8/10 Good
Katherine S.
21 Mar 2017
Authentic Martinique
We selected this property for our first ever visit to Martinique because we wanted to experience the island beyond the confines of a tourist resort or hotel. At the end of our one-week stay we were quite satisfied with our decision after adjusting our expectations and resolving a few issues. Our flight from New York on Norwegian Air landed at dusk so we had to find the property in our rental car in the dark. We missed the unmarked street but eventually drove up a steep hill -- c’est Martinique ☺ -- and arrived to be welcomed by the wonderful Jacqueline who lives upstairs in the house where our apartment is located on the ground floor. There are two properties described and shown in the HomeAway listing; ours consists of a living room/kitchen, bedroom, bathroom with shower and a small patio overlooking the sea and surrounding hills. Due to the lateness of the hour we were not able to buy any provisions for breakfast and the only thing in the apartment was a liter bottle of water, no coffee. We were awakened at dawn by roosters crowing and dogs barking – c’est Martinique ☺ -- but we had earplugs and sleep masks and fell back asleep. Jacqueline’s son Vaudron arrived around 9 with a few items, helped us with Internet and TV and explained that hairdryer and iron/ironing board are not listed on the HomeAway site. We had packed mostly casual clothes so no big deal and it’s true that even long hair dries quickly in the Caribbean sun. The refrigerator, stove, microwave and coffee maker all are new, and there is a charcoal barbecue grill as well as an electric grill. There is no washing machine although one was shown on the listing, apparently it was for the other apartment so that’s a bit confusing. We drove to the adjoining town of Anses D’Arlet for coffee at La Litteral restaurant overlooking the bay and the waitress there gave us the most valuable tip of the week: Carrefours, the European retail chain, has a huge store next to the N5 freeway in Genipa between Ducos and Riviere-Salee. We went there later in the day and found an immense selection of groceries and home goods, as well as wine, beer and rum – c’est Martinique ☺ -- many goods from EU countries at good prices. After that we were well stocked for the week and most evenings we dined at the glass table in front of the open window watching the stars come out over the sea, while most mornings we enjoyed breakfast at the small patio table admiring the garden. Bring sleep masks and ear plugs!
Katherine S.
Stayed 7 nights in Jan 2017