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Ginger Lily is a well priced, friendly hotel set in its own attractive garden enclosure just across from Reduit Beach, the liveliest in St Lucia, and within a short walk of the bars and restaurants of Rodney Bay Village. It has a modern St Lucian style, with canary yellow walls and steeply pitched red tin roofs topped with pointed finials. Life at the small hotel is centred on the courtyard, through the breezy foyer, around the pool where you will find parasols, loungers and tables from the breakfast room and bar. It is enclosed by a wall of pretty tropical greenery and the staggered block of the rooms. These are large and comfortable and each have their own balcony. Family-owned, Ginger Lily is very low key and so it makes a nice hideaway for independent travellers wanting a friendly base from which to explore – as well as being ideally positioned for the best of the bar and beach-based activity of Rodney Bay Village.
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KEY FEATURES
| Great location at Rodney Bay St. Lucia hotel, eight large rooms with fridge and coffee maker (but no cooking facilities) and three larger executive suites with full kitchens, all with fans and air-conditioning. Pool, bar and restaurant (breakfast only), complimentary WiFi. Just a short walk from Reduit beach and its beach bars. |
STYLE
| A modern take on traditional St Lucia, bright yellow walls with steeply pitched red tin roofs topped with sharply pointed finials, lovely tropical greenery, lots of natural wood, rooms decorated in bright colours. Ginger Lily is friendly and low key |
CLIENT PROFILE
| Independent travellers of all ages, many of them British, couples in the rooms, often families in the suites |
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Amid the mad activity of Rodney Bay, Ginger Lily is a beckoning oasis of calm. The road becomes quieter the closer you get to the small hotel and then you turn into a small car park via a set of pillars. The colour scheme of the hotel is established immediately, yellow walls, mid brown louvers and gingerbread trim, and a typically St Lucian red tin roof topped with spiked finials. A steeply pitched gable stands ahead of you, beneath which you enter the hotel, through two more pillars and a portico, into the breezy foyer.
The foyer is light, with ceramic tiles on the floor and white walls. The Reception desk is to your right and there are sofas on the left, at the centre of which stands a table with a vase of bright yellow and red ginger lilies. It gives a good introduction to the easy-going prettiness of the small hotel. Beyond here, you walk straight out into the main courtyard. This is nicely enclosed and when you are on property you will no doubt spend quite a bit of your time here. At the centre of the courtyard lies the pool – on the floor of which you will see a ginger lily of the name.
To the left of the pool is a line of trees, palms and bananas against a fence marking the northern edge of the property. At the rear of the courtyard are the rooms, in a staggered series of buildings set behind plants and flowerbeds. They are dressed in the same bright yellow as the front of the hotel, with lots of natural wood and red tin roofs, and they each have a terrace or balcony that gives you a view over the pool area. Next to the rooms is a gazebo and then on the right is the dining room, which is surrounded by decking. The dining room is open for breakfast only, but it stays open as a bar until 11pm so you can get a drink around the pool. It has a pretty West Indian style with wooden chairs and brightly coloured madras seat cushions. The bar is set on the rear wall. Although it is possible to sit inside, tables are also set out on the main deck and so many people end up eating outside under parasols.
You reach the bedrooms via a path that leads along the fence beyond the pool and then enter them from the rear. They carry names of flowers and trees from St Lucia – Star Jasmine, Oleander, Ixora and Margueritte. Steps take you upstairs to the four Upper Deluxe Rooms. The four Superior Deluxe Rooms are on the lower floor. All the rooms at Ginger Lily are large, but they feel particularly so on the upper floor because the ceiling is vaulted into the triangular roofs. They have white ceramic tiles, light walls and a bright colour scheme. The main bed is queen size, but there is also a single sofabed in case you are travelling as a family. All rooms have some outside space, overlooking the pool and some have a hammock. On the lower floor the terraces are partly screened by flowers so you will have some privacy from the courtyard.
Finally, if you would prefer a little bit more space, then there are three one-bedroom Executive Suites at Ginger Lily. One is accessed from behind the dining room and the other two from outside the entrance in the car park. They each have a separate bedroom and a living room with an extra bed.
Ginger Lily is ideally positioned to head down to Reduit Beach. It lies directly opposite ‘the Ramp’ and it is less than 100 yards away from the excellent sand. Facilities including a beach bar and watersports outlets right there. But the hotel is also a nice place to come back to. Guests find themselves returning to the hotel in the middle of the afternoon (before heading out again in the evenings). Ginger Lily is family run and so it has a personable atmosphere, with a friendly feel. The ‘footprint’ of the hotel is not particularly large, but it is nicely sectioned off and so it is nicely private and has a certain intimacy, enabling you to get to know the other guests. It makes a very friendly home from home while you are in St Lucia. |
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Beach & Swimming
Ginger Lily is within a short walk of one of the finest beaches in St Lucia, Reduit Beach, which is set on a large open bay partly closed off by Pigeon Point. The sand is excellent and it shelves gently into the water, so it is generally quite calm and makes for good swimming. There are plenty of facilities right there, including a beach bar, Spinnakers, watersports operators and beach vendors.
Ginger Lily has a very nice kidney-shaped swimming pool in its courtyard, partially enclosed by greenery and partially by the rooms of the small hotel. It is surrounded by a deck, where there are loungers and parasols. There is an outdoor shower at the pool. |
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Sports & Recreation
Sports equipment, deck chairs and parasols are available through concessionaires on Reduit Beach within short walking distance. Pretty much everything is available, including snorkelling, windsurfing, small sail-boat sailing, kayaking and water-skiing. Jet skis are also available. And if you would like to go scuba diving then this can be arranged too.
On land there is mountain biking in the rolling land to the east of Rodney Bay. There are also a couple of stables in the vicinity so you can ride on the hills and along the beaches. |
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Staff
Ginger Lily is family-owned and so it has a very personable feel. And of course because of its size you will get to know the staff. You are very likely to come across Sheraline at the front desk, who will no doubt deal with your check in and check out. Family members Raymond and Ricardo Kisson are often in residence. |
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The Rooms
The bulk of the rooms at Ginger Lily, the eight that overlook the pool and courtyard, are large and comfortable. They are air-conditioned and have ceiling fans, cable TVs and a safe. While the rooms do not offer full cooking facilities, they do have a fridge and a coffee maker.
The three Executive Suites are slightly larger and they are configured differently with a bedroom and a sitting room. They do have full kitchens so you can cater for yourself. |
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Dining
The dining room at Ginger Lily is in the courtyard in its own pretty building with a red tin roof and wide full height doors, opening it out onto the pool deck. There are tables both inside and out.
It is open for breakfast only - with so many other restaurants close by they do not open over lunch or in the evenings. They serve a continental breakfast with local fruits and juices, either inside the dining room or outside on the terrace.
The bar in the dining room remains open for the whole day so you can get a drink at the poolside. A member of staff will come across from Reception to help you if you need service. |
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Weddings
Ginger Lily does not host weddings, but if you wish to stay here and arrange a wedding on the island then they work closely with specialist wedding organiser Awesome Caribbean Weddings. |
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Children
Children are welcome at Ginger Lily and the bedrooms are well set out to cope with a family travelling. In the suites there is a separate bedroom and a double sofa bed in the living room (you can also put out a camper bed). In the regular rooms there are single sofa beds. The hotel can provide equipment including high chairs and cots. Baby-sitting can also be arranged.
There are plenty of activities nearby for children (including restaurants with playgrounds in the nearby Rodney Bay Village). Also, the intimacy of Ginger Lily means that if there are other children around then they will easily make friends. |
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Rates
| | Summer Sale 01 Jun- 15 Dec 2009 | 16 Dec- 21 Dec 2009 | 22 Dec- 02 Jan 2009-10 & 01 May- 15 May 2010 | 03 Jan- 30 Apr & 16 May- 31 May 2010 | | Superior Deluxe Room 1 person 2 persons | 60 (was 150) 74 (was 175) | 170 200 | 180 210 | 170 200 | | Upper Deluxe Room 1 person 2 persons | 114 (was 175) 126 (was 190) | 200 220 | 210 230 | 200 220 | | Executive Suite 1 person 2 persons | 126 (was 200) 145 (was 230) | 220 275 | 230 285 | 220 275 | | Extra adult | 40 | 40 | 40 | 40 | | Extra child First child U12 yrs Second child U12 yrs Child 12-15 yrs | Free 25 25 | Free 25 25 | Free 25 25 | Free 25 25 | All rates are in US$ per room, per night, room only and are subject to 8% Government Tax and 10% Service Charge. Maximum 1 child under 12 years sharing with two adults stays free, room only. All rates subject to change without notice. In order to confirm reservations all bookings of less than 3 nights stay require full payment in advance/all bookings of 3 nights or more require a 3 night deposit. All cancellations should be confirmed in writing and are subject to the following charges: loss of 1 day’s deposit if cancelled 7-21 days prior to arrival and loss of full deposit if cancelled within 6 days of arrival. No shows incur full charge for total amount of stay. Group bookings require 50% deposit of total cost with balance due on arrival. Credit cards accepted: Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discovery. |
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Special Offers
Summer Sale
Rooms as low as US$60 per night for stays up to 15 December 2009. See above rate table for details. |
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How to book
If you wish to make further enquiries or a reservation, please use the WEB LINK or DIRECT EMAIL ENQUIRIES facility at the top of this page to make contact with Ginger Lily, or if you wish to telephone them, their telephone number will be revealed if you click on the CONTACT TELEPHONE NUMBER link. |
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Locality
Ginger Lily is just around the corner from the main strip of bars and restaurants in Rodney Bay Village, within easy walking distance of all the action. Just beyond here you will find anything you need in terms of supermarkets and other shops and then the stop for buses into town. Rodney Bay has become the largest town in this area of the island and it has now developed much of the way around the lagoon as well as into the surrounding hills..
On the other side of the lagoon is the much more ‘local’ village of Gros Islet, which is laid out on a grid of mostly modern buildings around a handful of nice old wooden West Indian houses. It is most famous for its weekly ‘jump up’, Friday night at Gros Islet, for which stereo systems are put up on the pavement and people dance in the street. To the north of Gros Islet you come to the Cap Estate, a wealthy area of private villas with a couple of hotels and a championship golf course.
Across the Bay from Reduit Beach you will find Pigeon Point (there are ferries). Previously called Pigeon Island (it was linked by a causeway in the 1970s), it was very heavily fortified in the 1700s during the wars for empire in the Caribbean. It is well worth a visit for this historical aspect – some of the buildings have been restored and there is a museum explaining it all – but there are a couple of bars including an excellent beach bar called Jambe de Bois.
There are many restaurants to choose from in the area. For a lively evening, try Buzz, the Charthouse and bars such as Scuttlebutts and the Lime. If you are looking for a particularly smart evening out you might try The Edge (walking distance), the Coal Pot in the Vigie Marina in Castries or the Great House in the Cap Estate. |
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Meet & Greet
If you arrive on a long distance flight you will fly into Hewanorra International Airport in the far south of the island. The taxi ride (for two people) from Hewanorra to Rodney Bay is expensive at approximately US$75 and it takes over an hour. Ginger Lily would be happy to arrange a taxi - Emmanuel will meet you with a sign you on request.
If you have the choice (for instance if you are flying from within the Caribbean) it is far easier to fly into George FL Charles airport at Vigie just outside Castries, which is about 20 minutes away. The cab fare is then US$25.
If you are travelling with a travel organiser then you should be met at the airport and your transfers arranged. Please check at the time of booking. If you are travelling independently and want to be met at the airport and have a knowledgeable representative to call upon during your stay, we recommend St Lucia Representatives. |
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Getting Around
Much of what you need and will want to do is within walking distance along the beach and in Rodney Bay Village, but if you want to go further afield there is quite a good bus service in the north of St Lucia. All you need do is to walk down to the main road and you can catch a bus to Castries within a couple of minutes. Other buses head out from Castries to the south of the island. The buses don’t go to remote beaches of course, though for a few dollars you might persuade a driver (they are all private minibuses) to take you down to Pigeon Island.
If you want to explore the island at your own pace then it is easier to get yourself a hire car for a couple of days. We recommend you book in advance via your travel organiser or direct with Drive-a-Matic or Cool Breeze Car & Jeep Rental, who will deliver to the property and issue your St Lucian driving licence, price EC$54. Vehicles can be returned at the airport or be collected from the property at a pre-arranged time on your departure day.
Be aware that around Christmas and New Year, and at the Jazz Festival in May, there can be a shortage of cars in St Lucia, so you are advised to book well in advance. Also book early if you want one for a week or more because the pre-booked rates can be better. |
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_normal.jpg "The front of the hotel, Rodney Bay St. Lucia")
_normal.jpg "Swimming pool and hotel, Rodney Bay St. Lucia")
_normal.jpg "Swimming at Ginger Lily, St Lucia hotel")
_normal.jpg "Open plan living, Ginger Lily")
_normal.JPG "Fresh fruit breakfast, St Lucia hotel reviews")
_normal.JPG "Night shot of the hotel front, St Lucia hotel")
_normal.jpg "Spacious bedroom, Rodney Bay")
_normal.JPG "The front of Ginger Lily at night, St Lucia")
_normal.JPG "Relax at Ginger Lily hotel, Rodney Bay")
_normal.JPG "Ginger Lily swimming pool, St Lucia")
