By Alexander Britell

There are fire breathers in Marigot Bay.

It’s Tuesday night, and the Marina Village is filled with brilliant hues and pulsing moves, as the heart of one of the most prestigiuos superyacht marinas in the Caribbean is alive with the sounds and tastes and rhythms of Saint Lucia.

For centuries this place has had a siren song, a green hilled nook of Saint Lucia that is one of the Caribbean’s most beautiful bays.

And Marigot Bay is again sending its call — and rewarding those who make the journey to this western edge of the island.

This bay is alight again with the relaunched Marigot Bay Resort, Spa and Marina, a tucked-away resort that is perhaps the island’s best-kept secret.

There are 124 rooms here, including 57 suites, all gorgeously appointed with rich woods and modern touches like Nespresso machines and, in the suites, particularly welcome outdoor hot tubs.

It’s a resort where the luxury abounds but does so with understated elegance, where the service marries approachable friendliness with exactness — the latter as good as any resort on the island.

And it’s a place where the vastness of the amenities and the completeness of the offerings almost sneak up on you — but without overwhelming you.

It’s not just a resort. It is a true destination.

While the marina-front setting has the feel of a boutique, the amenities are broad: a waterside spa tucked among the trees; several eateries, all with outstanding food.

The beach is the resort’s most interesting amenity, accessed by an all-day ferry (a ride measured in seconds), a kind of sandy cay with sweeping views of the entry to the bay, several bars and eateries and wonderfully still water.

And then there is the Rum Cave.

This is a temple for rum, a dimly-lit speakeasy-style spot filled with rum lockers and barrels and a place where you can begin an education in the Caribbean’s most famous export, taking rum tastings of rums local and West Indies-wide (and dine on terrific tapas, too).

It’s part of a focus here on the experience, on giving travelers a true taste of the island, of the life beyond the luxury.

You can find more in the aforementioned Marina Village, with its Tuesday night local barbecues, its Hurricane Hole all-day restaurant (and, upstairs, the Marigot Bay outpost of beloved local Indian fusion eatery Masala Bay).

The marina adds an extra something to this resort; the boaters and the yachters, as they so often do, add an energy to the place, another beat, a constant refreshing of sailors and island-seekers.

It’s something you acknowledge as you look out through the terrace to the marina, where the masts of the superyachts peer over the trees, becoming bright sky ornaments when the sun goes down.

They’re a reminder that travelers and explorers and captains have been coming to this bay for centuries, drawn here, pulled here.

And that here, with the boats and the beach and the beauty and the fire breathers, you are relaxed — but never bored.

And that is a feeling that is rare indeed — and a reason why this is Saint Lucia’s true destination resort.

For more, visit Marigot Bay.

— CJ