Dive Review of Scuba St. Lucia/Anse Chastenet in
St. Lucia

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Scuba St. Lucia/Anse Chastenet: "St Lucia Oct 2020", Oct, 2020, by Jon Hoffmann, GA, US ( Contributor 15 reports with 19 Helpful votes). Report 11494 has 3 Helpful votes.
No photos available at this time
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations		Food
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity
Dive Operation		Shore Diving
Snorkeling	N/A
Overall Rating
Value for $$
Beginners
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Comments	St. Lucia Oct 1-8 2020: Anse Chastenet Resort and Scuba St Lucia The Travel: Due to COVID, direct flight dive destinations from Atlanta via Delta to countries that are not closed or impose strict quarantine or other similar restrictions are limited. Ken and Laura at Ultimate Dive Travel came through again for me and helped find and book a relatively frictionless destination and dive package. St Lucia requires that you register in advance and to also submit a negative COVID PCR test 7 days prior to arrival. One thing that is not clear in the St Lucia government website requirements is that after submission of the registration and test information, you will need a final letter indicating approval to enter St. Lucia. At least that is what the gate agent in Atlanta claimed and turns out may not be accurate. We submitted out info about 3 days before departure and had not received the final approval email. While in a mild panic at the boarding gate, we received outstanding help from Colette McDermott with the St Lucia government (800-456-3984 cmcdermott@stlucia.org). She was able to provide just enough clarification to the surly gate agent to allow us to board the plane, and then she emailed our final approval letters while in the air. The COVID screening and immigration process upon arrival was quite slow, but pain free. Several temperature checks, questionnaires, and interviews later, we had our bags and exited the airport. With the exception of a strict mask policy, it was refreshing to see how warm everyone is and sincerely grateful for the return of tourists. It’s about an hour car ride from the airport to the resort and very scenic. Ask your driver stop at a store to pick up some beverages and snacks for the ride. The Resort: The resort is nestled on a steep hillside and part of complex with a sister resort (Jade Mountain) that is at the top of the mountain. We opted for a beach bungalow and made the right choice. They are airconditioned, with large outdoor patios, but be sure to get a 1st floor unit as half are 2nd floor. The other Anse Chastenet rooms are a significant number of steps up the hill and away from the beach, and may not be air-conditioned. Jade Mountain is an even further uphill climb and the guests were mostly honeymooners. But Jade Mountain is an architectural masterpiece with an awesome view and definitely worth a sunset cocktail visit and dinner. Anse Chastenet was recently approved to open by the government and was minimally occupied and all but one restaurant and 2 bars were closed. There is no swimming pool, but not necessary with the nice beach steps from the room. The staff all seemed sincerely grateful to have guests and be working again. Service was incredible and staff were modest and almost resistant to tips, although you could tell they were sorely needed. The beachfront restaurant and bar carried a limited menu and the prices were not cheap. Even with the all meals included plan, there were a fair number of dishes with an upcharge. A 275ml bottle of Piton Lager is $5 and most cocktails >$10. Expect to have your temperature taken every time you enter the restaurant. The private beach is manicured with volcanic black sand with about 20 thatch shaded lounge chair areas with food and beverage service. There is not much nightlife and little entertainment, but this is a laidback and relaxing resort mostly for romantic getaways. There are no TVs but decent speed wifi is available in the restaurants, bars and most guest rooms. Claud tends the beach bar. Awesome guy who goes the extra mile. Take care of him if you visit. He gave us St Lucia shirts for no other reason than to make our trip memorable. The Scuba St Lucia facilities are next to the beach restaurant/bar and directly on the beach. It’s well stocked with rental gear and has a large locker area to store equipment overnight. They will provide a lock for a locker for you and the locker area is closed and guarded at night. There is a small t-shirt boutique in the dive shop, but no real gear, equipment or parts sold. The Diving Typical Caribbean diving with consistent 83 degree water. Most boat dives were a 10 minute boat ride or less away below the Pitons, but Anse Chastenet has a house reef for shore dives and a fascinating sea grass site directly in front of the beach (Turtle Reef). Current can be strong and unpredictable. October is the tail of the rainy season and visibility was reduced to around 50 feet. In all, the reefs seemed healthy and probably got a break to recover during the full COVID lockdown of the country over the spring and summer. Scuba St Lucia is run by a Romanian expat (Carmen) and her husband. The 2 purpose built low draft dive boats with twin 300s could accommodate 20 divers each, but we never had more than 6 on any trip and several times just my girlfriend and I (plus guide and 2 boat crew). Boat dives are offered at 8:00, 10:30 and 2:00. There are 2 shore and 1 night dives offered daily. Government regulations require a guide on all dives, so you just can’t grab a tank and go on your own.
Websites	Scuba St. Lucia
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	501-1000 dives
Where else diving	Caribbean, Costa Rica, Thailand, Micronesia, Maldives, Indonesia, PNG, Palau, Malaysia, Philippines
Closest Airport		Getting There
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny, rainy	Seas	calm, currents
Water Temp	83-84°F / 28-29°C	Wetsuit Thickness
Water Visibility	30-60 Ft/ 9-18 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	no
Enforced diving restrictions	[Unspecified]
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	yes
What I Saw
Sharks	None	Mantas	None
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	1 or 2	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals		Tropical Fish
Small Critters		Large Fish	N/A
Large Pelagics
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter	N/A	Boat Facilities	N/A
Overall rating for UWP's		Shore Facilities	N/A
UW Photo Comments	[None]

Report currently has 3 Helpful votes

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Dive Review of Scuba St. Lucia/Anse Chastenet in St. Lucia

Scuba St. Lucia/Anse Chastenet: "St Lucia Oct 2020", Oct, 2020,

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Overall Rating

Reporter and Travel

Dive Conditions

Dive Policy

What I Saw

Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Dive Review of Scuba St. Lucia/Anse Chastenet in
St. Lucia