St Lucia's compact northern tip encompasses the "Golden Mile" of coastal resort towns as well as the remote and arid northern shoreline between Pointe du Cap and Pointe Hardy, and quiet Cas-en-Bas on the rugged northeast coast. On the west coast, the sweeping, two-mile horseshoe of Rodney Bay contains the majority of the region's tourist trappings. The town here is the most popular resort area, with a deep-water yacht harbour and a marina complex housing several rather shabby shops and restaurants, as well as the restaurant-and-hotel-lined Reduit Beach , one of St Lucia's most popular, and least local, strips of sand. Across the harbour channel is the quiet fishing village of Gros Islet , a place to soak up some local flavour at small, unpretentious creole restaurants. Just about the entire village is overtaken each Friday night for the raucous street party , or Jump-Up, when the streets are blocked off and revellers pour in for a rowdy night of roadside foodstuffs, music and alcohol.

 

Rodney Bay's northern half is framed by the heavily visited Pigeon Island National Historic Park , an outcrop attached to the mainland by a causeway in the 1970s. Heavily fortified by the British in the eighteenth century, the island has been transformed into a recreation park enjoyed by visitors and St Lucians alike, who come to tour the restored remains of military buildings or enjoy the string of beaches and walking trails.