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Style: An open-plan, easy going, stylish tropical holiday home, plump comfortable sofas, colourful original artwork and finishing touches
The Beach: Anse du Cap or Smugglers Cove both volcanic sand beaches within a 5 minute drive, the latter has excellent snorkelling
The Rooms: 3 bedrooms, 2 with en suite bathroom 1 with separate bathroom
Key features: A very well put together St Lucia villa that melds with its tropical surroundings, swimming pool, cable TV, CD system, board games and barbecue.
Children: Children under 12 by special arrangement
Staff: Housekeeper, Mary 6 days a week 9am-3pm. Gardener, Benis and pool service from Patrick |
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Description
Hummingbird House is a striking and original villa set well back into the hills of the Cap Estate, a residential area in the far north of St Lucia. It has lovely views over to Rodney Bay and Pigeon Island. It is built into the hillside, and as you arrive, you find that the driveway is flanked on one side by the roof of the house, which looks like a large upturned boat hull. Hummingbird House has a romantic, stylishly rustic appeal. The entire property is painted white with bleached woodwork, including the exposed beams, shutters, wardrobes and fitted cupboards, and there are natural varnished wood floors. The accommodation and living areas are set at descending levels which give out onto verandas, one of which has been built around a large flamboyant tree. When the tree is in bloom, the striking scarlet flowers, just a few feet away, are a fantastic sight.
Steps wind down the north side of the house and lead to the front door. You enter into a hall area opening into the heart of the property, a huge open-plan kitchen, living and dining room. The room is very homely, with comfortable wicker seating and white cushions next to a matching dining table and chairs to seat six. It is furnished in an easy tropical style and following the name of the house there are brightly coloured hummingbirds embroidered on hangings on the walls and on cushion covers and in artwork. The entire front of the living room opens through a series of louvred doors to a large wooden deck, with a smaller adjacent deck at a lower level which has been built around a very well established flamboyant tree. The decked veranda is set up for outdoor living and dining with two dining tables. Stairs from here lead down beside the sloped garden to the swimming pool and surrounding sun terrace. The open aspect of Hummingbird House means that birds do dart in and out of the house and play around in the beams, before disappearing off again. For entertainment there is a music centre and small CD collection, cable TV, a library of books, and selection of games such as Battle of the Sexes, Trivial Pursuit, Chess, Scrabble, and Pictionary, plus a couple of puzzles.
The large kitchen surrounded by a huge breakfast bar is decorated in cheerful colours and is extremely well equipped so it is suitable for entertaining. It has fully fitted pickled pine and wicker units and lovely cobalt blue tiles on the work surfaces and it is open to the living area with stools to one end of the breakfast bar. There are a number of cookery books for those who want to do some of their own cooking, though this is something that the housekeeper normally takes care of. A row of shuttered windows open out to the wonderful views.
The verandas have been very cleverly designed to incorporate the surrounding garden. At this main level, which is among the tree tops, the garden virtually hangs into the house. The flamboyant grows through a veranda at a lower level that leads down to the pool terrace. The views outside are magnificent and look straight out to the Caribbean Sea. In the distance you can pick out the Pitons. Rodney Bay and Pigeon Island are also in view. The lower veranda, partially shaded by the flamboyant tree, has been named the ‘Tree House’ patio and has a little bridge-like walkway through the garden to the kidney shaped swimming pool. This has been set into a sun terrace made from local river stone, which also forms the wall of the pool and entry steps, giving it a natural look. Sun loungers and umbrellas are provided. From here steps lead down into the sloping gardens, which are more for looking at rather than sitting in.
Hummingbird House has three bedrooms, two on the main level and one upstairs. Downstairs one bedroom has twin beds which convert to a king and windows facing the flamboyant tree. This has a separate bathroom with shower only across the hall. The second bedroom, which has a queen four poster bed and an en suite bathroom with shower, gives out onto the pool terrace. All bedrooms have ceiling fans.
The master bedroom is absolutely huge. Approached by an open-sided stairway off the hallway by the entrance, it has a queen size four poster bed, a sitting area and large wooden shutters which open onto a wooden veranda where you can sit and enjoy the fabulous views down the coast. The room has exposed roof rafters and its rear wall, which divides it from the bathroom, does not go up to the ceiling, and so you have this sense that you are living under a wonderful wooden canopy that extends over both areas. The bathroom is also large and gives you a dressing area by the built in cupboards, a walk-in shower large enough for two and also a separate full size oval shaped bath. But the real treat is to wake up in the morning, throw open the wooden louvred shutter doors (they cover the entire width of the room) and get back into bed to enjoy the view, which extends right down to Pigeon Island. |
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Beach & Swimming
There are a couple of small volcanic sand beaches within a five minute drive at Anse du Cap or Smugglers Cove, the latter having excellent snorkeling. Otherwise a ten minute drive will get you to Causeway Beach which has two white sand beaches that stretch down to Pigeon Island National Park. The north area of the beach is popular with St Lucians on weekends and bank holidays, and has a picnic area.
Reduit Beach is the island’s most popular beach and is located on the other side of Rodney Bay, with a lovely mile long stretch of powder soft sand. It is fairly active. It has a few hotels and a good variety of watersports is available, including waterskiing, parasailing, jetski, sunfish and hobie cat sailing. It takes about ten minutes to reach by car.
Hummingbird House has nicely designed sized kidney shaped swimming pool (approximately 26ft by 15ft) with a natural stone edge and adjacent sun terrace, with entry steps to the shallow end – depths 3.6ft to 6.7ft. |
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Sports & Recreation
The 18-hole, 6829 yard, par 71 course at the St Lucia Golf & Country Club at Cap Estate is less than five minutes drive away and has a pro shop, driving range and restaurant. The nearest tennis courts open to the public (courts must be booked in advance) are at the St Lucia Racquet Club at Club St Lucia, also in Cap Estate, which has seven floodlit Laykold cushioned tennis courts, a squash court and gym. LeSport on Anse du Cap beach with its famous spa is nearby. There are also two squash courts at the St Lucia Yacht Club at Reduit in Rodney Bay. The Sportivo fitness centre at Rodney Heights is St Lucia’s largest gym and offers yoga, Tai Chi and Karate classes. |
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Locality
Hummingbird House is located within Cap Estate a large residential development in the Gros Islet area of St Lucia, which is on the north of the island. There are many luxury homes dotted on the hillsides of Cap Estate, some holiday homes and some residential. The estate has an 18 hole golf course and a couple of resorts, and is close to two of the best restaurants in St Lucia - the Great House and Tao at LeSport. Views from the estate extend to Pigeon Island National Park, a forty four acre National Trust reserve which was joined to the mainland by a man-made causeway in 1972, where there are two white sandy beaches. The island features ruins of many 18th century British and French military buildings including Fort Rodney, and has an Interpretation Centre, a restaurant featuring local cuisine, a historical themed pub and restaurant, and lookout point at the top of the fort. The island is also the main venue of the annual St Lucia Jazz Festival, held each May which attracts a host of international stars. A ferry runs between the island and Rodney Bay on an hourly schedule.
Rodney Bay is St Lucia’s busiest tourist area, where there are hotels, good restaurants and bars, a shopping mall, banks, mini marts and a nearby supermarket (on the main road) called Super J and a very lively nightlife. It has a busy marina and attracts over 200 boats for the annual ARC (trans-Atlantic Rally for Cruisers) which usually sees its first arrivals in early December. The nearby village of Gros Islet hosts the now famous Friday Night Jump Up, an all night street party. The Rodney Bay and Pigeon Island area is a ten minute journey by car. Castries the capital and George F L Charles Airport (formerly known as Vigie) which receives inter-island flights only, are about 25 minutes drive away. |
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Useful Hints
Ask your travel organiser or the management company (if booking direct) for initial food and drink supplies to be laid in for your arrival (a starter food pack costs approximately US$40 per person), so that the cook/housekeeper can prepare a simple welcome meal for you. Thereafter, your housekeeper will be happy to assist you with your shopping should you wish to delegate this chore, however do expect to provide transportation and appropriate gratuity for this service. Rental rates for villas in St Lucia do not include ‘tips’, about which you will find advice in the guest information book at the villa.
Personal laundry is not included in the rental rates and charges are approximately as follows: machine wash small load EC$10, hand wash small load EC$25 and ironing small load EC$25.
The access road to Hummingbird House is via a fairly rough unmade road for a part of the way, and then there is quite a steep short driveway down to the actual house, therefore when renting a car, a 4 wheel drive jeep is recommended. |
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Rates
| Hummingbird House | 01 May-14 Dec 2007 | 15 Dec-14 Apr 2007-08 | 15 Apr-14 Dec 2008 | | 1-4 guests | 315 | 415 | 315 | | 5-6 guests | 365 | 515 | 365 | Prices are per night in US$ and include 8% Government Tax. All rates subject to change without notice. Rates do not include the Christmas/New Year period for which a 10% supplement applies and rates are for full occupancy only (no tiered rates), with a minimum stay of 14 nights. A 10% supplement also applies for stays over the annual Jazz Festival which takes place every May when a minimum rental of 5 nights also applies. A 10% reduction applies for bookings of 21 nights or longer. Minimum stays: a 3 night stay during 15 Apr to 14 Dec except during the annual Jazz Festival when the minimum stay is 5 nights, for stays 15 Dec to 14 Apr the minimum is 5 nights except Christmas/New Year when it is 14 nights. |
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How To Book
If you wish to book direct, reservations should be made through the local managing agents, Tropical Villas. You may contact Tropical Villas for further information or reservations by using the DIRECT ENQUIRIES facility or the web link at the top of this page. For reservations, you will need to send a deposit equal to 25% (non refundable) of the total rental fee to confirm a reservation and payment of the remaining 75% is required 45 days (non refundable) prior your arrival. If you are booking within 45 days of your arrival, full payment must be made to secure the booking. For a review of Tropical Villas and their services together, written by James Henderson, please see here where you will also find links to reviews of many more St Lucia villas managed by Tropical Villas and featured by DefinitiveCaribbean . |
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UK Tour Operators
If you wish to book through a tour operator or travel organiser, please follow the link below.
See List of UK Tour Operators
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Airport Meet & Greet
If you are booking direct ask the villa management company Tropical Villas to send a taxi to meet you at the airport. These are arranged with their taxi driver Desir (pronounced Daisy), who normally waits in the area just outside the customs hall at Hewanorra airport. He will hold a Tropical Villas sign and if you miss him go to the Tourist Board desk and they will page him for you. Your airport transfers are paid for locally and take approximately 1hr 30 minutes from Hewanorra and 20 minutes from George Charles. Alternatively, if you would prefer to be taken care of from the minute you arrive at the airport, with a range of services that can include helicopter transfers, a Concierge Service please click here for St Lucia Representative Services.
If you are booking through a travel organiser, it is likely that their representative will be at the airport to meet you. This service and your return airport transfers should be included in the cost of your holiday. Please check at the time of booking. |
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Getting Around
A hire car is strongly recommended for all private villa holidays. Although the Cap Estate is by no means ‘St Lucia off the beaten path’, the access roads are quite rough to Hummingbird House so we recommend that you choose a 4-wheel drive vehicle. A vehicle will be useful if you want to dine out at night or do lots of sightseeing and particularly when it comes to shopping for groceries. Book car hire via your travel organiser or direct with Drive-A-Matic (Tropical Villas will book this for you) or Cool Breeze Car & Jeep Rentals for your St Lucia car rental and ask for your vehicle to be delivered to the property approximately 3 hours after your scheduled time of arrival on St Lucia or the following morning. Vehicles can be returned at the airport or be collected from the property at a pre-arranged time on your departure day. |
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