10/10 Excellent
Catherine S., Berrac
25 January 2019
A peaceful retreat to escape the crowds
The villa Turquoise was superb. Even better than expected. The view from the terrace was breathtaking and ever-changing. We loved just sitting and looking out over the sea to Terre de Haut. We also enjoyed cooling off in the small wrap around pool or sitting in the pretty garden reading under the palm tree. The decor and furnishing of the villa inside and out are tasteful and high quality.
Véronique who meets and greets is a star. She is good natured, knowledgeable and very welcoming (French speaking only) We also regularly took advantage of the takeaways her catering company offer. They were delivered each evening by her smiley son on his moped (a welcome sound when you are hungry!) and were delicious, generous and home cooked. Reasonable price too at €12 per serving.
We loved the walks from Grande Anse all over the island. Very steep and some challenging in places so good shoes essential. We saw fresh water turtles and lots of birds on these walks but no iguanas - although Véronique assured us there are lots if you know where to look!
One thing that has to be mentioned (the elephant in the room) is the tragedy of the sargasse seaweed that has washed up here (and many other places in the Caribbean). It has devastated the local town Grande Anse, making the once popular palm-fringed beach à no-go area. As a result the local commerce has suffered and no one seems to know what will be done about it. At the time of our visit it was particularly bad as the guy who normally clears it away each day had been on holiday for a month so there was quite a build up.
Don’t let this put you off booking here. It is truly beautiful.
For a non-seaweed beach, take a very cheap minibus over to Petites Anses (or walk around on the road or over the top on one of several paths - we did both and the beach is a lovely reward!) There is a simple restaurant overlooking the beach. If you love peace and quiet, walking and nature, Terre de Bas is for you and I couldn’t imagine staying in a more beautiful place than Turquoise.
Catherine S.
Stayed 4 nights in Jan 2019