Harbour Vista Inn

James is very helpful, cooperative and accommodating to your needs

Close to ferry dock but couldn’t walk to it late at night. Exorbitant charge for 3 min taxi ride $40EC

My wife and I had to leave our cruise ship because my wife had developed severe bronchopneumonia and required hospital treatment. The Port Authority booked us in to the Harbour Vista Inn (HVI) as virtually the only available accommodation in the Castries area. I did not reach the HVI until gone midnight on Christmas Eve/Christmas morning but was welcomed by James the owner. I was booked in for a couple of nights initially as the length of my stay was an unknown quantity but this was not a problem for James. He was incredibly friendly, personable and most of all flexible. I had to move rooms 3 times and spent 1 night on a mattress in the office which was not a problem for either of us. The HVI is set on the hillside above the ferry terminal shanty town and overlooking the whole harbour and is a little hard to find because the road to it is temporarily cut. Although there were a lot of barking dogs and noisy cockerels, not uncommon overseas, the location was really lovely and quite peaceful. Yes, the accommodation is a little basic, but very clean, comfortable and easy going. Throughout the whole of my stay of 8 days, James was very attentive and concerned, providing a very tasty breakfast every day and an evening sandwich in extremes. However, for me, the biggest plus was that William, an old school friend of James, lived close by and he provided a thoroughly reliable, safe and secure taxi service whenever I needed it. Travelling daily to sit with my wife all day would have been extremely difficult if I had had to rely on taxis which, in any event, were non-existent over the holiday period. More importantly, William at no extra cost, frequently made quite large diversions so I could go to the bank, supermarkets for food and drink not provided by the hospital, pharmacies and even another hospital to get supplies not available at the main public hospital. And, having brought my wife and I back to HVI when she was eventually discharged he stayed with us the next day for 3 hours when we returned to complete the discharge process and then a day later drove us on the one and a half hour journey to the main airport for our medical repatriation flight home. The care, attention and I am not afraid to say love we received from James and William was fantastic and eased what was a most traumatic event for both of us. We are indebted to James and William and really cannot thank them enough. As an aside, the HVI is ideally suited to and frequently used by backpackers and independent travellers using the inter-island ferry. It is ideally suited to that. Again, our heart felt thanks to James and William.

Castries stay for ferry access This property was used as a convenient location to take the early morning ferry to Martinique. It is a 5 to 7 minute walk to the ferry. There were 4 more couples staying there for the same reason. The place was clean. The A/C works for the bedroom only and all doors and windows must be closed for the A/C to operate. The shower was acceptable. Works for the price.

Perfect for overnight-before/after ferry ride James and his staff were super attentive with good communication skills after we arrived on a very late night ferry from Martinique. We arrived at nearly 3am, yet he was there to make sure we settled in. Prior to arrival he arranged a cab for the short ride from the Inter-Island Ferry Terminal ($16 for 2 people...recommended, despite the short distance). Whether it is in your best interests to take the ferry, is another thing (lengthy check in times, 200-400 people clearly customs with 1 border officer). Breakfast was solid and cooked to order (toast, bacon, eggs, fresh fruit, instant coffee) while out on the veranda overlooking Castries; it was unclear whether the $12-14 breakfast (per person) was included in our rate, but we were out of there for ~$103. No frills, but clean, comfortable, and cheery. Bring your own shampoo/conditioner & hairdryer, but the fridge and AC worked great. Kettle in the room with coffee, tea, and sugar. We went with the en suite bathroom and felt like everything was clean and comfortable. Roku TV, internet, and very comfortable for a good night sleep after a lengthy journey. James went out of his way to make things easy and was happy to arrange cabs for onward travel. Definitely worth it!

Dirty, needs updating, noisy, air conditioner did not work in either bedroom and internet not working. Not worth the close proximity to ferry. Taxi service was reliable.