Le Sport - Bodyholiday

I seem to have the happy knack at the moment of picking the holiday that just meets my needs. Le Sport (all inclusive) in St Lucia is blissful. Waves lapping on a palm tree lined beach, three swimming pools and I just lie here and snap my fingers at waiters who scurry around and fetch anything I want. Champagne, pina colada, oasis mama, fruit punch. Anything. Every so often I roll off my sunbed into the sea and go snorkelling. Or have a treatment at the Oasis up the hill. Revivng champagne supplied when you get there. So far  I have had massage, seaweed wrap, aromatherapy, hydrotherapy, scalp treatment and so on.....The coconut de luxe combo was quite interesting.........

In between you can do classes golf, archery, tennis, scuba, snorkelling, tubing, windsurfing, sailing, water skiing, fencing, aqua tone, Pilates, yoga, keep fit and so on and so on. I'm exhausted already and I've only tried half of them so far.

After all that exercise you need to eat. I go from breakfast to the deli which has a juice bar and salads and stuff and then to the lunch buffet (Mexican, Indian, Caribbean...) followed by tea, scones, cream, sandwiches, cakes, then dinner in a choice of three places. Cocktails start at 10 a.m. and are best in the terrace jacuzzi at midnight, though the waiters made me fetch those myself. That's after the sunset cruise round the bay, with rum punch of course.

All my food resolutions have gone totally out of the window. Free champagne - the ultimate dieter's challenge. There's dancing every night till three ish and some don't bother to go to bed at all. Everyone's really friendly, particularly the gym instructors. One tried to persuade me to have a private massage yesterday evening. Six o'clock in your room then?

Have to go. There's a line of margaritas waiting for me and I just can't decide whether to do archery or fencing next.

Out and Around in St Lucia

It's too easy not to venture outside the hotel gates, but St Lucia has plenty of history. It was colonised by the French, with Soufrière the capital of the island. They signed a treaty with the native island Caribs in 1660. However, England took control of the island in 1663, resulting in an ongoing battle with the French. Stuck in the middle of the ongoing conflict St Lucia became known as the Helen of the West. It was ruled seven times each by the French and British until the British took definitive control of the island in 1814. Saint Lucia became an independent state in 1979.

So, there's plenty to see around the island :

• Pigeon Island National Park - over a causeway at the end of the bay where the hotel is - great for a cycle ride, though the ascent at the end up Signal Hill is a little steep. There's the eighteenth century Fort Rodney (named after the admiral who built it), military remains & views of Martinique, if you're lucky.
• Snorkelling at Anse Chastenet in the marine reserve, off a black sand volcanic beach.
• Marigot Bay where they filmed Pirates of the Caribbean and Dr Doolittle. The inland portion of the bay forms a hurricane hole, used to shelter boats from hurricanes. It's also the site of a number of battles between the French and British navies.
• And Rodney Bay (named after that admiral again) resort central, where Freddie Flintoff got drunk and stole a boat. There's even a water park.

Castries

Castries, the capital of St Lucia, isn't hugely exciting. it's a cruise line port with the associated duty-free shopping around the harbour. There's the Cathedral, the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception, with its colorful murals and a lively covered market. And a few traditional, if slightly battered colonial houses with jutting wooden balconies.

The Pitons

And last but not least, the iconic Pitons, towering velvety peaks framing a powdery beach with more good snorkelling off the jetty. These (Gros and Petit) Pitons are two UNESCO world heritage, mountainous volcanic volcanic spires, near the town of Soufrière. They feature on every boat trip and every St Lucia publicity shot

And Venturing Beyond St Lucia

• A light aeroplane trip to St Vincent and the Grenadines - great views of St Lucia on the way over, as well
• A day trip on the ferry to Martinique