CARIBBEAN SAINT LUCIA DESTINATIONS


open stretch of swimmable sea. But the crowning glory here is the jungle that sits behind it. Set on a former 18th-century sugar plantation, it’s now a lush rainforest, shaded by emerald- green palms and ancient cocoa trees, and filled with exotic spices and fruits (soursop, mangoes and coconuts to name a few). Guide and self-proclaimed


‘father nature’ Meno takes you round to experience it through all the senses – from smelling lemongrass leaves to licking sour ‘golden apples’ – with insightful soundbites about the history of the plantation and the curative properties of its plants. Tours are complimentary. ‘Jungle biking’ tours are also


available for those wanting to explore in a different way – think speeding up and down rocky, leafy hills, beneath the canopies, before reaching a reservoir that’s totally deserted and peaceful ($45 for guests at the resort).


◗ TRY A CHOCOLATE WORKSHOP Saint Lucia knows how to do chocolate – there’s even a Chocolate Heritage Month every August celebrating the island’s cocoa-rich legacy. Boutique hotel Boucan by


Hotel Chocolat has its own cocoa plantation and offers various chocolate-related activities around it, while Jade Mountain owns the Emerald Estate – an organic farm nearby, home to more than 2,000 cocoa trees. We took a tour of the farm to


Tried & Tested JADE MOUNTAIN RESORT AT ANSE CHASTANET


As soon as I walked into my Star Sanctuary at Jade Mountain I was blown away, with incredible views over the Pitons and an open stretch of ocean glaring out in front of me. The rooms have no fourth wall, meaning it’s all totally open, and I quickly got used to wthe sounds of nature and warm breeze sending me to sleep in the evening. There are 24 Sanctuaries, each with private infinity pools, as well as five Sky Jacuzzi Suites that have a whirlpool bath. Every room has a ‘major domo’ ( a 24-hour butler who’ll go out of their way to help you) and they’re all creatively designed with a rustic, back-to- nature feel that isn’t lavish or OTT. The food is exceptional;


Jade guests can eat at all of the restaurants on the wider Anse


Chastanet resort, as well as at Jade Mountain Club, where gourmet tasting menus fuse flavours together in extraordinary ways. But the standout culinary experience for me was a private, castaway-style dinner at Anse Mamin beach, which saw us whizz


over on a speedboat before being served a six-course, lionfish- themed menu surrounded by candles and accompanied by violinists. This place is romance defined, and for those willing to splash the cash, it’s an unforgettable experience.


Tested by Laura French


learn more about the process from bean to bar, tasting fleshy cacao fruits and roasted beans along the way before heading to the Chocolate Lab at the resort for a sense-overloading workshop. The chocolatiers had us sampling various flavours before making our own creation to take home – picture a bucketful of molten lava-like chocolate trickling into moulds, with cinnamon, cashews, coconut


I was smothered in warm, deliciously sweet oils so I left smelling like a freshly-baked brownie


and other ingredients fresh from the estate. The workshop costs $75, and there’s also a tasting experience available for free. Chocolate cravings still not


satisfied, I followed it up with an indulgent cocoa treatment at the spa (there’s an entire chocolate menu), which saw me smothered in warm, deliciously sweet oils so I left smelling like a freshly-baked brownie. Now that’s my kind of day, if ever there was one.


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