Hotel at a Glance: Bay Gardens Beach Resort & Spa

This four-star resort is set along a thin peninsula on Saint Lucia's northwest coast, putting you amid gorgeous Caribbean scenery. Just steps from the property you can swim at Reduit Beach, considered by many to be the country's best beach thanks to its clear water and gentle waves. Stroll a few minutes in the opposite direction to shop at boutiques and gaze at sailboats bobbing in Rodney Bay Marina.

• Direct beach access: Direct access to scenic Reduit Beach..
• Make a splash in the hotel’s outdoor pool, which is open year around.
• Room with a view: From your hotel’s balcony, you’ll be able to see landscaped pool garden.
• Splash Island Water Park features a trampoline, slides, and other inflatables—all floating in the ocean. Bay Garden guests receive free one-hour passes.
• Enjoy the view from a deluxe garden-view room or a one-bedroom pool-view suite, which both have furnished private balconies.
• Oceanfront dining: Four onsite restaurants offer fresh local seafood and regional cuisine.
• La Mer Spa: Indulge in a massage or coconut body scrub.
• Great for kids: the outdoor pool, the playground, the game room, and the onsite Coral Kidz Club, where kids create arts and crafts, take nature walks, and more.
• *Other things to do: Go scuba diving, play a round at the St. Lucia Golf Club, and enjoy access to Hobie Cat sailing equipment, kayaks, and other nonmotorized water sports.   

Saint Lucia: French-Inspired Cuisine and Spectacular Volcanoes

Located in between Martinique and Saint Vincent in the eastern Caribbean, Saint Lucia was coveted by the British and French, who quarreled over the island for more than a century. Although English is now Saint Lucia's official language, the French seem to have left a more noticeable influence on its arts and cuisine. Along the coast, a string of marinas exhibits a cultural blend through restaurants ranging from fried-fish shacks to upscale French eateries. Grab a table to sample meaty pepperpot stew, spinach-like callaloo soup, or the country’s national dish of green fig—a Caribbean term for small, unripe bananas—and salt fish.

With several beaches, Saint Lucia attracts those looking for snorkeling excursions, dolphin-watching tours, or deep-sea fishing trips in search of blue marlin, barracuda, and mako shark. Crowds descend on the popular Reduit Beach at Rodney Bay, not too far from the 18th-century British forts at Pigeon Island National Park. For a less hectic scene, head south down the coast to Anse Chastanet, a more secluded beach with giant palm trees and undulating green hills.

A vacation in Saint Lucia is not complete without a visit to one of its volcanoes. Considered the country’s unofficial symbol, the Pitons are two vegetation-covered volcanic plugs rising more than 2,000 feet above the western coast. Nearby Saint Lucia Volcano is considered "the world's only drive-in volcano," as you can drive your car close to the volcanic crater to see its steaming sulfur springs.