Best places to visit in Guadeloupe France

Located in the heart of the Arc des Antilles, in the Caribbean, Guadeloupe is 2,200 km from Florida and 600 km from the coast of South America. This island offers hiking, diving, hopping or sun bathing on beautiful beaches. For this reason we are listing best places to visit in Guadeloupe.

Guadeloupe is situated in Caribbean Sea (French Department of the Americas (DFA) from France). Archipelago of 1628 km² known for its shape of a butterfly with outstretched wings, Guadeloupe is made up of six inhabited islands, each as unique as the next.

Best places to visit in Guadeloupe France (Caribbean Sea)
caldeclara / Pixabay

Separated by a narrow arm of the sea called the Rivière Salée, they are connected by the Gabarre and Alliance bridges. Marie-Galante, Les Saintes (Terre-de-Haut and Terre-de-Bas) and La Désirade, called the “islands of the South”.

 

Best places to visit in Guadeloupe

  • The great Soufriere
  • Point of the Castles
  • Guadeloupe National Park
  • Grande Anse Beach
  • Petite Terre Islands
  • Terre-de-Haut
  • Bois Jolan Beach
  • Deshaies Botanical Garden
  • Grand Cul de Sac Marin
  • Bassin Paradise Guadeloupe

 

1.The great Soufriere (La Grande Soufrière)

Best places to visit in Guadeloupe
Yves G, CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

La Soufrière is one of the most visited sites in Guadeloupe. Nearly 300,000 visitors per year passed through this high place of Caribbean tourism until 2004.

The earthquake that occurred in 2004 not only led to the closure of the road leading to the main car park of La Savane à Mulet, but also made access more difficult.

This explains the significant drop in the number of visitors in recent years, reaching nearly 100,000 visitors today.

2.Point of the Castles (Pointe des Châteaux)

Pointe des Châteaux - Point of the Castles

The easternmost beach of Guadeloupe reveals its castles carved into the cliffs, moreover one comes there more to see the remarkable geological formations than for the beach, the Pointe des Chateaux is exposed to the strong swells which come from the Atlantic and the result of natural erosion is truly magnificent.

It’s beautiful, but a little dangerous, because the rock is so eroded that it is crumbly and sometimes sharp, I advise you to have good shoes to move around the site.

You can take a path which after a 20-minute walk (change in altitude) leads you to the heights of Pointe Chrétienne.

The view is magnificent, on a clear day you can see the island of La Désirade, as well as Petite Terre and with more luck, Marie-Galante.

 

3.Guadeloupe National Park (Parc national de la Guadeloupe)

Best places to visit in Guadeloupe
Best places to visit in Guadeloupe France (Caribbean Sea)

The discovery of the national park of Guadeloupe will lead you to the center of the volcanic island, where you will find typical landscapes of the volcanic islands of the Caribbean, as well as magnificent rivers, waterfalls and hot pools.

Several types of vegetation coexist in Guadeloupe; dense humid forest rubs shoulders with dry forest and coastal mangroves.

Walk, observe, admire, discover, feed on these dazzling landscapes that will fill you with surprise. Let’s share this unique and exceptional nature.

 

4.Grande Anse Beach (Plage de Grande Anse)

Best places to visit in Guadeloupe

Superb bay lined with coconut trees, located at the foot of Piton Grande Anse. White sand beach where families like to meet for a picnic.

The place is of great beauty but the swell is regularly present and dangerous swimming.
However, a natural swimming pool has been set up, at the very south of the beach, in order to be able to swim in complete safety, sheltered from the swell by huge basalt rocks.

The site includes a green park with picnic areas, maintained green spaces, a bowling alley, a large car park, toilet blocks, pedestrian walkways and bar trucks.

 

5.Petite Terre Islands (One of the best places to visit in Guadeloupe)

Best places to visit in Guadeloupe

The islets of Petite Terre represent a remarkable ecological ensemble concerning both terrestrial and marine habitats.

This natural space is a major challenge for the conservation of habitats and biodiversity in the Guadeloupe archipelago. For this reason we suggest to visit Petite Terre because is one of the best places to visit in Guadeloupe.

 

6.Terre-de-Haut

Best places to visit in Guadeloupe

Terre de Haut is the most touristic island of Les Saintes. It is the big sister of the island of Terre-de-Bas, which is just opposite.

Located an hour by boat from Guadeloupe, this island is a pure jewel that you absolutely must discover during your stay in the Caribbean.

I explain here what to see on Terre de Haut in order to make the most of it.

 

7.Bois Jolan Beach (One of the best places to visit in Guadeloupe)

Best places to visit in Guadeloupe France (Caribbean Sea)

It is a long beach of fine white sand that stretches over 1 kilometer. Its waters are very calm and transparent.

For us, it is one of the most beautiful beaches in Guadeloupe. We suggest to spend some hours in Bois Jolan Beach because is one of the best places to visit in Guadeloupe. It is not ideal for snorkeling because its bottoms are really not deep.

On the other hand, it is perfect for the family, to teach young children to swim. It is also ideal for lazing around and enjoying this heavenly setting.

 

8.Deshaies Botanical Garden (One of the best places to visit in Guadeloupe)

 

Deshaies Botanical Garden

Another place of interest that is worth a visit in Guadeloupe: the botanical garden of Deshaies.

It is located in Basse-Terre, at the exit of the village of Deshaies. This 7-hectare garden is located on the former property of Coluche.

It allows you to explore different themed spaces such as the world of tropical trees or that of palm trees, and to discover the flora of the West Indies.

The place, really well laid out, allows you to learn more about the different species of plants on the island.

 

9.Grand Cul de Sac Marin

Located in the bay of Grand-Cul-De-Sac-Marin, between North Basse-Terre to the west and North Grande-Terre to the east.

Caret islet is positioned northwest of Grand Cul-De-Sac-Marin very close to the coral reef that closes the area.

It is a short distance off the town of Sainte-Rose to the north of îlet La Biche and to the west of îlet à Fajou.

Although reputed to be paradise on earth, the Caret islet is so small that it can hardly be located from the sky!

 

10.Bassin Paradise Guadeloupe

Bassin Paradise Guadeloupe
Best places to visit in Guadeloupe France (Caribbean Sea)

Also called Paradise basin, but we prefer the French version, this small basin is located in the heart of the Guadeloupe tropical forest, in its western part, forming the island of Basse-Terre.

Discovered by Christopher Columbus, this island is home to the Guadeloupe National Park in its mountainous center, home to the highest point in the Lesser Antilles, the Soufrière volcano, and many geological curiosities and wonders of flora and fauna.