Everything about Saint Barth Lemy totally explained
Saint Barthélemy (
French:
Saint-Barthélemy), officially the
Collectivity of Saint Barthélemy (French:
Collectivité de Saint-Barthélemy), is an
overseas collectivity of
France. Also known as
Saint Barth in French, or
St. Barts in English, the collectivity is one of the four territories among the
Leeward Islands in the
Caribbean that comprise the
French West Indies, and is the only one to have historically been a
Swedish colony.
History
Saint Barthélemy was first claimed by France in
1648. It was sold to
Sweden in
1784, which sold it back to France in
1878. The Swedish period left its mark in the names of many of the streets and the town (in honor of King
Gustav III) and leaving its national arms, the
Three Crowns along with the
Maltese cross, the
Fleur-de-lis, the
mural crown, as well as two
pelican birds and the island's supposed
amerindian name "OUANALAO", in the island's coat of arms.
Geography
Located approximately 250 km east of
Puerto Rico, Saint-Barthélemy lies near the islands of
Saint Martin,
Saba and
Anguilla.
Gustavia, which is the main town of the island, was named after King
Gustav III of Sweden, and remains as a reflection of the Swedish period.
The oldest settlement still remaining is the village of Lorient (or L'Orient), although scattered in every cemetery on the island can be found Swedish grave markers. Lorient's sister village on the French mainland is the city of
Lorient on the northern coast of
Brittany.
Beaches
Of the 20 beaches on the small island, several are considered especially inviting. On the southern side of the island, Grand Saline is a pristine beach with no development. On the western edge of the island is Colombier beach, which is only reachable by boat or a hike. St. Jean, Flamands and Grand-Cul-de-Sac beaches are also popular and attractive beaches which have hotels and other establishments on them. Shell Beach is popular for families with kids as it has little surf.
St. Barths has a tidal difference of only 8–15 cm. The beaches vary according to ocean currents — the weather travels onto the island following the sun from the East. One of the main surfing beaches (Toiny) is known for its riptide, while Grand Fond is one of the island's only non-swimming beaches. Although tourism doesn't allude to it, there are a small variety of warm water sharks in the Caribbean. So, swimming at dusk and dawn or in murky waters isn't recommended. Otherwise, scuba and snorkling are a great way to see the nurse sharks, lobsters, conch and green sea turtles that abound in the waters surrounding St. Barth.
The beach of Grand Cul-de-Sac is the easiest beach in the Caribbean for learning
sailing,
windsurfing and
kitesurfing as it has a reef which closes off the entire bay. The current that passes outside the reef here also carries the migrating whales and dolphins.
Demographics
According to the January 2007 census, the population of Saint Barthélemy is 8,450 inhabitants, On
7 February 2007, the
French Parliament passed a bill granting COM status to both Saint Barthélemy and neighbouring
Saint Martin. The new status took effect on
22 February 2007, when the law was published in the
Official Journal. Saint Barthélemy remains part of the
European Union.
Transportation
Saint Barth has a small airport known as
Gustaf III Airport that's served by small regional commercial aircraft and charters. Most visiting aircraft carry fewer than twenty passengers, such as the
Twin Otter, a common sight around Saint Barth and throughout the northern
West Indies. The short airstrip is at the base of a gentle slope ending directly on the beach at
St Jean. The arrival descent is over the hilltop traffic circle and departing planes fly right over the heads of sunbathers on St. Jean Beach (although small signs advise sunbathers not to lie directly at the end of the runway). Due to the close proximity of arriving and departing planes, either location is ideal for viewing by aircraft enthusiasts.
The nearest commercial jet airport is on the neighboring island of
Sint Maarten. The current mayor's airline, called
St Barth Commuter, offers non-prohibitive cost one-way/round trip travel between St. Barth and both of St. Martin's airports:
Princess Juliana International Airport and the smaller
L'Espérance Airport .
WinAir also services SBH, usually originating in St. Martin (SXM). There are also charters to St. Barth from San Juan, Puerto Rico, available through
Tradewind Aviation.
Ferries to and from Sint Maarten are the only other real option (although the passage from St. Martin to St. Barth is often rough), unless one is arriving by private charter boats/yachts.
Economy
The official currency of Saint Barthélemy is the
euro.
INSEE estimated that the total
GDP of Saint Barthélemy amounted to 179 million euros in
1999 (US$191 million at 1999 exchanges rates; US$255 million at Oct. 2007 exchange rates). In that same year the GDP per capita of Saint Barthélemy was 26,000 euros (US$27,700 at 1999 exchanges rates; US$37,000 at Oct. 2007 exchange rates), which was 10% higher than the average GDP per capita of
metropolitan France in 1999.
Tourism explains in a large measure the very high standard of living on the island.
Tourism
St. Barth has long been considered a playground of the rich and famous and is known for its beautiful pristine beaches, gourmet dining in chic bistros and high-end designer shopping.
St. Barth has about 25 hotels, most of them with 15 rooms or fewer, and the largest, the Guanahani has just 70 rooms. Hotels are classified in the traditional French manner 3 Star, 4 Star and 4 Star Luxe.
Villa vacations are extremely popular and there are hundreds of villas terraced into the hillsides throughout the island as well has many beachfront locations. Villas here by definition can range from one-bedroom bunglalows to large luxurious homes.
This island is also home to the rare scorpion
Centruroides barbudensis, characterized by an overly large tail.
Sports
The junior national French surf champion from Lorient, was named recently in the winter of 2006.
St. Barths is home to the St. Barths Bucket, an annual sailing race around the island.
The St Barths Music festival an eclectic mix from Classic to Jazz performed by top international artists held every January.
August, another month of music and local events with the Caribbean Music Festival and St Barths Day a month of festivities.
Annually, the St. Barths Film Festival (in its thirteenth year as of 2007) features Caribbean-themed and produced films.
Bibliography
Further Information
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