Dennery and the East Coast

The eastern side of Saint Lucia faces the Atlantic, and the difference from the sheltered west is total: surf on the rocks, wind that never stops, and a coast that has almost no tourism on it at all. Dennery is the main village, a fishing settlement in a bay with a small island offshore, and it holds a Saturday night fish fry that is smaller and considerably more local than the Friday parties in the north. The road along the coast passes banana country, the Fond d'Or bay with its heritage park, and Mamiku Gardens, laid out around the ruins of an eighteenth-century estate.

What you actually see

• The Saturday fish fry - Dennery's version, smaller and more local.
• The Atlantic coast - surf, wind and almost no development.
• Fond d'Or - the bay and heritage park north of Dennery.
• Mamiku Gardens - planted around an eighteenth-century estate ruin.

When to go

December to April is the dry season. The Dennery fish fry is on Saturday evenings. The east coast road is the scenic route between Castries and Vieux Fort and takes considerably longer than the west.

Honest expectations

Swimming on the east coast is dangerous almost everywhere; the Atlantic surf and current are strong and there are no lifeguards. The road is winding, slow and in poor repair in stretches. There is very little tourism infrastructure, which is the appeal and the limitation. Facilities in the villages are basic.

Nearby

Mamiku Gardens are south; Castries is 45 minutes north over the ridge.