Saline, honestly
Saline is on the south coast. You reach the beach by a track along the old salt ponds, then a few dozen metres on foot over a dune. Nothing is built on the sand: no bar, no loungers, no shade. It is open ocean, so there is real swell. Naturism is tolerated on part of the beach. There are no shops or services in the area either, so a car is not optional. The emptiness is the whole appeal, and it is also why this is a poor fit if you want to walk out for dinner.
What the house includes
The villa has a private pool and it is heated. Air conditioning, a kitchen, wifi with broadband internet, and a television. There is a fitness room, worth knowing about when nothing is within walking distance. An airport shuttle is part of what the villa offers. The villa is listed as suitable for children; if you are travelling with young kids, ask me and I will get the details confirmed by the agency rather than guess at them here.
Six bedrooms, twelve guests
Six bedrooms for twelve guests is a whole-house rental: you take the villa, not a room. Two per bedroom is the arithmetic, but I will not invent the sleeping plan for you. I do not know how the beds are split between doubles and twins, and that matters if you are two families rather than six couples. Ask me before you book and I will get the exact configuration from the agency.
Who it suits, and who it doesn't
So the honest question is not what Saline is but whether it is for you. If the week you picture has you stepping onto a beach with chairs and someone bringing you a drink, or lining up one outing after another, you will spend it wishing you were somewhere busier. The same goes if anyone travelling struggles with sand, a dune and full sun. For those guests the livelier, better-served parts of the island are the safer bet.
If, on the other hand, you took the whole house to keep everyone together and what you want from the days is space and quiet, this is exactly the right side of the island. A group content to make the villa the centre of the day, the heated pool, the fitness room, meals in, gets far more from Saline than one always half-planning the next outing. Tell me who is travelling and what you picture from the week, and I will say honestly whether this is the right fit for you.
What the villa has
- Fitness room
- Suitable for children
- Air conditioning
- Airport transfer
- Wi-Fi
- High-speed internet
- TV
- Private pool
- Heated pool
Common questions
Do we really need to rent cars?
Yes. Saline has no shops, no restaurants and no services, and the beach itself has nothing built on it. You will drive for groceries, for meals, for everything. With twelve people, plan for more than one vehicle. If nobody in the group wants to drive on the island, Saline is the wrong area for you.
Is Saline a good choice for a first stay in St Barth?
It depends what you want. If you came for quiet and an undeveloped stretch of coast, yes. If you want to step out for a drink or have the group split up easily during the day, no, the busier, better-served areas are elsewhere. I would rather tell you that now than have you discover it on day two.
How are the beds arranged across the six bedrooms?
I will not guess. Six bedrooms and twelve sleeping places suggests two per room, but that says nothing about doubles, twins or how the rooms compare. Tell me who is travelling and I will get the confirmed configuration from the agency before you commit.
Rates and availability
Rates depend on the season and the length of stay, so I quote them case by case rather than publishing a figure that would be wrong half the year. Tell me your dates and who is travelling, and I come back with the real number and what is still open.