Where is the most beautiful place you have ever visited? We were asked this the other day, and as two people who have traveled to over 95 countries, I must admit it was a tough question to answer, but the Jade Mountain Resort in St Lucia often springs to mind.
A few other places also came to mind: Seychelles, Canada, and Namibia are certainly up there. However, nothing has blown me away quite like the beautiful Jade Mountain Resort in Saint Lucia.
The whole Jade Mountain Resort is straight out of a honeymooner magazine. Every little detail has been meticulously planned to create the ultimate getaway in a dream destination. It’s hard to put our whole week at Jade Mountain into words, but here is our best attempt!
Jade Mountain Resort Review
Getting to Jade Mountain Resort in Saint Lucia
There are two main airports in Saint Lucia. George FL Charles Airport (SLU), near Castries, and Hewanorra International (UVF), near Vieux Fort. Coming from Puerto Rico, we landed at SLU, and it took almost two hours to get to Jade Mountain Resort, with a pretty windy road.
We flew out of UVF, the more popular international airport, as you can easily connect to North America with carriers like Air Canada. UVF is only one hour from Jade Mountain and the much easier airport to get to. I would recommend flying into UVF to avoid wasting more time on a car transfer once you arrive. But with few flight options to St Lucia, you’ll unlikely be spoilt for choice.
The last 15 minutes of the car ride to Jade Mountain is a bit of a rough road, but once you arrive, it is all bliss! You can either rent a car or arrange your own cab, or Jade Mountain will happily set you up with a private transfer that aligns with your flight times.
The Jade Mountain Saint Lucia Property
Jade Mountain Resort sits high on Morne Chastanet, completely overlooking the famous St. Lucia Pitons and the beautiful Caribbean Sea. Every room looks out to the Pitons and is completely secluded away from other guests.
The whole resort design is an architectural masterpiece, which you can try and see from the included photos we took. Long walkways come out from the side of the mountain to lead guests to their rooms as well as the bar, restaurant, and common area. I still can’t believe this resort actually exists.
The whole design concept was dreamt up by owner Nick Troubetzkoy when he visited Saint Lucia in the early 1970s. Since then, he has turned his dream into one of the most impressive properties in the world.
The Jade Mountain Saint Lucia Sanctuaries
Rooms at Jade Mountain are not rooms but are referred to as Sanctuaries and have all been individually designed with the utmost attention. We knew we were in for something unique when we first walked to our room on our private walkway.
All the rooms at Jade Mountain are nothing short of amazing, with a bedroom, living area, and private infinity pool. The fourth wall of each sanctuary here has been essentially removed so that all guests can have amazing open views of nature. That means that little birdies will be singing in your ear in the morning and have easy access to your room – which we loved, but it may not be for everybody.
Each sanctuary has an infinity pool or a sky jacuzzi overlooking the Caribbean landscape. We stayed in room JE1, or other words, the “Galaxy” sanctuary and the highest level room at Jade Mountain.
Our sanctuary was breathtaking and provided us with total panoramic views out to Saint Lucia’s twin Pitons at all times.
In addition to the views, we were provided with a comfortable king-sized canopy bed, huge living space, a jacuzzi, an infinity pool, fast WiFi, a Major Domo (a butler), and full room service on request.
There are no televisions or radios at Jade Mountain, and that’s the beauty of it. It’s so easy to forget about real life here and delve deeper into Saint Lucia.
There was nothing better here than waking up to the sound of the ocean and singing birds, ordering a healthy breakfast, and looking out to the most stunning mountains in the Caribbean. It was honestly hard ever to want to leave our sanctuary!
The Food at Jade Mountain Saint Lucia
We did our research and read reviews about the food at Jade Mountain Resort before we visited, so we knew it would be delicious. However, what we experienced blew us entirely out of the water!
Jade Mountain itself has one main restaurant called the Jade Mountain Club. The Club serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner and is one of the nicest places to have dinner in the area. Meals here are typically elaborate and have multiple courses with all the wine you could want.
Jade Mountain Resort guests also have Suite Service at any time, which we used multiple times while staying here.
Much of the food is homegrown at Jade Mountain’s very own garden, while the items they can’t grow are typically sourced locally to benefit the community.
Guests at Jade Mountain also have full access to Anse Chastanet restaurants, their sister property down the mountain. Anse Chastanet has more than five restaurants to choose from, and most are beachfront. It’s great to have the best of both worlds here.
All the food, wine, beer, and cocktails you could want are included in the all-inclusive plan at Jade Mountain Resort. However, it’s also possible to book plans without alcohol or half-board meal plans OR book breakfast only and eat the rest of your meals in town if you prefer.
I would suggest going with at least a half-board option as I think it would always be too much of a pain to leave the resort for food. It’s at least a 15-minute drive to town from Jade Mountain.
The Staff at Jade Mountain Saint Lucia
Just like everything else at this well-reviewed, all-inclusive, the Jade Mountain resort staff never disappointed. The staff was courteous, prompt, helpful, and polite at all times. I loved seeing their smiling faces every day.
We also learned that almost all staff at Jade Mountain are local Saint Lucians and have one of the lowest turnover rates for jobs on the island. We truly felt that everyone loved their careers and lives here!
Our favorite staff members were the attentive manager, Jonathan, who always ensured we were accounted for. Also, our Major Domos were our private room butlers for the duration of our stay.
They were always on call for guests and happy to attend to visitors’ needs. They even brought me ear drops at 11 pm as I could sense an ear infection coming on after diving.
The Scuba Diving
Continuing with this Jade Mountain Resort review, I want to mention scuba diving. Of course, we have always wanted to travel to Saint Lucia for the views and beauty, but the biggest reason we were so keen was to scuba dive.
We recently completed our open water course in Bali and have been hooked on diving. Ever since, we’ve been seeking out the best dive sites in the world, with our last big trip being in the Maldives.
Saint Lucia ranks pretty far up there in terms of diving in the Caribbean, and you can jump right into the ocean from Jade Mountain Resort to experience it!
Scuba St. Lucia is headquartered at Anse Chastanet and is a five-star dive center that operates dives three times a day and two nights a week.
We went diving with Scuba St. Lucia a total of six times, including a night dive, and every time was exhilarating. While we didn’t find any sizeable marine life, we couldn’t get enough of the colorful fish and even saw a sea horse, frogfish (our second since diving at Kuramathi in the Maldives), and a turtle!
The staff at the dive shop were all friendly and helpful. As new divers, we felt completely comfortable at all times. The diving experience varies month to month, so make sure to pay attention to the best time to visit St Lucia when planning.
Activities at Jade Mountain Saint Lucia
There are so many activities at Jade Mountain it’s nearly impossible to ever get bored. We had five full days here, but honestly, even with 10, you wouldn’t find us complaining.
While we spent many hours under the water scuba diving, there are also many other things to do at Jade Mountain Resort.
Snorkeling around the house reef, kayaking, stand-up paddleboarding, and sugar plantation tours are all free activities to participate in. There’s also a gym and daily complimentary sunrise and sunset yoga at Jade Mountain at Anse Chastanet. (So bring a travel yoga mat if you want your own mat).
In addition, there is an event on offer every single day, whether that be a Chocolate Sensory Tasting or Saint Lucian Mixology class.
You’ll even find live entertainment at the bar a few times a week – we loved the Saint Lucian steel drum band!
In addition to these complementary activities, there are also many paid excursions. Things like hiking the Pitons, zip-lining, champagne sunset cruises, mountain biking, deep-sea fishing, rum tasting, bird watching, or really anything are on offer at Jade Mountain. Or you can always do absolutely nothing at all – Jade Mountain Resort is the perfect place for that.
Wellness at Jade Mountain Saint Lucia
Being a fancy resort, I knew that Jade Mountain Resort would offer plenty of spa services, but I was shocked by the sheer amount of different treatments.
It’s easy to indulge here and get lost in the many spa packages. Just to name a few are the Summer Skin Cooler, Chakra Balancing Massage, the Sea Salt Body Scrub, and Saint Lucian Chocolate Massage. We decided to go with a couples massage in the privacy and comfort of our room and never wanted it to end!
Shop For Travel Insurance
We don’t travel without travel insurance, and neither should you. You never know what can happen in a foreign country, and it’s best to be prepared. HeyMondo offers excellent short and long-term travel insurance policies.
An Overall Review of Jade Mountain Resort in Saint Lucia
I wouldn’t hesitate to book a fantastic vacation or honeymoon at Jade Mountain, as it’s definitely one of the best honeymoon destinations in the world. The views of The Pitons are to die for, and I can assure you that you will never get sick of them.
On top of the views, everything from the food to the beautiful Saint Lucian staff and all-around beach fun in the sun is top-notch. I doubt we’ll ever stay at a resort quite like this one!
An Alternative Option to Jade Mountain: Anse Chastanet
I also want to take a moment to mention an alternative, but just as a fantastic option to Jade Mountain, and that’s Anse Chastanet. Anse Chastanet is the sister property to Jade Mountain and is located just down the hill.
Our first two nights in Saint Lucia were spent in the Beach House suite at Anse Chastanet – steps away from the ocean. During the day, we didn’t have to walk far to jump in the water, and at night we could be whisked away to sleep by the sound of the waves.
Anse Chastanet is the more affordable resort, but it is still mega luxurious. Rooms are tastefully decorated and comfortable, and the resort itself is well situated.
Anse Chastanet guests always have many restaurants to choose from and activities to participate in. All the activities that Jade Mountain guests get to experience are also available to Anse Chastanet guests, and all of the same restaurants are on offer besides the Jade Mountain Club.
It’s worth noting that many of the rooms at Anse Chastanet still provide astonishing views of the Pitons as well.
I’m so happy we could get a feeling of both resorts as both were simply unbelievable. While Anse Chastanet is marketed as a slightly less exclusive (and less expensive) resort, this property is by no means a poor choice to stay at in Saint Lucia.
