St. Lucia Feature

Choose one of these seven smaller properties if you're looking for something more intimate than the typical beach resort.

Greater Castries

Auberge Seraphine. $ is convenient to town and a good choice for independent travelers who don't require a beachfront location or a breadth of activities. Excellent restaurant, and all but six rooms have a water view. A broad sundeck surrounds a small pool. Vielle Bay, Pointe Seraphine, Castries Box 390, Castries 758/453-2073 www.aubergeseraphine.com.

Villa Beach Cottages. $$ line the beach at this family establishment—a favorite of Nobel laureate Sir Derek Walcott. Units are cozy and fairly close together, but each has a balcony facing the water, guaranteeing glorious sunset viewing every evening. Choc Bay, Castries 758/450-2884 www.villabeachcottages.com.

Marigot Bay

Inn on the Bay. $$ has five rooms (for adults only), and owners Normand Viau and Louise Boucher treat you as their personal guest. Cool sea breezes obviate the need for a/c, and the stunning views of Marigot Bay are absolutely enchanting from the balcony outside your room and from the pool deck. Marigot Bay 758/451-4260 www.saint-lucia.com.

Mango Beach Inn. $$ is a family-friendly bed-and-breakfast perched on the hillside above Rainforest Hideaway and overlooking pretty Marigot Bay. The four guest rooms are comfortable but small, though the living-dining room, to which you're always invited, is huge and has large windows open to the view—beautiful day or night. Marigot Bay 758/451-4872 www.mangobeachmarigot.com.

Rodney Bay Village

Ginger Lily. $$, a small, modern enclave of 11 rooms, has its own restaurant and a swimming pool. It is across the street from Reduit Beach and perfectly situated in Rodney Bay Village. Rodney Bay 758/458-0300 www.thegingerlilyhotel.com.

Harmony Suites. $$ guests (adults only) are scuba divers, boaters, or people who just like being close to Rodney Bay Marina. Of the 30 large suites cloistered around the swimming pool, the eight waterfront suites are the largest. Reduit Beach is across the road. Rodney Bay 758/452-8756 www.harmonysuites.com.

Soufrière

Fond Doux Holiday Plantation. $$-$$$ is a collection of 10 historic homes salvaged from around the island and rebuilt in a rain-forest setting on an active 18th-century agricultural estate. The private, beautifully furnished cottages provide a truly ecofriendly vacation experience. Soufri , ère 758/459-7545 www.fonddouxestate.com.

La Haut Plantation. $$-$$$ is an intimate, affordable, family-run inn that boasts a spectacular view of the Pitons. Guests are encouraged to roam the 52-acre mountaintop estate, and kids get a kick out of the resident goats, cows, birds, and donkeys. Soufri , ère Box 304, Soufrière 758/459-7008 www.lahaut.com.