Sugar Beach, A Viceroy Resort in St. Lucia, stands apart from the get go for being built on a 18th Century sugar plantation, between two volcanic conical mountains known as the Pitons, which rise in excess of 2,400 feet out of the sea and contains boiling sulphur springs in the center. But if this, which practically smacks of “heaven on earth” is not enough to whet your appetite, just think that the resort is also built within the ambit of a 100 acre rainforest that is designated by UNESCO, as a World Heritage Site.
The 27 mile long island has indigenous plant and wildlife, some of which are listed endangered species. The vast majority of the inhabitants are Blacks who speak a French patois known as Kwéyo`l, which is virtually identical to that spoken on Dominica and the French islands of Martinique and Guadeloupe. Two sons of the soil have been recipients of The Nobel Prize. In 1992 Derek Walcott won it for literature and in 1979 Sir Arthur Lewis won it for economics.
The environmentally friendly Viceroy conglomerate is also a forerunner in sustainability, through initiatives that save energy and water along with a comprehensive recycling program. Sugar Beach, A Viceroy Resort – St. Lucia, also has a community outreach program that strategically beckons the input and involvement of their guests… that is second to none.
But lest the “heartical” underbelly of operations at these luxury resorts lead us on a tangent, be reminded that we are speaking of the grand experience that awaits the avant-garde tourist at Sugar Beach, St. Lucia’s Viceroy hotel, spa and villas, which has so far been accredited among:
- The Times, Sunday Times and Sunday Times Travel Magazine Travel Awards 2016 Best Long Haul Hotel in the World
- 2016 U.S. News & World Report rankings – Best Hotels in the Caribbean
- 2017 U.S. News & World Report Best Hotels in the Caribbean
- Conde Nast Traveller (UK) Readers’ Choice Travel Awards 2016, #98 in the world and #9 in the Caribbean, among a slew of others.
The Conde Nast Traveller’s “Readers Choice Awards” factors among the most prestigious awards on the planet and it’s no mean feat to have scored among the top 100 in the world.
A small portion of the hotel’s average $460 a night stay goes toward reef conservation. The hotel also offers the opportunity to do guided night snorkeling with under water flashlights. What wonders, one might imagine, could surface through such an experience, in addition to being able to see the phosphorescent planktons.
Brightly-colored Tuk Tuks are the new addition. This is the preferred mode of transport at Sugar Beach. They buzz up and down the hills between the Pitons shuttling guests from the beach to the spa to their rooms, or just on a scenic tour for perfectly framed photo ops.
