How to Visit Saint Lucia — And Where You Can Stay
Saint Lucia, which first reopened its borders to tourism on June 4, is updating its travel protocols for visiting the island.
The biggest change, which will go into effect on July 9, will require travelers to obtain a negative PCR test within seven days of travel to the island.
All visitors must complete a Pre-Arrival registration form (you can find the form here) before traveling to Saint Lucia, including proof of the negative test and an indication of which COVID-19-certified hotel they will be staying in.
Upon arrival, all arriving passengers will be screened, with temperature checks at the airport. Any symptomatic passengers will be isolated and tested; they will be required to remain in isolation at their hotel or government-operated quarantine facility until their test results are obtained — if positive, they will be transferred to a treatment facility until they receive two negative test results and are clinically stable.
So where can you stay in Saint Lucia right now?
Travelers can only stay at hotels that have been COVID-19 certified, a program that covers all facets of a hotel’s health and safety protocols.
That includes things like sanitizing luggage at check-in; maintaining a fully-equipped nurses’ station; observing strict, detailed sanitization protocols for housekeeping; maintaining required social distancing for dining and other measures.
Right now, certified hotels include the Bay Gardens Beach Resort and Spa; Sandals Grande Saint Lucian; Stonefield Estate Villa Resort and Sugar Beach, a Viceroy Resort.
Several other hotels are on track to receive certification this month, according to the Saint Lucia Tourism Authority.
Visitors have to wear masks when using on-island transportation and when in public places.
It should also be noted that travelers from destinations that have “zero or low instance” of COVID-19 are exempt from the seven-day testing requirement: that includes a number of countries within the Caribbean, from The Bahamas to Trinidad and Tobago.
For more, visit Saint Lucia’s COVID-19 response.
Alexander Britell is the founder and editor-in-chief of Caribbean Journal and one of the top experts on Caribbean travel worldwide, with decades of on-the-ground travel to the region and comprehensive knowledge of the entire Caribbean Basin.
