If you know us, you know we love overwater bars. No, not beach bars (though we love those, too). We mean bars that are perched right above the water, offshore, accessed only by a small deck or bridge. It means you’re surrounded.
While we loved the overwater options on a recent trip to Belize’s Ambergris Caye (a place we’ve called the Caribbean capital of overwater bars), one of our longstanding favorites is at the venerable Hotel Bakoua in Martinique.
It looks like a floating bar designed in a lab: angled, narrow deck that takes you to a circular platform with a huge tiki roof.
What do you order? A tip? If you’re looking for a more familiar cocktail, go for the planteur, the French Caribbean’s version of a rum punch.
But if you want to go local, there’s simply one solution: the ti’ punch, the essential recipe of French Caribbean life: fresh-cut lime, cane sugar grown right in Martinique, and the island’s world-famous rhum agricole (rum distilled from fresh sugarcane juice, not molasses).
Be forewarned: the first sip has a bite. But once the lime and the rum and the sugar start to coalesce (something we call the “moment du punch), it all makes sense, whether you’re a neophyte or a French Caribbean regular.
This bar makes them quickly, serves them up perfectly, and then you just repeat the process.
It’s one of our favorite watering holes anywhere in the region.
It doesn’t hurt that there’s a magnificent view across the bay to Martinique’s fascinating, colorful capital of Fort-de-France.
While you can make your way to the bar here whether you’re a guest or not, the Bakoua is one of the old reliables of Martinique tourism, and its location (and beach) are pretty hard to beat.
Another travel tip? Go for one of the direct-beachfront rooms at the Bakoua. While they’re not exactly big by the standards of American travelers, you get the benefit of having the whole beach as your patio.
Rooms at the Trois Ilets (Martinique’s top tourism town) are just $143 per night right now, according to Google Hotels.
Travelers Are Starting to Discover the Island of Dominica, With New Flights, Hiking Trails and Luxury Hotels
