Guadeloupe anyone?

[bayerische]

Any good tips and suggestions for Guadeloupe?

You who followed my Florida thread, we chose Guadeloupe after all.

[bayerische]

No-one been?

[tritium8]

Got a doc friend who went recently and had a blast but that's about all I know. They are all fluent in French... If that matters.

[Langnam]

Guadeloupe is an awesome island. We went a few years ago, before the bad hurricane. You can go high brow or low budget very easily and still have a blast. Plenty of hiking and nature stuff along with sunning and beaches.

I rented a car and travelled the whole island. I do not speak french, but it wasn't too necessary. I do speak spanish, and that was helpful.

Pointe a Pirte is worth a day trip as it's a cool old French colonial city. Completely safe during the day, buy I'd be cautious walking out and about in the city at night.

Prices on everything was reasonable/cheap except high end restaurants, and lobster, which seemed quite expensive. It's priced by the 100 gram weight, so the price on the menu is not the full price of the meal.

Very laid back island, sort of remote, and nothing like St. Barth's in a good way.

Very cool French colonial vibe. It seemed like many french beaurocrats and their families were on vacation there. Not sure about the weather now, as I went in March. Quite nice then.

And, yes, it is safe to wear a Rolex. I wore my GMT IIC without a problem or fear.

[Langnam]

Originally Posted by Langnam

Guadeloupe is an awesome island. We went a few years ago, before the bad hurricane. You can go high brow or low budget very easily and still have a blast. Plenty of hiking and nature stuff along with sunning and beaches.



I rented a car and travelled the whole island. I do not speak french, but it wasn't too necessary. I do speak spanish, and that was helpful.



Pointe a Pirte is worth a day trip as it's a cool old French colonial city. Completely safe during the day, buy I'd be cautious walking out and about in the city at night.



Prices on everything was reasonable/cheap except high end restaurants, and lobster, which seemed quite expensive. It's priced by the 100 gram weight, so the price on the menu is not the full price of the meal.



Very laid back island, sort of remote, and nothing like St. Barth's in a good way.



Very cool French colonial vibe. It seemed like many french beaurocrats and their families were on vacation there. Not sure about the weather now, as I went in March. Quite nice then.



And, yes, it is safe to wear a Rolex. I wore my GMT IIC without a problem or fear.

Some Guadeloupe pictures:




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[bayerische]

Thanks Langnam!

Did you happen to stay at La Toubana? One of your pics looks like the small bungalows they have?

[Langnam]

Originally Posted by bayerische

Thanks Langnam!

Did you happen to stay at La Toubana? One of your pics looks like the small bungalows they have?

Yes. We stayed at La Toubana, but in the newer part of the hotel. My guy is the bungalows did not survive the hurricane. I really liked the looks of the bungalows, but really, the newer rooms were top notch.

Pm me if you have any in depth questions.


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[bayerische]

Originally Posted by Langnam

Yes. We stayed at La Toubana, but in the newer part of the hotel. My guy is the bungalows did not survive the hurricane. I really liked the looks of the bungalows, but really, the newer rooms were top notch.

Pm me if you have any in depth questions.


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We have booked one of the Bungalows, perhaps re-done?

BTW, did you pay when using cash in USD or Euro? When we where in Saint Martin we played dumb and payed all bills at dinner, lunch etc in USD.

If the bill said 50 euro, we left 50 dollars, worked everywhere. Back then USD vs Euro was at around 1.30, so we saved a lot of money.

[Andad]

Tried them once, didn’t like the taste.

[Langnam]

My guess is you will be in a brand new bungalow. They were really cool, and if I go back, I would try the bungalows next.

Tubana is maybe 30 minutes from the airport if you don’t get lost. GPS was tricky as sometimes the suggested road was really a dirt road not meant for cars. I rented a Tiguan diesel and was quite satisfied.

I payed in Euros and am pretty sure USD is not accepted.

Have a great time. Feel free to ask more questions.


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[bayerische]

Originally Posted by Langnam

My guess is you will be in a brand new bungalow. They were really cool, and if I go back, I would try the bungalows next.

Tubana is maybe 30 minutes from the airport if you don’t get lost. GPS was tricky as sometimes the suggested road was really a dirt road not meant for cars. I rented a Tiguan diesel and was quite satisfied.

I payed in Euros and am pretty sure USD is not accepted.

Have a great time. Feel free to ask more questions.


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That's what I heard too, only Euros. Well that's fine, don't have to exchange any money.

Was there any good restaurants nearby that you would recommend?

Might very well be new Bungalows, they look great in the pics.

[Langnam]

On the bungalows, my guess is they have to be new as they were definitely old time French colonial wooden buildings. Most of the island is concrete for good reason: hurricanes.

The hurricane that demolished Puerto Rico passed over Guadeloupe, too.

There was a great restaurant just down the street from the hotel. Awesome food, not too expensive , either. I’ll check with my wife on the name.

Hotel restaurant was great, too. Views were/are amazing.



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[Langnam]

Another picture from La Toubana


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[Langnam]

And another


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[Langnam]

A local drink from island rum is called Ti Punch, I believe. Very strong and a bit harsh to the taste, but a couple of those will knock you off your a** if you’re into that.

Bars outside of the hotel offer the potent version.


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