Saint-Barthélemy - that's Caribbean luxury

Even the approach is pure action! Just behind the hilltop, the pilot pulls the propeller plane in a nosedive down to a runway that is only 646 meters long. The stomach is still hanging in the air when the captain slams on the brakes with full force so that the plane does not rush into the Caribbean Sea and possibly collide with a yacht.

The landing on the French Antilles island of Saint-Barthélemy, or St. Barth for short, is one of the most exciting in the world. A suitably spectacular reception for a place that combines glamour, romance and natural beauty.

As a holidaymaker, you are in exclusive company here. Jessica Alba, Leonardo DiCaprio, Naomi Campbell, Kate Moss, Richard Gere, Beyoncé - the list of prominent guests is long. The island, which is just 24 square kilometers in size, has been a meeting place for the rich and famous for decades.

It is one of the most expensive islands in the Caribbean, although there are few cheap accommodations. Ordinary people who treat themselves to a vacation on St. Barth tend to do so on special occasions such as honeymoons - to be pampered on the tropical island with its elegant resorts, wide beaches and French restaurants.

It was Americans who elevated Saint-Barthélemy to a luxury destination from the 1950s onwards. At that time, the Rockefeller family of bankers discovered the beauty of the miniature island. She bought a property there, invited celebrities like Jackie Kennedy and Howard Hughes, and together the high society of the USA enjoyed their robinsonade in little France in the tropics.

Soon all those who had made the fishing village of Saint-Tropez the summer jet-set hotspot of the Côte d'Azur were also spending their holidays here, which earned St. Barth the nickname "Saint-Tropez of the Caribbean". The infrastructure was there now. The French eccentric Rémy de Haenen expanded a private villa into a hotel in 1953 and in 1961 laid out the first airfield on St. Barth. In 1972, film star Lino de Ventura came with his friends from Saint-Tropez and opened the "Sereno Beach Hotel", today's "Le Sereno".

A few years later, when the French superstar Johnny Hallyday moored in the port of the island's capital, Gustavia, on a Caribbean cruise, his path led straight to the "Le Select" café. In the 1970s, it was the Caribbean answer to the "Café Sénéquier" in Saint-Tropez. People met here – and instead of oysters they enjoyed heavenly burgers, which Jimmy Buffett made famous with his song “Cheeseburger in Paradise”.

“Le Select” opened in 1949 and today it is the oldest bar on the island. The Caribbean tavern “Le Ti StBarth”, where Hallyday liked to party, is also charming. He loved the island. His tomb in the Cimetière de Lorient is a pilgrimage destination for fans from all over the world. A sea of ​​flowers, photos and records covers the marble sarcophagus.

Those who are well off can rent their villa. Hallyday built it for himself and his family in 2008 above Marigot Bay, with an infinity pool and seven bedrooms. He named her after his adopted daughter Jade. The price per night: around 18,000 euros.

Since Hallyday, many celebrities and the wealthy have built noble residences on St. Barth. For them, the charm of the island lies above all in its exclusivity, you are almost alone here. The short runway and the narrow port prevent large-capacity aircraft from landing and cruise giants from docking - this makes any mass tourism impossible, as does the high price level. There are no all-inclusive hotels, no casinos, no cheap fast-food joints.

But it is not just the noblesse that makes the island so attractive. Saint-Bartélemy also scores with French attitude to life, the savoir-vivre, combined with a Caribbean landscape that amazes you after every bay, after every mountain pass. The jagged peaks are dotted with swaying palm trees, slender cacti and fragrant frangipani.

Goats roam around. Mini Mokes, the buggies popular on the island, whiz on adventurous rides down the narrow country roads that connect the island towns with each other in the ups and downs. The many valleys that end at the sea and often at a picture-perfect beach make the island appear larger than it actually is.

22 white sandy beaches line the bays of the volcanic island, one more beautiful than the other. The most hustle and bustle is on the crescent bay of Saint-Jean, where DJs regularly play in the "Sand Bar" in the "Eden Rock Resort" of the German Oetker Collection - you can hear a relaxed mix of hip-hop and pop with a view of the moment launched planes.

A few steps further, tout Saint-Barth meets at “Nikki Beach” at the weekend, feasting on seafood, sipping champagne and playing with their feet in the sand. The beach bar and restaurant is an offshoot of the legendary parent company of the same name in Saint-Tropez.

At the Bay of Saint-Jean there is a tendency towards bling-bling, not dissimilar to today's Saint-Tropez. The rest of the island is more of a refuge for discreet luxury, tranquility and enjoyment. On the Baie des Flamands, for example, next to the Anse de Grande Saline the largest beach on the island, the French billionaire Bernard Arnault has opened the only Caribbean resort of his luxury brand "Cheval Blanc", a relaxed mixture of palace hotel and barefoot luxury.

In the island's capital, Gustavia, the Barrière Group has taken over the "Carl Gustaf", with just 21 rooms that are as fine as they are small. At the end of 2021, the eleventh five-star hotel on the island opened with the "Tropical".

Until about a year ago, St. Barth also attracted Russian oligarchs, often with several of their mega yachts lying next to each other in the port of Gustavia. That's over: Since Putin's attack on Ukraine and the sanctions imposed by the West, they have disappeared – the owners do not want to risk their posh boats being confiscated by the French authorities.

Although St. Barth is quite small, they still exist: wild corners and lonely spots. For example, in the extreme north-west on the natural beach of Colombier, which can only be reached on foot or by boat. Or to the east at Grand Fond and Petit Cul-de-Sac, where hikes start to the Piscines Naturelles - natural seawater pools in the cliffs.

Or to the south on the secluded beach called Plage du Gouverneur; According to legend, the treasure of the French pirate Daniel Montbars, who had looted a considerable fortune by raiding Spanish ships in the New World, is hidden here.

A coral reef protects most of the beaches from the surf of the open sea. At the Grand Cul-de-Sac in the northeast, such a barrier has created a kind of lagoon where sea turtles glide over the sea grass and lay their eggs in the dunes. On land, where mangroves line the banks, herons peck for worms among the roots, pelicans and frigatebirds pounce on the bounty of fish. Since 1996, a total of five stretches of sea around the island have been designated as nature reserves, totaling at least 1,200 hectares.

On the beach of Toiny in the southeast, on the other hand, the breakers roll unhindered - ideal for surfers for surfing. In Lorient, in the north of the island, the waves are not as big, so even beginners can practice standing on the board here. St. Barth has been popular with sailors since the days of Rockefeller.

Every year in March, spectacular sailing yachts compete for a bucket at the Bucket Regatta. What began as a fun event on the US east coast has been taking place around St. Barth since 1995 based on the Les Voiles de Saint-Tropez sailing race: a three-day regatta with lots of champagne parties.

Incidentally, the beach on St. Barth is shared by everyone, the stars as well as non-celebrity vacationers and locals. Since 1986, the Loi Littoral, the coastal law, has guaranteed all citizens unhindered access to the sea. France's Caribbean celebrity island is no exception. Freedom, equality, fraternity also apply to St. Barth - at least on the beach.

Arrival: About with Air France or KLM to Guadeloupe or St. Martin; continue by flight shuttle (stbarthcommuter.com) or ferry (greatbayexpress.com; voy12.com) to St. Barth.

Accommodation: Tropical opulence characterizes the "Eden Rock" on the Baie St. Jean, double rooms from 1100 euros (oetkercollection.com). If you want to live in a palace, you can book a double room in the “Cheval Blanc” on the Baie des Flamands from 1000 euros (chevalblanc.com). “Le Sereno”, a Leading Hotel of the World on the Grand Cul-de-Sac, offers minimalist elegance, bungalows from 860 euros (serenohotels.com). The "Salines Garden" is cheaper, from 140 euros (salinesgarden.com).

Further information: saintbarth-tourisme.com/en; france.fr/fr/saint-barthelemy/

Participation in the trip was supported by Atout France, Saint-Barth Tourisme and "Le Sereno". You can find our standards of transparency and journalistic independence at axelspringer.com/de/Werte/downloads.