Anse Chastanet Resort
Information & Amenities
Hotel Information: Long a popular getaway for celebrating couples, Anse Chastanet (Bay of Chastanet) lies at the end of a rugged, 3-km (2-mi) forest road, a world away from real-world stress. Guests come here for the tranquility; the beach; the snorkeling and scuba diving; the jungle mountain biking/hiking; the forest's nocturnal tree-frog chorus; and the opportunity to be alone together.
Insider tip: Anse Chastanet Resort furnishes water-taxi service to the picturesque town of Soufrière three km (two mi) south near St. Lucia's signature twin spires, called the Pitons.
Property Amenities
Located at beach level, the Kai Belté Spa is designed in the same airy style as the rest of the resort and features seven air-conditioned rooms for massage, ayurvedic treatments, and facials, as well as a hair/nail/waxing salon.
Massage options include couples, Swedish, shiatsu, hot stone, and reflexology. Ayurvedic treatment choices include Bindi Herbal (exfoliation, warm oil, herbal wrap) and Shirodhara (warm oil stream, herbal oil scalp massage, massage of neck, shoulders, hands, feet). Facials include After-Sun and Cellular Repair. Classes are offered five times weekly in a yoga hut.
A gallery sells works by international and local artists whose art decorates resort restaurants, bars, and rooms.
Children under the age of 6 are not allowed at the resort.
- Full-service health spa
- Concierge services
- Bar/lounge
- Restaurant(s) in hotel
- Parking (free)
- Self parking
- Multilingual staff
- Front desk (limited hours)
- Porter/bellhop
- Security guard
- Number of rooms: 49
- Number of floors: 1, 2
- Hair salon
- Gift shops or newsstand
- Shopping on site
- Currency exchange
- Beauty services
- Medical assistance available
- Dry cleaning service
- Wedding services
Room Descriptions
The resort offers 49 individually designed rooms situated near the beach and on a hillside rising steeply from the beach. Room sizes vary but range from extra-large to immense. About 100 stone steps lead from the main building down to the beach, but a complimentary shuttle is available by request.
Twelve rooms are located on beach level in three two-story buildings constructed of whitewashed concrete and weathered wood. Tall trees in the rear and dense gardens in the front nearly conceal them. One building abuts the beach. The other two lie along a concrete path 45.75m and 91.5m (50 and 100 yds) from the beach.
Scattered on the hillside above the beach, 37 other rooms are perched amid the forest in concrete/stone buildings with wood shingles. These rooms offer panoramic Caribbean Sea views. Some also provide views of the Pitons, St. Lucia's signature twin spires rising 2,461 and 2,619 feet from the shore 3.5 and 5 miles south of the resort.
Rooms contain no air conditioning. Ceiling fans and louvered doors and windows provide cooling. Some hillside rooms have open fronts. No televisions, radios, clocks, or telephones disturb guests. (Telephone calls can be made from the main building.)
Rooms feature terra-cotta tile or hardwood floors; furniture constructed locally of island woods such as mahogany, teak, breadfruit, greenheart, and purpleheart; and cushioned seating covered in plaid West Indian madras cloth. Original artworks, many created by internationally known artists who stay at the resort, and locally made woven-straw area rugs, pottery, and carved-wood decorations, contribute color and visual interest. Yellow light bulbs hang from ceilings under woven-wicker shades, suffusing rooms with soft light.
Room Features
- Ceiling fan
- Refrigerator
- Coffee/tea maker
- Bottled water in room (complimentary)
- Housekeeping (daily)
- Turndown service
- Shower only
- Bathrobes
- Hair dryer
- In-room safe
- Window opens
- Iron/ironing board (on request)
- Welcome amenities
Area Attractions
Soufrière (French-colonial capital) - 10-minute water-taxi ride
Diamond Botanical Gardens & Waterfall (historical site, mineral baths) - 5 km (3 mi)
Petit Piton - 5.5 km (3.5 mi)
Sulphur Springs (tour) - 6.5 km (4 mi)
Gros Piton (climbing trail) - 8 km (5 mi)
Fond Doux Estate (working-estate tour) - 8 km (5 mi)
Descartiers Trail (hiking) - 14.5 km (9 mi)
Balembouche Estate (historical site) - 17.5 km (11 mi) St. Lucia Distillers Rhythm of Rum Tour - 32 km (20 mi)
Marigot Bay (sailing center) - 33 km (20.75 mi)
Castries (capital) - 46 km (28.75 mi)
Hewanorra International Airport (UVF): Approximate driving time to the Anse Chastanet Resort is 45 minutes and distance is 28.75 km (18 mi).
Driving directions from Hewanorra International Airport: Because the hotel is very difficult to find and at the end of a steep and rugged forest road that can be treacherous, guests are strongly urged not to drive.
Getting there: Taxis are available for more than US$36. Shuttle vans or private cars of varying prices are available. They can be selected during the process of booking an air-inclusive reservation for this hotel, via this Web site, and added to the total trip cost. Driving is on the left side, British-style.
George F.L. Charles (Vigie) Airport (SLU): Approximate driving time to the Anse Chastanet Resort is 90 minutes and distance is 48 km (30 mi).
Driving directions from George F.L. Charles Airport: Because the hotel is very difficult to find and at the end of a steep, rugged forest road that can be treacherous, guests are strongly urged not to drive.
Getting there: Taxi fare is more than US$36. Shuttle vans and private cars of varying prices are available. They can be reserved during the process of booking a reservation for this resort, via this Web site, and added to the total trip cost. Driving is on the left side, British-style.
Getting around: No shops or restaurants are close to the hotel, but guests can taxi into Soufrière (US$26–$35) or into Castries (more than US$36). Public buses navigate the island for less than US$5. Ferries to Pigeon Island cost less than US$5. Travel from the island to Martinique, Dominica, and Guadeloupe costs more than US$36, roundtrip.
Driving is not recommended for those unaccustomed to driving on the left side of narrow, winding, mountainous roads.
All fees are subject to change.
Activities
Fringed by a 229-m (250-yd) beach curving between two rocky headlands, the bay fronting the resort features one of the Caribbean Sea's most notable and accessible snorkeling/diving sites, with fish (some 150 species), coral, and other marine life visible off the beach. The reef plateaus for about 45.75 m (50 yds) and then steeply slopes down to 46.75 m (140 ft). Snorkeling and diving are also available on Anse Chastanet Resort's second beach, a 5-minute complimentary boat ride away.
Guests have complimentary use of snorkeling gear, windsurfers, kayaks, sailboats, and a tennis court. The resort's diving center offers beginner lessons, certification courses, and reef, wreck, wall, and night dives off the beach (surcharges for lessons, dives).
The Chastanet's second beach fronts a 152.5-m-wide (500-ft), three-km-deep (two-mi) canyon that in the 17th century was a sugar plantation and later was planted with cocoa. The former plantation, Anse Mamin, serves as the resort's adventure-sports center. In addition to snorkeling and diving, the site offers 19.25 km (12 mi) of groomed mountain-biking trails and separate hiking trails through jungle among mango, coconut, banana, guava, cocoa, and citrus. Trails pass a river, a stone-walled reservoir that once powered the sugar mill, and ruins of working buildings and residences. Mountain bikes are provided for daily trail-use fees. Hiking and guided nature walks are complimentary.
Other recreational activities available include sunset cruises on the resort's 11.25-m (37-ft) yacht and deep-sea fishing. Tours of nearby attractions such as Soufrière's "drive-in" volcano, sulphur springs, and mineral baths are also available. Complimentary classes are offered five times weekly in a yoga hut.
The recreational activities listed below are available at or near the Chastanet Resort; fees may be charged.
- Windsurfing on site
- Sailing on site
- Scuba diving on site
- Swimming on site
- Snorkeling on site
- Tennis on site
- Yoga classes/instruction on site
- Hiking/biking trails on site
- Helicopter/airplane sightseeing nearby
- Bird watching on site
- Fishing on site
Restaurants & Bars
Restaurants at the resort use herbs and produce grown in the resort's own gardens on the former sugar/cocoa plantation of Anse Mamin, part of the resort's 600 acres.
Piti Piton Restaurant - Hillside site with panoramic Caribbean Sea view. Open air under ceiling fans. Hand-painted artwork throughout. "Treetop" seating section surrounded by forest crown. Separate bar/lounge. Á la carte breakfast daily. Dinner five nights weekly consisting of four-course meal with choices of appetizer, soup/salad, main course, dessert, served in candlelight ambience. New menu nightly, with choices such as steamed mahi mahi, corn/plantain soup, rack of lamb, pan-seared kingfish, chicken breast stuffed with goat cheese, pumpkin/coconut tart with vanilla ice cream. Dress code: long pants or dress shorts, collared shirts for men.
Trou au Diable Restaurant - Open-air beachfront restaurant/bar decorated with carved wood figures. Á la carte lunch daily of appetizers, salads, sandwiches, rotis, burgers, grilled foods, creole specialties as well as buffet. Buffet dinners twice-weekly featuring themed cuisines such as Italian and creole. Dinner dress code: long pants or dress shorts, collared shirts for men.
Afternoon tea is served daily in the Piton and Trou au Diable bars. Except Sundays, there's live music nightly in one or the other bar.
Location
Old French Road
Soufriere,
Saint Lucia
Nearest major airport:
Vieux Fort, St. Lucia (UVF-Hewanorra)
Area:
Soufriere, St. Lucia
Important Information
Children under the age of 6 are not allowed at the resort.
Approximately 100 stairs lead from beach level to mid-hillside level, making the property unsuitable for those with walking difficulties or cardiac problems. A complimentary shuttle from beachside to hillside level is provided on request.
Extra-person charges may apply and vary depending on hotel policy.
Photo identification and credit card or cash deposit are required at check-in for incidental charges.
Special requests are subject to availability upon check-in. Special requests made via this Web site cannot be guaranteed and may incur additional charges.
- Pets not allowed
- Check-in time is 2 PM
- Check-out time is Noon
