If you're ever wondering aloud where the hottest mid-winter celebrations take place, those in-the-know might quietly respond, “St. Barts.” The island's luxe air of mystery and remoteness are part of what makes it a seasonal staple for jet setters and superyachts as they follow the sun to the Caribbean in winter. The festivities rage on until the St. Barths Bucket Regatta in mid-March, but what most visitors don’t realize is that the island is practically a year-round one, since the only time hotels typically shut is at the height of hurricane season (late summer).
And now, as the South of France is undergoing a renaissance with the rebirth of grand dame hotels like Carlton Cannes and the recently opened, modernist Maybourne Riviera outside Monaco, St. Barts is also seeing a mirrored shift. “We’re not an island of cookie-cutter resorts—it feels like the French Riviera, but closer,” says French hotelier Marie Sibuet, who recently opened Gyp Sea Beach Club and rebranded eight-year-old Villa Marie on Colombier hill as Gyp Sea Hotel.
While the rugged coastline with its cliffside hikes and panoramic perches over the sea may be reminiscent of the French Riviera (as well as the many offshoot eateries and clubs from Cannes and St. Tropez), St. Barts offers one thing harder to find in France—powder-soft sand. On the 10-square-mile island, you can go off-grid hiking or trekking to hidden beaches, then throw on a crochet dress and dance through lunch at a club along the coast. The beauty of St. Barts—apart from the frangipani-filled gardens and coves that could rival Fiji or French Polynesia—is that you don’t have to compromise. In this real-life Neverland, you can have your cake and eat it, too—and it’s probably baked by one of the world’s best chefs.
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Getting to St. Barts
The arrival into St. Barts offers the same bragging rights as being on the island itself. Swooping around the harbor and nose-diving down to one of the world’s shortest landing strips, the 2,100-foot runway is bookended by a hill on one side, the bay on the other—and turboprop planes are the only way in. Book a 15-minute Winair flight from neighboring St. Martin (ferries run from both the Dutch and French sides, but the trip is often a rocky one) or the slightly longer (but more luxurious) connection from San Juan, Puerto Rico, on one of Tradewind’s sleek eight-seaters.
The best things to do in St. Barts
The two main “towns”—Gustavia and Saint Jean—unfold on either side of the airport, which acts as a compass. Windowshop in capital Gustavia at Chanel or Cartier along the island’s version of Cannes’s La Croisette (be sure to pop into Clic, a combination art gallery, design shop, and boutique by Calypso St. Barth’s founder) before strolling over to Shell Beach. Perched over the sheltered cove with one of the best swimmable beaches on the island, Greek-influenced Shellona is a favorite for long lunches that linger through sunset—and the vibey restaurant shows off the best views.
Saint Jean’s most famous resident may be the cherry-red Eden Rock–St Barths hotel (and its neighboring Sunday beach club staple, Nikki Beach), but if you gaze further out at the cerulean-dyed water, you’ll spot sea turtles swimming just beneath the waves—plus this is a prime vantage point to watch planes land in the distance. On the western end of the island, make the 30-minute trek in Colombier down a sandy trail to the namesake beach, reachable only by foot or via yachts which anchor in the crystal-clear cove.
The island’s periphery is lined with lagoons, sand dunes, salt marshes, and even spectacular surf—but you may have to go slightly off-roading to reach some of the more remote piscines naturelles (natural pools), like Petit Cul-de-Sac. Two beaches worth seeking out: clear-as-glass Gouverneur for snorkeling (you may find a few other surprises, like nude sunbathers) and the untouched Anse de Grande Saline, whose secluded locale—accessed via untamed rocky footpath—make it one of the island’s lesser-visited stretches of coastline.
Where to eat and drink
The decade-old Saint Barth Gourmet Festival is the unofficial seasonal kick-off in mid-November, coinciding with beach club openings. St. Barts doesn’t get the same culinary attention as, say, the Cayman Islands, but restaurants here boast plenty of big-name chefs and young, soon-to-be superstars who’ve done stints—or held reign—in the South of France. Days are dictated by restaurant reservations, and a few favorites are part of St. Barts regulars’ rotation: hillside Bonito for sunset drinks, Parisian transplant Kinugawa for haute izakaya (and sushi rolls combining both caviar and wagyu), and tucked-away Tamarin St Barth for French-Caribbean fusion and a wine cellar you’d expect more in Monaco than a lantern-lit garden.
Part of the luxury of St. Barts is slipping off stilettos for toes-in-the-sand dining at spots like La Petite Plage on the port, or heading to bordello-inspired cabaret-club and champagne tavern Le Ti, where you can even don a costume of your own from the back closet and dance once the official show wraps up. Lounge-like La Guérite is already a popular pick on the port for its Mediterranean-style plates and music that follows the mood of the crowd throughout the evening, heating up as dinner comes to a close and diners start dancing around (and on) tables.
This season, La Guérite Beach opened on St. Jean Beach with Athens-born chef Yiannis Kioroglou once again behind the menu of locally sourced seafood and Greek-influenced fare like filo-wrapped feta and whole cauliflower prepped tableside. An homage to the original beach club off the coast of Cannes, this outpost replicates elements from the Riviera through a Provence-style terraced garden layout and sandstone mosaic inspired by the floors of Villa Kérylos in Beaulieu-sur-Mer. The seaside soirée doesn’t crescendo until long after lunch. Linger on one of the lounge chairs along the water catching the last rays of sun while sipping rosé and swaying to the pulsating music matching the rhythm of the waves.
Where to stay
The small island is a hotel heavy-hitter, with nearly a dozen five-star properties sporting some of the biggest names in luxury hospitality. You’ll find everything from the Caribbean’s only French Palace, Cheval Blanc St-Barth, where Michelin-starred chef Jean Imbert is behind restaurant La Case, to Hôtel Barrière Le Carl Gustaf St Barth, home to Monaco-based Beefbar’s first Caribbean outpost—another newcomer this season. The original grand dame on the island, Eden Rock–St Barths hasn’t lost an ounce of glamor in its 70 years—and looks better than ever thanks to a major two-year renovation after the hurricane. Design superstar Martin Brudnizki (behind iconic members’ club Annabel’s in London) re-envisioned Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s Sand Bar and the centerpiece, British colonial-style Rémy Bar & Salon, where sunbathers from St. Jean Beach congregate in chic cover-ups and sarongs for post-plage cocktails.
Propped on the sand behind Gyp Sea Beach Club, Maisons et Hôtels Sibuet debuted four new Balinese-inspired villas with private pools dubbed Gyp Sea Beach Houses this winter season. Carrying over the same design ethos as the sister hillside hotel (heavy on natural elements like wood and rattan, attention-drawing headboards), interior designer and hotelier Jocelyne Sibuet worked together with her son, Nicolas, and daughter, Marie, on everything from the handwoven raffia lamps to the flamboyant floral prints and fabrics—the starting point for each of the distinct designs. The beach houses are Caribbean-chic in spirit, more brut, or raw, in style than Gyp Sea Hotel, yet still infused with touches of turn-of-the-century glamour.
Rosewood Le Guanahani St. Barth—which reopened as a Rosewood in 2021 following a four-year, $40 million renovation—is blessed with beaches on both sides of the 18-acre private peninsula in the secluded northern stretch of St. Barts. The 66 accommodations—which include suites with private heated pools and sundecks—are scattered throughout tropical-colored clapboard cottages enveloped in hibiscus and lush palms. The sole resort of its kind on the island (and only sporting a kids club), Le Guanahani caters just as much to children and multi-generational families as it does to couples, newlyweds, and solo travelers like myself looking to reset with locally infused massages at Sense Spa and morning nature hikes up onsite Le Morne, meditating as the waves roll in below. Another spot with a heavy focus on wellness: family-owned Hotel Christopher, where you can unwind with the signature hot shell massage at the seaside Sisley Spa or soak in an après-sunset bath under the stars.
