Guadeloupe tour- Les Saintes, Terre de Haute area 3/5

We notice that Guadeloupe is windy, very pleasant as you stay dry under the hot sun. Until the ferry that brought us back to the mainland (then another ferry to the next island Les Saintes) is cancelled because of being too windy.

We were told by Airbnb owner that it has been exceptionally windy this winter, not just Guadeloupe, but the whole Caribbean region. The suggestion is to get a short flight over directly to the island where we are going next, more expensive, but much faster and the view will be great.

The pilot is their friend and flying is his hobby, we are charged only for petrol. It was indeed a worthwhile experience, Les Saintes is a group of a few small lumpy islands, the aerial view of the landscape and water colours are memorable.

We stayed in Terre de Haute area, it is a small island with few flat land and some steep rounded hills. Our Airbnb is within walking distance to the best snorkelling beach Pain de Sucre.

Our routine here is hike in the morning and snorkelling in the afternoon.

The most famous hike is to Fort Napoleon, a 18C well built fort with commanding views, with a very enthusiastic guide who explains history of the fort and the town.

We also hiked to Mare Morel and La Batterie, to enjoy the views of the island from different locations.

We have also visited all the beaches, some are wide like Plage Pompiere, some are narrow and very isolated like Plage Rodriquez, both fine but a bit wavy for me.

We snorkelled in Plage Crawen but unfortunately failed to see turtles. So at the end, we just go to our nearest and most calm beach, Plage Pain de Sucre, also with the best underwater scenery, corals, big fish like Permit and Blue travali, colourful fish, cuttlefish etc.

The beach has just a narrow stretch of sand and can be crowded, the path down is rocky and muddy. Eventually we found that if we walk to the beach of nearby hotel Bois Joli, we can snorkel from the right hand side of the beach, along the cliff edge all the way to Pain the Sucre beach. This coast has the clearest and calmest water with lots to see underwater.

It is not comparable to the quality at places like Maldives, but being so easy to get to, so close to the shore, and with hiking possibility and a lively small town atmosphere, it is pretty good.