vigie, northern point of mainland Guadeloupe. You can also go to Porte d'Enfer, a beautiful still stripe of sea between a scenery of reefs. From there, walk one hour along the cliff, and you will discover a Souffleur, kind of geyser due to the pressure of the sea.it looms with mythical creatures
• Abymes nothing special to see, but the weekend, there are 3 local nightclubs: L'instant, Caraibes and Latin Club. They are located at the same place.
• Baie-Mahault: the industrial and commercial zone of Guadeloupe, nothing special to do or see. Here stands the biggest shopping mall of the island. Not too far from there, you can find a local bar/nightclub named Bik Kreyol, Beau Soleil, 0590 25 80 46 or 0590 92 06 48 (Entrance 5€, Drinks 3€). Local music (ragga, zouk, rnb) and local customers. The building is typical, it's a former warehouse.

Other destinations

Don't miss the spectacular waterfalls in the jungle of Basse-Terre. Some are within 5-10 minutes walking distance from the nearest parking lot, some require at least 3-4 hours of hiking (those are, of course less frequented by other tourists and you might find yourself alone at a spectacular waterfall in the middle of nowhere - an amazing experience!).

The local rum distilleries offer tours (check for opening times as they may very from season to season) which are certainly worth the while since rum production is a very integral part of Guadeloupe's economy. And sampling the local rums is definately worth the while.

Even though they might not be the best way to get around the island, a ride on the bus is still an experience you should not miss. Cheap, full of locals, conducted by fearless drivers, you can enjoy the beautiful caribbean panorama to the sound of Guadeloupean zouk music. Some routes are not recommended for passengers with weak stomachs.

Understand

Guadeloupe has been a French possession since 1635. The island of Saint Martin is shared with the Netherlands; its southern portion is named Sint Maarten and is part of the Netherlands Antilles and its northern portion is named Saint-Martin and is part of Guadeloupe.

Guadeloupe is an archipelago of nine inhabited islands, including Basse-Terre, Grande-Terre, Marie-Galante, La Desirade, Iles des Saintes (2), Saint-Barthelemy, Iles de la Petite Terre, and Saint-Martin (French part of the island of Saint Martin).

Get in

Passport and Visa

Guadeloupe is an integral part of France so it has the same rules as France, which you can get from France's page.

By plane

American Airlines (from San Juan, PR), Delta Airlines (weekly from Atlanta), Air Caraïbes, Corsair, Air France, Air Europe, Air Canada, Cubana... To get more information, you can have a look at Guadeloupe Airport website

From Guadeloupe, to travel in the surrounding places, here is an idea of the prices (roundtrip): Trinidad ~250 €, Barbade ~260 €, Puerto Rico ~300 €, Dominican Republic ~350 €, Cuba ~550 €

There is an Air Pass to travel between most of the islands of the lesser Antilles delivered by the regional company LIAT Airlines, it costs about 500$ for one month and is unlimited, but you have to pay each airport taxes.

You can obtain information at Agence Penchard, 1 bis rue de la République 97100 Basse-Terre, Tel 0590 812 712 Fax 0590 810 711

By car

From some neighbouring islands, you can travel with your car on ferry companies (See section by boat).

By boat

From Martinique, Dominica, Saint Lucia, Marie Galante, Les Saintes: Express des Iles, Brudey Frères, Star Ferries

• Windward Islands - Windward Islands, one of the worlds largest yacht charter companies, can take care of all charter requirements, from bareboat to crewed in Guadeloupe, Martinique and St Martin. Operating from 8 international offices (USA, UK, Germany, France, Spain, Switzerland, Caribbean, Monaco).

• Canadian Sailing Expeditions - Tall Ship Caledonia The Tall Ship Caledonia will arrive in the region in the fall of 2007. Travellers can embark at Pointe-a-Pitre and sail on to various locations such as Deschaies.

Get around

By car. The bus system is infrequent and unreliable. Cars can be hired at the airport in Pointe-à-Pitre. The main roads are of the same quality as metropolitan France, but smaller roads are often uneven, pot-holed and frankly dangerous. Prudence is required! Drivers are often undisciplined, but rarely aggressive.

By boat

• Windward Islands - Windward Islands, one of the worlds largest yacht charter companies, can take care of all charter requirements, from bareboat to crewed in Guadeloupe, Martinique and St Martin. Operating from 8 international offices (USA, UK, Germany, France, Spain, Switzerland, Caribbean, Monaco).

Talk

French is the official language of Guadeloupe, although Creole is widely spoken. Everyone understands French but few people understand English.

See also: French phrasebook

Buy

• Characteristic of the Antilles is the colourful tiled Madras fabric.
• The local made rum is also distinctive and very cheap to buy. Certainly worth sampling (during an evening at one of the beautiful beaches or at home when showing vacation pictures to friends and family to warm everyone up to caribbean temperature)

Eat

Not to be missed, the plate Colombo (chicken, rice, curry), imported from India, has become the typical regional plate.

Drink

The local drink is white rum. Do try the "'Ti Punch" (Petit Punch/small Punch) (rum, lime, and sugar cane/brown sugar). Packs a wallop, so be prepared to melt into the island way of life.

Sleep

To sleep, you will have to pay, for budget accommodation, between 30€ and 45€ per night in hotels.

Work

For European people coming from an EU country, working in Guadeloupe is allowed without problem. If you're from outside the EU, you will probably need a work permit - check with the French Embassy in your country. Do not forget though that the unemployment rate is around 28%. But if you work in the heath sector (doctor, nurse), it will be much easier. Else you could find a job in bars, restaurants, and/or nightclubs. The better is to have a precise idea of what you want to do, inform yourself and prospect before going there.

Voluntary service: Volontariat Civil à l'Aide Technique (VCAT). Conditions: you must be French or from another EU-member state or a country belonging to the European Economic Area. You must be over 18 and under 28 years old (inclusive). You must not have had your civic rights revoked by a court or have been convicted of certain offences. VCAT, Préfecture Guadeloupe

Stay safe

The main tourist areas (city center of Point-à-Pitre, Le Gosier, St. Anne, St. Felix...) are pretty safe, especially by day. When it gets dark, you should avoid walking around in Point-à-Pitre alone and stay on the main roads and plazas and be aware of smaller side streets. Always try to keep a low profile as a tourist to avoid attracting unwanted attention.

Stay healthy

There is no particular disease but you should protect yourself from the sun. Sanitary and medical facilities in Guadeloupe are good. Health care in Guadeloupe is controlled by a state-owned organisation (Sécurité Sociale). Doctors are available in almost every village. Tap water is usually safe for consumption. Public sources of water are unsafe if labeled with "Eau non potable" (no drinking water). Visitors from European Union should bring a E111 form with them. Ask details at your local health care organisation.

Emergency phone numbers

• emergency services: 112 (which can be called from any mobile phone, even if not connected to a GSM network);
• fire brigade: 18;
• police station: 17;
• specialised emergency medical service (called SAMU): 15.

Respect

Officially being a part of France, do not to expect the way of life to be very europeanized. In fact, life in the caribbean has a much slower pace. Busses run very infrequently, taxis are hard to find, smaller stores open or close not always on time, queuing in stores is sometimes very time consuming... Try to fall into the local pace and do not complain about minor annoyances as Guadeloupeans will see that as an offense to their way of life. And they are proud of the distinction between caribbean and metropolian (French) life style!

Contact

Phones

Country code: 590

Dialing within Guadeloupe: all numbers have 10 digits. Landlines begin by 0590 and mobile phones by 0690.

Dialing to Guadeloupe: international prefix + 590 + phone number without the first 0 (this leads to dial twice 590 which is normal). If you dial from France, just use the 10 digits number.

Dialing from Guadeloupe: the international prefix is 00.

Calling to a mobile phone is more expensive than to a landline. Number beginning by 0800 are free phone. Number beginning by 089 are premium-rate.

Few foreign mobile phone companies offer international roaming to Guadeloupe so double-check before leaving. Your company should provide specific roaming to Guadeloupe since it has deferent mobile phone companies than in mainland France.

Alternatively, you should be able to get a Pay-as-you-go SIM card from various locations. There are two companies offering wireless services: Bouygues Telecom Caraïbe and Orange Caraïbe.

Post

Post offices are found in all cities. Letter boxes are colored in yellow.

Rates

Less than 20g (postcard, letter with one or two pages in a regular envelop) :

• France (including Oversea Territories DOM-TOM): 0,53€
• area 2 (rest of the world) : 0,90 €

The basic stamp for regular mail is red with the head of "Marianne" (the Republic logo). It does not carry its value and can therefore be used even after a price increase. It is sold in all Post Offices, Bureaux de Tabacs (Tobacco sellers identified by a red lozenge) and postcard vendors. The latter may also carry other common stamps.

In most Post Offices you will find an automatic machine (yellow) with a scale and a screen. Just put your mail on the scale, tell the machine (French or English) the destination, pay the indicated amount and the machine will deliver a printed stamp.

From Wikitravel