BCR Yachts, Luxury Yacht Charter and Sales

Isle de St. Barthélemy is located at 18°N, 63°W, in the northeastern corner of the Caribbean Sea, 4400 miles from Paris, 1700 miles from New York, 125 miles east from Puerto Rico, and 15 miles southeast from St. Maarten.
It is small, a little more than eight square miles. Steep hills divide the island into several valleys, usually open on one side to the sea. Each valley is distinctive, with unique variations of topography, flora, density of settlement, and character of architecture. This creates the illusion of being in a much larger place

There are two varieties of weather that result from St.Barts' location on the planet: the usual stuff and hurricanes.
Most of the year, puffy white clouds parade through a clear blue sky, and warm balmy breezes gently ruffle hair and sway palm fronds: T-shirt, shorts and sandals kind of weather, interrupted now and then by a tropical shower.
From July to November, however, this halcyon state of affairs may be interrupted by a revolving tropical storm, which, in its mature form, is called a hurricane.

Gouverneur beach

There are fourteen beaches on St. Barths, all blessed with gleaming white sand. Few are crowded, even in peak season. All are public and free. Nudism is ostensibly prohibited; topless is not unusual. The beaches at Marigot and Lorient are secluded and quiet, favored on Sundays by island families. Petite Cul de Sac is secluded, and usually very quiet; Toiny is wild and beautiful, not for the faint hearted.
Gouverneur is serene; Saline is well worth the hike over the sand dune: while nudism is officially forbidden in St. Barths, it is most likely to be practiced here. Happily, this beach is a favored haunt of the most comely women and the most handsome men. Shell Beach can be reached on foot from Gustavia; Hardest to get to is Colombier, reachable by boat from Gustavia or by a half- hour hike down a scenic path This beach is still called "Rockefeller's Beach", because, for many years, David Rockefeller owned the property that surrounds it.

Town of Gustavia

There is one town, and a dozen villages, distributed more or less evenly over the landscape:Gustavia
There was never any hope of lucrative sugar plantations in St.Barths. It was too dry, too steep, too rocky, and, finally, too small. Unsuitable for agriculture, the island was never coveted as a prize during the colonial wars of the 18th century.
The place did, however, have a serviceable harbor, and this allowed the town that grew around it, Gustavia, to play a key role in that intermittent conflict, a role that was to presage much of its future. As a free port under Swedish rule, Gustavia served the useful purpose of providing a trade and supply center for the various warring factions. When a sea captain captured a prize or raided a settlement, he could sell the booty in St. Barths, and at the same time resupply his ship. Overflowing warehouses surrounded a harbor packed with ships from many nations, and a mercantile and architectural tradition was established that has lingered to the present day.
Today, the town has adjusted itself to satisfy the increasing number of visiting tourists. Restaurants, boutiques, and gift shops now line streets once busy with merchants, merchant seamen, and adventurers.

A full range of facilities are available for visiting pleasure boats:
Sixty berths are available dockside for yachts no longer than 200ft., max draft 15ft.
Anchorage, in the inner harbor, for fourteen yachts no longer than 80ft., max draft 13ft.
Anchorage, in the outer harbor, for 100+ yachts .
Fuel, water, provisioning, and a marine store are available.
Two hours prior to arrival inbound vessels should contact the Harbor Master on VHF channel 16.
Immediately upon arrival, a vessel's captain should proceed to the Harbor Master's Office, on the quay, bringing the vessel's registration documents and a passport for each passenger and crew member.
For additional information contact the Harbor Master's Office:
Telephone: +590 590 27 66 97, Fax: +590 590 27 81 54

Colombier beach

St. Barths is very informal. Casual sportsclothes in cotton, and other light fabrics are fine by day, as are jeans, T-shirts, etc. (Bathing suits are for the beach, pool, or yacht, but not for town.) At night, women often dress for dinner in whatever happens to be fashionable in resortwear. Ties and jackets are never required for men.
French is the official language, but the flavor spoken by local folk is a curious Norman dialect. Much of the populace speaks English, however, and there is seldom a language problem at hotels, restaurants, shops, etc.

St. Barths is a duty free port, and shoppers will be delighted with the range and number of shops: from a shaded table by the side of the road, to the elegant displays and marble floors reminiscent of Rue du Faubourg St. Honoré in Paris.
The highest concentration of shops is in Gustavia, followed by St-Jean, with its several shopping centers. It is wise to allocated more than a single afternoon to see what's what and where's where

Saline beach

St. Barths has become an increasingly popular destination for weddings. Although it is possible (albeit a bit demanding) to have a legal French civil ceremony here, most couples of American and other nationalities elect to have their civil marriage in their country of residence and come here for their church blessing or "personal" ceremony. St. Bartholomew's Church, located on the harbor in Gustavia is a charming old structure surrounded by palm trees. As an Anglican church, all services are in English, making it a perfect choice for English speaking couples. Services are conducted by visiting priests, most of whom come from the United States. Other couples have chosen to be married on the beach, in a beautiful villa, in one of the island' restaurants or on a chartered yacht.

Whether you merely snorkle, or prefer the prolonged immersion of scubadiving, the pleasures of underwater observation are magical.
The branch corals have recovered from the last hurricanes, and the massive corals are in full bloom, with multicolored coral fish everywhere. Each bay has a reef to be explored, each islet has its walls and caves. The most spectacular dives are around Pain de Sucre, an islet way off Gustavia harbour, or around a small cape, l'Ane Rouge, off Colombier bay, or around Coco islet. Just off Gustavia harbour, a fishing boat that sunk a few years ago, Le Kayali, is a nice dive spot.
A few bays that had suffered from over-fishing have been protected since 1999 by the laws of a Marine Reserve, and their replenishment has already started. The marine turtles that were protected in 1991 have rapidly reappeared in Colombier, Fourchue, and all around the island. If you put your head underwater, you're likely to see their comical dance.

Provided that you choose heavy-sole shoes, wear a hat and sun-screen and take a bottle of water, hiking is a good way to discover St. Barts. The most famous path will take you from Petite Anse to the stunning bay of Colombier in fifteen minutes walk. That beach can only be access by sea otherwise. But you can also climb up to the top of the island, Mount Vitet, 286 meters high, or you can tour the Toiny Point... Vegetation on various windward places grows like bonzaïs, tough tiny trees leaning away from many years of strong gusts of wind. The dry forest shelters botanical treasures, orchids, rare cactuses, beds of white lilies... But you shoud be aware that all the lands being private, you can sometimes be kindly asked to walk back on your steps by owners not willing to see their properties trespassed. The Tourist bureau has a small document showing some hiking itineraries.
Finally, you can ride horseback from the Ranch des Flamands and discover in more rocky and organised way the secret nature of St. Barths, with your horse at a gallop on Flamands beach when the day fades and cools down

Surfing can be practised in quite a number of bays in Saint-Barthélemy, but only a few of them are shaped to produce the beautiful rolling waves with a crest of foam that the young copper-skinned, straw-haired surfers must ride. A whole community of young locals and newcomers keep their senses alert to feel the wind that turns or grows, the swell that rises entering the bays of Toiny, Lorient or Saint-Jean, not to miss those rare moments when the waves roll and break to perfection. It is a whole way of life. If you would like to try, the equipment is for sale in a few specialized shops, and a connoisseurs' club can guide you through your first ride.
Windsurfing is more likely to be enjoyed by many. Winds can be extremely strong, though, and you'll then admire the color triangles that fly from one end of the bay to the other at an incredible speed. St. Barths is sometimes chosen by olympic teams to train their athletes, and has raised at least one young champion, Mario Lédée, in its sparkling waters. Most of the time, winds are blowing moderately enough to allow amateur windsurfers to gradually develop their technique. In St. Jean and in Grand Cul de Sac, beach clubs rent their windsurfing equipment, and their know-how, to beginners

One of the best things about St. Barts is the quality and variety of the food. This is true not only in numerous local restaurants, but in many local homes and villas as well, due to the unusually wide range of foodstuffs available at local grocery stores, and due to the quality of local catering services.
Shopping for food in St. Barts can be a delightful social pastime in itself.