Practical Information for visiting St Lucia

The currency is the East Caribbean dollar (XCD), shared with seven neighbouring states and pegged to the US dollar at 2.70 to one, which makes conversion simple.

US dollars are widely accepted, though change is usually given in EC dollars and often at a rounded rate that favours the seller. Paying in EC is generally better value.

Cards are accepted at hotels, larger restaurants and supermarkets. Cash is needed for minibuses, market stalls, roadside food and small guesthouses.

ATMs are in Castries, Rodney Bay, Vieux Fort and Soufrière; draw before heading into the interior.

Tipping: a ten per cent service charge is often already added to restaurant bills — check before adding more. Otherwise ten to fifteen per cent, and a few dollars for taxi drivers and guides.

Coverage for mobile networks is good across the island from Digicel and Flow, with 4G throughout the populated areas. Signal is weaker in the mountainous interior and in the deeper valleys of the west coast.

Roaming charges from North America and Europe are usually high; a local prepaid SIM is cheap and sold at the airport and in Castries and Rodney Bay.

Wi-Fi is standard in hotels, guesthouses and most restaurants and cafes, and there is free public Wi-Fi in some town centres. Speeds are reasonable but can drop when a cruise ship is in.

Power cuts occur, particularly in the wet season; most hotels have generators, smaller guesthouses may not.

Saint Lucia is generally safe for visitors and most trips are entirely trouble-free. Crime against tourists is usually opportunistic rather than violent.

• Petty theft is the main issue: thefts from beaches while people swim, from hire cars, and from unlocked accommodation. Use the safe and leave nothing on the sand.
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• Castries after dark and some areas of the capital are best avoided on foot at night. Take a taxi.
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• The roads are the most likely thing to hurt you. Steep, narrow, potholed, with blind bends, unlit at night and shared with minibuses that drive assertively. Avoid driving after dark if you can.
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• The sea. The Atlantic east coast has strong currents and is not for swimming. Even on the west, there are no lifeguards on most beaches.
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• Hiking. Gros Piton requires a guide, which is a rule rather than an upsell — the trail is steep and people have been injured going alone.
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• Drug offences carry serious penalties despite a relaxed appearance.

Medical facilities are adequate for routine problems and limited for anything serious. Owen King EU Hospital in Castries is the main public facility, with private clinics in the north; complex cases are evacuated to Martinique, Barbados or Miami, so insurance with evacuation cover is important.

Vaccinations: routine cover plus hepatitis A and typhoid. Yellow fever proof is required only if arriving from a country with risk.

Mosquito-borne illness — dengue, chikungunya and Zika are all present and there is no prophylaxis. The mosquito bites during the day, so use repellent from morning onward. There is no malaria.

Sun and sea. The UV index is extreme. Reef-safe high-factor sunscreen, a hat and shade in the middle of the day are basic, and reef shoes deal with sea urchins on rocky entries.

The manchineel tree grows on some beaches and is genuinely dangerous — its sap blisters skin and its fruit is poisonous. The trees are usually marked with red paint or a sign; do not shelter under one in rain.

Tap water is treated and generally safe; bottled is the norm in rural areas.

Greet before anything else. Good morning or bonjou on entering a shop, a bus or an office is expected, and going straight to your request is read as rude. This matters more here than most visitors expect.

Cover up away from the beach. Swimwear is for the sand and the pool; wearing it in shops, restaurants or town is genuinely frowned on. Nudity and toplessness are illegal.

Camouflage clothing is prohibited for civilians, including on children, and it can be confiscated at the airport. This applies across much of the eastern Caribbean and catches visitors out.

Photography. Ask before photographing people, and expect to be asked for a small payment by anyone in costume.

Church. The island is strongly Catholic and Sunday observance is real; dress properly if you attend or visit a church during a service.

Drug penalties are serious, and taking coral, shells or sand is prohibited.

Emergency numbers: 999 or 911 for police, ambulance and fire, both of which work. Operators speak English.

Medical. Owen King EU Hospital in Castries is the main hospital, with St Jude in Vieux Fort serving the south and private clinics in Rodney Bay. Payment is expected at the time; keep your insurance details accessible. Serious cases are flown to Martinique or Barbados.

Diving. There is no recompression chamber on the island; a decompression injury means evacuation to Martinique or Barbados, which is a strong argument for DAN membership if you plan to dive.

Hurricanes. The season runs June to November. Warnings come through the meteorological service and local radio, and hotels have plans; follow them rather than improvising.

Keep an offline copy of your passport and insurance policy. Several countries are represented by honorary consuls rather than full missions, with the nearest embassy in Barbados or Trinidad.