Anse Chastanet
Anse Chastanet earns its reputation through authenticity rather than polish. Its 49 individually designed rooms, 37 on a steep jungle hillside and 12 in a tropical garden at beach level, sit on a 600-acre estate above a cove near Soufriere, with the Pitons rising behind. The reef at the water's edge is among the best free snorkeling in Saint Lucia and the Eastern Caribbean: guests wade in about ten yards and are swimming over coral with sea turtles and eagle rays. Scuba St. Lucia, the PADI 5-Star dive center on the beach, makes diving the reserves effortless. It has been one of the island's most consistently top-rated resorts for decades, and it shares its land and dive operation with Jade Mountain, its more expensive sister.
Traveler Insights
Pros
- +Snorkeling begins about 10 yards from the waterline on a protected reef inside Saint Lucia's marine reserves - sea turtles, eagle rays and hundreds of tropical fish are routine sightings, and snorkel gear is complimentary
- +Scuba St. Lucia, a PADI 5-Star dive resort, sits right on the beach for boat dives, courses and gear, so divers can go from breakfast to the reef with no transfers
- +Treehouse-style hillside rooms with an open fourth wall frame Gros Piton and the Caribbean, and the Premium Hillside rooms on the highest level get the postcard view
- +A 600-acre estate with two soft-sand beaches, including the quieter Anse Mamin, where 12 miles of private jungle trails run past 18th century sugar-mill ruins for Bike St. Lucia's mountain biking, hiking and birdwatching
- +Dining has real range: the candlelit Treehouse with a daily-changing Tropical World Cuisine menu, the Apsara East Indian-Saint Lucian fusion menu at Trou au Diable, the all-vegan Emeralds menu, and lunch at the Jungle Beach Grill on Anse Mamin, with produce from the resort's own organic farm
- +A long list of free extras comes with every rate: non-motorized water sports (snorkel gear, windsurfers, Sunfish sailboats, sit-on-top kayaks), the tennis court, guided estate walks, chocolate tastings and a Creole history class
- +No rigid schedule or forced fun - the property is built for moving at your own pace, a world away from entertainment-heavy all-inclusives
Cons
- −Steep hillside terrain: the resort itself warns of roughly 100 stairs from beach level to mid-hillside and calls the property unsuitable for guests with walking difficulties, though a complimentary shuttle runs between levels on request
- −The hillside rooms have no air conditioning; only the Beachside Deluxe rooms and The Beach House have AC, so heat-sensitive sleepers in the humid summer months should book at beach level
- −Getting off property takes planning - the resort sits in a cove beyond Soufriere on a rough road, so dinners in town and independent exploring go through boats, taxis or the excursion and car rental desk
- −All-inclusive is an optional add-on rather than the default, and every rate carries 20% VAT plus a service charge and tourism levy, so the final bill runs well above the headline number
- −Insects, mosquitoes included, are part of the open-air tropical setting - bug spray is not optional, particularly for evening dining
- −The water at Anse Chastanet beach is not always calm turquoise - swell can bring chop and surge, and the darker volcanic sand is not the white-sand Caribbean ideal
- −There is no communal swimming pool; the only pool is the private one in the Piton Pool Suite, so pool lovers should look at sister resort Jade Mountain or elsewhere
The experience is deliberately unhurried. Hillside rooms are open to the jungle and the breeze with no air conditioning, built to feel like a treehouse, while the beachside rooms trade the big views for AC and a few steps to the sand. Rooms run from 350 sq ft Standard rooms to the 1,600 sq ft Beach House, and the Piton Pool Suite adds a private pool. Food is genuinely good: breakfast and a daily-changing dinner at the Treehouse, lunch at Trou au Diable on the beach, the Apsara fusion menu and a beach grill in the evenings, an all-vegan Emeralds menu, and a festive Caribbean night on the beach every Tuesday. Evenings are smart casual. Service is warm, and travelers who have compared several Saint Lucia resorts often rank it among the island's best.
Anse Chastanet suits adventurous couples, serious divers, nature lovers and travelers who find big all-inclusives soulless; children 8 and up are welcome. Compared with Sandals Grande St. Lucian or Cap Maison it is more rustic and far more distinctive. Meals are flexible: room only, breakfast and dinner at $110 per person per day, or all-inclusive at $210 per person per day, with breakfast and dinner mandatory over Christmas and New Year. On the resort's published 2026 rates, all-inclusive for two runs from $970 a night for a Standard room in summer up to $2,250 for the Piton Pool Suite or Beach House at the holidays, before VAT and fees. Off the estate, the Sulphur Springs, Piton hikes and the Soufriere botanical gardens are close by.
Common Questions
How serious is the stairs situation, and is there a way around it?
Is the snorkeling genuinely good, or is it overhyped?
Do I need air conditioning, or are the open-air rooms comfortable?
Is Anse Chastanet all-inclusive?
What is the food like across a week-long stay?
How does Anse Chastanet compare to Jade Mountain or Sandals in Saint Lucia?
Restaurants (4)
| Type | Restaurants |
|---|---|
| Caribbean & local | The Treehouse Restaurant, Trou au Diable Restaurant |
| Indian | Apsara |
| Plant-based | Emeralds |
From the resort's own dining pages. Only restaurants the resort lists are shown. All are covered by the all-inclusive rate, per the resort.
What's nearby
Marigot Bay40 min drive · 21 mi
Sulphur Springs14 min drive · 3.9 mi
Anse Mamin2 min walk · 0.1 mi
Toraille Waterfall12 min drive · 3.3 mi
Anse La Raye (Friday fish fry)30 min drive · 16 mi
Anse Chastanet Beach1 min walk · 0.1 mi
More things to do (24)
- Marigot Beach · beach40 min drive · 21 mi
- Tet Paul Nature Trail · nature20 min drive · 6.0 mi
- Sandy Beach · beach55 min drive · 22 mi
- Canaries · town20 min drive · 8.2 mi
- Soufrière · town7 min drive · 1.9 mi
- Maranatha Gardens · nature10 min drive · 3.2 mi
- Diamond Falls Botanical Gardens · nature10 min drive · 2.8 mi
- Morne Coubaril Estate · historic site11 min drive · 3.0 mi
- Piton Falls · nature13 min drive · 3.7 mi
- Fond Doux Estate · historic site20 min drive · 5.3 mi
- Sugar Beach · beach20 min drive · 4.8 mi
- Gros Piton Nature Trail · nature25 min drive · 7.5 mi
- Enbas Saut Falls Trail (Edmund Forest Reserve) · nature30 min drive · 7.6 mi
- Anse Cochon Beach · beach35 min drive · 15 mi
- Rudy John Beach Park · beach45 min drive · 17 mi
- Morne Fortune and Fort Charlotte · historic site50 min drive · 24 mi
- Castries · town50 min drive · 26 mi
- Derek Walcott Square · historic site50 min drive · 26 mi
- Castries Market · town50 min drive · 26 mi
- Vigie Beach · beach55 min drive · 27 mi
- Folk Research Centre · museum55 min drive · 27 mi
- Vieux Fort · town55 min drive · 22 mi
- Choc Beach · beach55 min drive · 28 mi
- Anse de Sables Beach · beach55 min drive · 22 mi
Amenities
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Style & Rooms
Atmosphere
Room upgrades
Seaweed & sargassum
St. Lucia gets sargassum, typically worst May through August.See the month-by-month guide →Google Reviews★ 4.7 · 356 reviews
“This hotel resort in St. Lucia feels genuinely unique and never once like a cookie-cutter stay. It’s a thoughtful mix of nature, relaxation, and adventure. Beach time, spa visits, jungle hikes, mountain biking, snorkeling, and scuba all fit together...”
“My wife and I stayed here for seven days after sailing St. Vincent & the Grenadines. Anse Chastanet was wonderful! The staff are amazing. From the moment you arrive, throughout many moments during your stay, to the moment you depart, you are made...”
“the location is amazing and you are well prepared by a one in a life time driving experience :-) the room was exactly as described on the web site. the staff is very welcoming and people are super nice. food is excellent. we took the half board opti...”
