La Dauphine Estate is a cocoa plantation dating back to the 18th century located in the mountains, four miles from the picturesque, town of Soufriere, in the shadow the Pitons, a World Heritage Site. La Dauphine Great House and Chateau Laffitte are two estate houses located in the heart of this 75-acre tropical plantation nestled in a lush green hillside surrounded by luxuriant gardens, fragrant with exotic flowers.
Star ratings are intended to indicate the general level of features, amenities, and services to expect. This property is classified according to Giata.
One of the best places we have stayed in St Lucia What a beautiful villa huge rooms. Four poster beds . There is no air con but it is not really needed to be honest as you are high up and cooler by the trees. I stayed here with my family and had the most wonderful experience. We had food cooked for us on request for next to nothing and the infinity pool was a dream . The decor is quite dated and the facilities but it is forgiven for the outstanding beauty of its location and the attentiveness of the staff on the site. The place is incredible really and perfect for large families and groups. It is definitely recommended that you hire car and visit the supermarket and restaurants in souffuere during the day and you can also pay 50 dollars to visit sugar beach resort which is just a few minutes drive away There are the best restaurants all located within 10 mins drive also. Lasers and hotel chocolate estate. Definitely recommend
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Date of stay: August 2021Trip type: Travelled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Wow! What a great experience! The plantation house is just perfect. Beautiful views from all directions on the huge wraparound porch. Lovely backyard patio that led directly to the pool. Pool was clean and refreshing. Loungers with umbrellas. The house is so charming. Three bedrooms, dining room and a full kitchen. Bathroom has two toilets. Towels were restocked daily. Beach towels provided. Antonia oversees the property and she is just lovely. Take advantage of her wonderful cooking. She made us breakfast four times and dinner once. Each breakfast we had fresh squeezed juice. Her Creole chicken is delicious. Her meals are amazing and affordable. The whole property is manicured to perfection. There are many stairs to get up to the house but once on top it is totally worth it. Try to stay away from Sugar Beach right down the road. You park far away from the beach and it is quite a hike down, not good in flip flops. Two loungers and an umbrella were $200. We had some Pina colada’s, a bucket of beer and hamburgers. Our bill was over $200. View is spectacular but it is also from other beaches. Make sure to bring bug spray as the sand flies are vicious! We enjoyed St. Lucia so much but the highlight of our trip was La Dauphine! Thank you Antonia!!
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Date of stay: January 2024Trip type: Travelled as a couple
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La Dauphine is the most beautiful place I have ever visited - I cannot recommend staying here highly enough. La Dauphine offers an experience you just wont get anywhere else, in my opinion even if you pay 10 times more for the luxury hotels.
My boyfriend and I were extremely lucky to get to stay in the main plantation house which could accommodate a large family or large group. The house has 3 double bedrooms and a large attic room where there are amazing views over the famous Pitons and where I very happily watched the sunset - absolutely beautiful. The house is very charming and homely. Wrapping around most of the house is a lovely veranda with various choices of seats and tables - also a hammock great for reading and watching the sunset.
The estate was extremely relaxing and so peaceful. The plantation is simply stunning and you are surrounded by an abundance of vibrant flowers and fresh fruits (which you are allowed to pick and enjoy freely). My boyfriend had a cold when we arrived and Antonia recommended bounty rum, honey and freshly squeezed sour oranges. Not only did this cure the cold, it tasted amazing! If only we were able to get the sour oranges in the UK this would be our drink of choice!
Antonia the housekeeper was a lovely host and an amazing cook. Antonia came every day and couldn't have done more to help. Antonia's meals (which she prepares as long as you let her know a day or two in advance) were scrumptious. Authentic Creole meals and local vegetables. The plantain was yummy. Antonia also made fresh juice straight from the plantation - better than anything you can buy in the shops!
Charles the estate manager was also extremely friendly and more than happy to spend his time telling us about the plantation and the history of the island. Charles explained what all the different fruits were and on market day when all the fruits were ready to be taken said we could help ourselves to whatever we wanted and also cut up fruits for us to try. He also explained the process of chocolate production, the plantation having its own fermenting sheds and drying racks. absolutely fascinating.
The pool is large enough to swim in or just for cooling down from the sun. The pool area looks lovely. We had the whole place to ourselves. I have never felt more lucky than when I was swimming in the pool in solitude surrounded by the beautiful vegetation. This is something I cannot imagine getting even in the 5 star resorts.
As above, Antonia can make meals which we ate for lunch or dinner. We also ate at some of the local luxury hotels, Hotel Chocolat, Sugar Beach and Ladera. All of the beaches in St Lucia are public and it is possible to go to the hotels and use the beaches and their facilities (you can pay for a sunbed). You can park at the hotels and they will shuttle you to the beach. We did this on a couple of days but nothing could beat the location of La Dauphine and the peace and quiet. Being able to go to the hotels either for the beach or for dinner, I felt we got the best of both worlds!
Junior, Antonias brother is a taxi driver and is very accommodating and took us to hotels on an evening or to the local sights - also to the supermarket.
We also hired a car through La Dauphine for a day - Antonia sorted all of this for us - the car is brought to the plantation for you and collected. Very easy! We drove around the whole island in a day but I would say the best sights are on your doorstep anyway - this part of the island is definitely the prettiest.
La Dauphine is not a 'luxury' hotel so if this is what you want this is not the place for you. In my view, as you probably gathered, its 100 times better (and much cheaper).
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Date of stay: November 2014
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Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
We stayed here for 4 nights before our stay at Jade Mountain. It is a great value if you are going to be doing day trips. Antonia is wonderful! She is super nice and attentive. You can arrange for her to cook with advance notice. Her brother Junior provided us with great taxi service around the island since we didn't want to bother with renting a car. He was ALWAYS punctual! The main house is quite big and has a full kitchen. The decor is a little like grandma's house but comfortable and clean. It's basic but a good value for the money! There is not much to do around the plantation except relax and read on the veranda and you aren't walking distance to anything (the road is narrow and they advised us not to walk, especially at night) so you are a bit isolated.
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Date of stay: July 2009
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Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Well it's like a jungle setting, but you can still see the road from the front porch. What a thrill, to stay in this great house from 1890. Everything suggests the great history from that era. You are surrounded by fruit trees of all kinds, grapefruit, lemon, banana, cocoa bean. The greatest is the monster grapefruit that can be picked from the veranda - the sweetest I've ever eaten. Hike the trail behind, to the top of the hill and think you have come to another world, quite unlike most of the island you have seen.
Sleep in a 4 poster bed, complete with fine mosquito netting (for effect, not actually needed). Prepare meals if you like, eat inside or on the wide veranda surrounding the house on 3 sides, complete with a number of hand carved rockers, chairs, couches and tables. Or, have Antonia prepare creole meals for you. Really great.
Oh yes, necessary additions were made from 1890, like a complete kitchen, bathrooms, shower, etc. So there is no roughing it in this exquisit house. A really great getaway. We were two, but there are beds and sofas and kitchen utinsels for ten or more.
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We stayed at the La Dauphine Estate for four nights to start our Adventure tour. We stayed at Chateau Laffitte which is located below the main house. The main house is also where the pool area is located. The directions to the estate was spot on from Austin who met us at the airport with our rental car which is part of the Adventure tour. Austin works for Villa Beach cottages and we met him there a few more times during our stay at Villa Berach later in the week. He is also the person who can drive you back to the airport or will meet you at the airport to take the car from you. Austin had called Antonia at La Dauphine to give her an idea of what time we would arrive. We actually arrived sooner than she had thought. She gave us a quick tour of Laffitte and than we asked for dinner recommendations. She recommended Bamboo Restaurant which is located right down the street at the Fond Doux resort. We also asked if she could make us breakfast in the morning since we did not have a chance to pick any groceries up. She told us know worries. Breakfast was good and since no one else was at the place, we had breakfast up by the great house. Antonia is a lovely lady and really wants to make sure that you are happy and have everything that you need. Laffitte is a rustic place. We never did use the kitchen to make any food so we are not sure how well stocked the kitchen was. The WIFI in the room was great, but since we were the only ones at La Dauphine, we had the wireless system to ourselves. It was nice having the whole place to ourselves. The water pressure in the shower is very weak, but we had hot water. The bed was firm which we liked. The place is also clean, but do expect to see ants and things around which is to be expected since you are in a working plantation. The best thing about La Dauphine is the location and you are actually staying at a working cocoa farm as well as flower farm. They provide the flowers to Jade Mountain resort as well as Ladera resort. Charles who manages the plantation is a great guy. A wealth of information. His tour of the plantation was worth every minute. The stories that Charles tells are just great. He really knows his stuff about cocoa and farming. La Dauphine is only a few minutes away from Hotel Chocolate which is fantastic. Take the cocoa tour, well worth the time and money. We did the tour to table tour where you actually make your own chocolate bar. La Dauphine is also a very short drive to The Sulphur Springs and Tet Paul trail. You are also only about 5 - 7 minutes away to Soufriere and to the Diamond Botanical Garden and Water Fall. Also, since you are close to Soufriere, you are also close to Jade Mountain. You will need to make reservations to be able to get into the restaurant or bar of Jade Mountain. We learned the hard way and returned to the next day with lunch reservations. Well worth the cost, just make the time. The views are speculator. The last comment goes to the security man that is there every night. His name is George and he is very friendly. All in all, La Dauphine is in the perfect location to start your adventures and the price per night compared to the other resorts is hard to beat. Just be aware that this is a rustic setting.
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Date of stay: January 2020
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Room Tip:Â Chateau Laffitte is a self contained unit that is yours only.
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
We wanted to stay in St. Lucia at the Villa Beach Cottages more than the 5 days that were available so we gave La Dauphine Estate a try for 2 nights. We stayed at the small house because the large one was booked. It was a great experience. They have an orchard that we picked our own fruit. We hiked straight up the mountain we were on to see some spectacular views. We enjoyed going into Soufrière to see a very unique village. The restaurants in the area have unbelievable views of the Pitons. The pool on the property was very nice and relaxing. Next time we would stay at the big house but you really need to enjoy a couple days in the mountains. Colin is the owner and he treats you right. I did not know how to drive on the left and was concerned about driving after enjoying adult beverages on the plane. Colin's staff brought me a rental car the next day to La Dauphine. His staff is very friendly and helpful. You will not be treated better any where!
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Date of stay: February 2013
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Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Our second visit to La Dauphine was as enchanting and welcoming as the first some time ago. We received the same genuine higs and greetings as if we were long lost family.
La Dauphine Estates is nestled on a slope within the rainforest with its breathtaking view of the Pitons and surrounding countryside. The Estate itself is comprised of a refurbished residence accommodating about ten visitors, with immaculate gounds, a swimming pool and a working plantation where the world's best cocoa is harvested to be made into the finest chocolate.
The residence is an amazing combination of refurbished 1810 decor, but with all the current day amenities visitors expect. Host Antonia does a superb job of welcoming you and making you feel at home in this glorious setting. The rooms are clean, elegant and spacious. You can do your own meal preparation, or have Antonia cook her special Caribbean meals for you. The genuine personal service bestowed by Antonia, Charles and other staff is what makes La Dauphine stand out among other facilities of its kind.
Manager Charles will provide you with a tour of the plantation and the grounds about the Estate. He will talk with great enthusiasm about the past and present activities of the Estate with a genuine interest in making your stay most enjoyable and educational.
Another winning feature of La Dauphine is its location relative to major tourist sites in the area. It provides a base for the touring visitor who wishes to experience major attractions such as the volcano, botanical gardens, the Pitons and hot baths. After a day of sightseeing, the Estates is a great place to relax by the pool and absorb the quiet and serene atmosphere at day's end.
Check out the old stone bread oven which is been refurbished, and an outdoor stone barbeque is being installed in the guest area to add to the rustic, historical atmosphere of the Estate.
Car rentals are available, and taxi service can be arranged for the less venturesome travellers. Charles and Antonia are a big help in arranging tours and making suggestions about areas to visit and driving directions to the mant attractions and beaches.
La Dauphine is one of two facilities owned by Colin Hunte and Family. Colin is a winner of Island Hospitality awards. Be sure to call and ask about the "Adventure Package" which consists of four days at the sister property (Villa Beach cottages) in the north adjacent to the ocean, and three days at La Dauphine Estates.
The tranquil atmosphere of the Estates captures the visitor and creates visions of the Estates and plantation as it existed over a century ago.
Genuine personal caring hospitality, superb homey accommodations, and a great location! What more can you ask for?
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Date of stay: February 2012
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Trip type: Travelled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
My significant other and two other couples wanted to take a tropical vacation. We had all done the all-inclusive resort type vacation and wanted something different. We decided on La Dauphine Estate, which is a large plantation house on the Southern portion of the island in Soufriere. I definitely recommend renting a car for this house. The beaches, town, restaurants, springs, and pitons, are all very close, but you do not want to be walking on the Saint Lucia roads because they are very windy and hilly. That concerned me at first, but they work with Austin at Coconut Car Rental and made the process very easy. Austin picked us up directly from the airport, stopped at the grocery store with us, provided the local drivers permit, and even picked the car up at the airport at the end of our stay. Antonia was so friendly and helpful. She gave us the best advice of what to do each day. She helped us book a boat trip, a hike up the pitons, and her brother even has a cab company if you want to go out at night and not drive. She is also able to cook delicious meals! Charles is the Estate Manager and gave us a wonderful history of the house and plantation. It was so interesting learn more about the Plantation and the products they grow. This house is perfect for larger groups, but is still affordable if you have less people. The new pool is very beautiful and the wrap around porch and hammock are perfect for reading in the morning. There are some really great restaurants just minutes from the Estate. Don't miss Anse Chasenet Beach and La Jalousie Beach. They are absolutely amazing. All in all, Saint Lucia is a beautiful island and Soufriere was a perfect mix of beauty and adventure. There is so much to do whether you just want a relaxing trip, or would like to mix in more active activities too.
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Date of stay: February 2011
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Trip type: Travelled as a couple
Room Tip:Â Call them directly
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
We stayed at Chateau Lafitte for four nights on the La Dauphine estate with our two children. It was a very unique experience to stay on a working cocoa plantation. The cottage was clean but rustic. The entire estate is yours to explore, including a short hiking trail and an explanation of how cocoa is grown. Antonia and Charles are very nice and friendly. We enjoyed our conversations with them and getting to know them. Antonia cooked us a lovely Creole meal that was tasty and much appreciated. We did not have a car but Anthony, Antonia's husband was our 'taxi' driver for the time of our stay and was very helpful. The new pool was lovely and enjoyable, as were all the lovely flowers. The estate is close to Ladera, Jalousie, Fond D'oux and Hotel Chocolat, where we had lovely meals. Do take bug spray, we had many 'no see um' bites. The bed was quite small but it was a very quiet night's sleep.
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Date of stay: March 2011
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Trip type: Travelled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
La Dauphine Estate is approximately 5 minutes drive from the Sulphur Springs Park. The park is open from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM and going early or late would allow you to avoid the crowds.
There is no restaurant on site. The La Dauphine Great House & Chateau Laffitte have fully kitchens ideal for self-catering. The housekeeper / cook can prepare meals on request. There is a restaurant called Cocoa Jardin at Fond Doux Estate within walking distance usually open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. A number of great restaurants are located within a 5 to 10 minutes drive from La Dauphine Estate.
Property Taxi Drivers are available at any time for transfers to beaches, restaurants and all natural attractions near La Dauphine Estate. The cost of transfers to and from Sugar & Margretoute beaches is US$40 (3 persons, roundtrip).
There is no air conditioning in the La Dauphine Great House or Chateau Laffitte but these houses are naturally cool because of they location in the mountains. Magretoute and Sugar (Jalousie) are two beaches located 4 miles from La Dauphine Estate.
There are more places to choose from in the Soufriere area.
PRICE RANGE
C$234 - C$250 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room)
ALSO KNOWN AS
la dauphine estate hotel
LOCATION
CaribbeanSt. LuciaSoufriere QuarterSoufriere
NUMBER OF ROOMS
2
Prices are the average nightly price provided by our partners and may not include all taxes and fees. Taxes and fees that are shown are estimates only. Please see our partners for more details.
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