Gros Piton Mountain Hike

Amazing Service…Awesome Family – Serenity is the best tour company I have experienced anywhere in the world (and I have traveled to many countries)! Professional yet approachable…they make you part of their family. Took a number of tours with Serenity including Friday night fish fry and jump up, zip lining, land and sea tour, and a customized tour in the south of the island. All were amazing. Thanks to Dayne (he is the best), Amia, Acacia, Hans (aka John/Caroline) and Reina for amazing service. Special thanks to John and Caroline for opening up their home to me and making me part of the family. Love you all!

Book with Serenity! They’re fantastic! – Like others, we were worried about starting off our honeymoon with what we’d heard could be a terrible shuttle ride to Sandals Grand. My fiancé booked Serenity to pick us up from the airport. Hans and Linora picked us up, sweeping us away from the crowds with a relaxing ride and the best rum punch ever. They treated us like total VIPs, gave us tons of information about the island, and stopped a few times at particularly scenic spots. Who knew that this was really like an island tour and airport transfer all in one?

We had such a good time, that upon their recommendation, we went out to the Gros Islet street party on Friday night. Great local food, music and tons of fun!

We can’t say enough good things about the folks who we now consider friends, and can’t wait to go back!

Great experience!! – I’m a luxury travel consultant and I have traveled many places with the best tour operators and hotels from around the world. Serenity Vacations and Tours is top notch! We arrived on a cruise ship and Hans was waiting for us with a big sign as soon as we walked off the ship. He had a fabulous smile and got our day off to a great start! We were lucky to have Hans and driver Dayne all to ourselves for a great tour of St. Lucia.

We were expecting to see the main sites – the volcano mud baths, Pitons, etc. What we weren’t expecting was a culinary tour as well! Everywhere we went they would stop on the side of the road and they’d pick us fresh fruit including bananas, sugar apples, guava, etc. We stopped at a local bakery for fresh hot out of the oven Creole bread with butter and washed it down with homemade spiced rum! We also enjoyed homemade fish cakes with a spicy dipping sauce! We visited the Maranatha Gardens and a lovely restaurant with a great view of the Pitons where we enjoyed a lunch of delicious local foods! Yummy!

We did see the main sites and learned lots about the history and culture of the island. Their knowledge was excellent and I will definitely recommend them to all of my clients!

VIP treatment from Serenity! – We were a party of eight from the Carnival Valor on December 5, 2013. First of all thanks to Hans, Freddy and Amy for your kindness in helping me! I was travelling with six older relatives including my mother, her sisters, a great aunt and a cousin, lovingly referred to as “The Turtles”. 

I booked the Land Sea tour which included an extensive tour of the Island as well as a ride back to the port on a catamaran. Suffice it to say we ALL had a BLAST!!

Hans was waiting for us as soon as we left the ship with a big sign and a bigger smile! 
Our guides, Hans and Amy, and our driver Freddy, were all so knowledgeable about St Lucia, answering our endless questions and providing us with a wealth of information about their country and all aspects of life there. They kept the entire day fun and entertaining and even tailored the tour to fit our needs (including a side trip for forgotten items, thanks Freddy!!) When they realized the capabilities, or lack thereof, of the turtles they suggested different things to do that didn’t require extra exertion! 🙂

We had a wonderful buffet lunch overlooking the Pitons before arriving at our awaiting catamaran that would be taking us back to our ship. We made a short stop for snorkeling and swimming at Jalousie Bay and then started cruising up the coast enjoying magnificent views of the Pitons (my personal reason for the tour…thanks, Hans 🙂 !) and numerous other places of interest both natural and man made. This was a party boat, too! The drinks flowed freely and the music and dancing were enjoyed by everyone, even the Turtles!! 

The captain of our catamaran contacted the captain of the Valor and we were able to debark from the catamaran to the pier just ahead of the ship, so our walk to get back onboard was a short one. Thank goodness, because this tour, exciting as it was, was a full day excursion from 830am to 430pm, and quite exhausting. But WELL worth it!!

I would highly recommend this tour company to anyone!

First class service – We’re not ones for group tours so we went with Serenity for 3 private tours after reading such great reviews on TripAdvisor. On each occasion they were terrific and we got to see a lot more of the real St Lucia than we would have otherwise. 

The highlight was a whole day where we did the Gros Piton climb, Volcano Tour, mineral / sulphur bath and lunch overlooking the pitons. What a great day without any queues or hassles. 

Thank you to all the staff who helped organise the tours as well as Hans for making it to the top of the Piton with me. 

We can’t wait to come back!

Wonderful experience– we’ll be back! – Great company to work with, both the back of house staff and our guide Dane. Wonderful customer service, and we had a great private day at the beach. We’ll be back to St. Lucia and will absolutely use Serenity again.

Tout Bagay Catamaran + Private Whale Watching Magic – We first did the tout bagay catamaran tour which was great fun. We saw great sights down the coast, visited the waterfall, did the cacao plantation tour, hand lunch, went to the mud baths, and then went back to the boat to load up on rum punch. By the time we rolled in to the harbor, we were all singing and dancing and drunk 🙂 The ambiance was definitely made by the crew.

The last day of our trip, we did the half day privatized whale watching trip… which we didn’t realize upon booking was privatized. We almost canceled because of the sticker shop (we only found out the price when they came to pick us up). After 20 minutes of deliberating, we decided to do it, because our lovely chauffeur from Serenity called and arranged for a discount for us. We are SO glad we did it. It was the most magical experiences. We saw dozens of whales and hundreds of dolphins. We had dolphins and whales everywhere around us for over an hour. It was absolutely unbelievably. And it was actually so nice just having the boat to ourselves (my husband and my parents) and our two guides, who were absolutely hilarious and wonderful. We definitely recommend this trip! 

+They came and picked us up at the hotel, and brought us back for each activity, and in really nice cars!

Simply Perfect – Let me start by saying this…. the easy thing to do is let your resort or cruise ship book all your tours while visiting St. Lucia. Don’t. Take the initiative and contact Serenity. You’ll be beyond glad you did. 

My wife and I recently celebrated our honeymoon in St. Lucia and if I hadn’t contacted Serenity beforehand our trip wouldn’t have been nearly as AMAZING. 

Booking all your tours is simple and easy with the help of the very talented, Acacia. She was on her game from my first email and all throughout my stay on the island.

Our tour guide was a gentleman by the name of Dayne. If you can, I strongly suggest you request him as your guide. Not only is he funny, and knows everything about the island, but he truly had our best interests in mind. Every step of the way, Dayne, strived to make sure my wife and I were having an enjoyable and relaxing time. It was a true VIP experience. 

On one of our tours, we were fortunate enough to also have Hans accompany us. If you can get Dayne and Hans together DO IT!!! These two make an awesome team. Both my wife and I were incredibly sad when the tour was over. We didn’t want it to end!

I think you get the point. Serenity is the best. Period. 

Have a great time in St. Lucia and have a rum punch for me! 🙂

Probably the best tour operator in the world. – If you want the best forget the rest, book with Serenity, these guys are the best ever.
The downside though is because they are so nice together with their beautiful island we are now returning again in June 2014.
This will be our 4th time in St Lucia in the last 5 years, which means other destinations on our bucket list keep getting pushed back.

Hans and Dean…best tour ever! – We took the couples tour #1 with Hans our guide and Dean our driver…we had the best time and all four of us never stopped laughing! We learned all about the island, saw wonderful sights, ate in our own private room overlooking the Pitons, saw several birds, mongoose, a little kitten ;), the Pitons, botanical gardens, tasted local fare, and were treated like the King and Queen!!!

Charlie and I have travelled quite a bit throughout the world but this was our favorite tour and if it hadn’t been for Hans and Dean we would probably not have said that.

Once Hans found out we love birding, he was in his element and even arranged a tour the following day with Vision (the bird whisperer 😉 and he came along as well. Hans would even make bird sounds and while out on a hike, he was able to call a broad winged hawk near us…amazing!!!

Highly recommend these guys!

Couldn’t have asked for anything better! – We went to St Lucia for our honeymoon the week of July 13th-20th. Stayed at the Sandals Grande St Lucian, which offered a free shuttle to and from the resort. After doing some research I found Serenity for their VIP transfers. And VIP is an understatement! After arriving to the airport and watching all the Sandals guests looking for places to put their bags, find what shuttle they were riding, Hans walked right up to us, greeted us with his BIG smile and said ‘Let’s go’. He loaded our bags into his car, and we were off leaving everyone in the dust. The treatment of the transfer just started the honeymoon off in a way we could’ve never imagined. We were given cool towels to wipe our face and hands off, and started our journey. With rum punch and beers in the cooler, Hans drove us thru the island. We took in all the beauty while Hans gave us history and locations. He welcomed any and every question we had. We made a few stops along the way, which we never opened the car door for ourselves once, took pictures for us which if you book them for the departure they give you a CD with your pictures, and even stopped on the side of the road where a guy was making homemade bread. They purchased bread and cheese for us and it was amazing. We even booked Serenity for the Friday night street party. After speaking to Hans about this, it was the best decision. Instead of taking a taxi and worrying about finding a ride home, they stayed with us the whole time. Showed us around, first stop was at a local fish fry for dinner, then to the street party. It gets really crowded there, but we had our own ‘meeting’ place with Serenity that had a balcony overlooking the party. It was recommended to leave around 11pm, and at that time we all loaded back on the bus and headed back to the resort. I understand a free shuttle is very tempting, but if it’s in the budget it’s WELL worth the extra money to experience the island this way. We are already planning our trip back to St Lucia and we will make sure to book Serenity and Hans again. Thank you for such a great time.

PROBABLY THE BEST VACATION & TOUR COMPANY IN THE WORLD! – Having used Serenity Vacation & Tours twice before we had absolutely no hesitations in booking there services for the 3rd time. We emailed Acacia with our arrival dates and arranged all of our transfers and intended trips….a very easy process! 
We were met by Hans and Frederick on June 16th 2013. We already knew Hans from our previous trips but it was our first time meeting Fredrick, it was great meeting Serenity’s new team member! We had opted as usual for the VIP airport transfer to Windjammer Landings our resort for the fortnight. Anyone who has not already sampled the VIP service, for the extra US $ it really is worth it. Cold towels, Ice cold Pitons and Caroline’s home-made rum punch…. It was so delicious and exactly what we needed after the flight from London Gatwick. Hans and Frederick were amazing keeping us up to speed with all the local news and gossip we’ve missed since our last visit! We stopped off at Denary for a quick stretch of our legs and a photo opportunity then further on we stopped to get some fresh local baked bread which was very yummy the beers and rum punch had certainly given us an appetite! Freddy was a great driver navigating the serpentine roads effortlessly so the 1hr 20 min journey flew by…Don’t forget if you need to stop off for groceries it is absolutely no problem – Hans even carried the shopping basket for us! 
We arrived at our resort fully refreshed and Hans told us to call on them at any time for any restaurant reservations or taxi rides, nothing was too much trouble.
Fredrick was our designated driver for taxi rides in to town- a great guy and always very prompt!
One tour we thoroughly recommend is the Couples Only Private Land tour – you choose your own schedule. Hans and Dane were our guides for the day picking us up for 9.30.On board we had a large ice box full of pitons, rum punch, water and soda drinks. Our first stop was in Castries town for the Cathedral. Next was Eudovic’s Art Studio, what a lovely find this was, some very beautiful carvings made from various woods in both traditional and modern styles. We were lucky enough to meet the artist himself who personally signed the woodcarving we purchased and allowed us to take a photo with him too…Who knows it may be worth a fortune one day! Lots of scenic stops on our way around the island where Dane and Hans also picked some fresh mangos for us, then a quick stop to the local bread shop, a very tasty treat it was too. 
The Rhythm of Rum tour next but just to sample around 18 different rums and boy oh boy you must try the strong 80 proof one. I shall say no more!! Hans was very insistent on taking our picture whilst drinking this rum, hmmm I wonder why?!. Purchased a couple of bottles to take home with us so make sure you have extra $ with you.
The Tet Paul Nature trail was next, this is certainly a little gem. A tour that lasts around 45 minutes where you will see A Cassava House, A Traditional House, Organic Farm, Pond and spectacular breathtaking views of the Pitons and southern part of the Island. John was our guide and he was a great guy giving us all the info on each aspect of the tour. There’s a great photo opportunity at “The Stairway to Heaven”
The warm Waterfalls were next on our list, and we were very fortunate to be the only ones there. A top tip is to arrive around 2pm when most other tourists are having lunch. It was an amazing experience to have this all to ourselves. Hans took some lovely photos of us and then left us to enjoy some privacy in the warm rock pools. There are lots of steep steps to negotiate so unfortunately could not recommend this to anyone elderly or with walking difficulties.
By this time it was 3pm and we could not believe how quickly the day had passed so Lunch was our next priority. We stopped at the Beacon restaurant which had spectacular views overlooking the Pitons where we ate a very tasty St Lucian lunch and once again we were the only ones there -apart from Dane and Hans! We could have stopped at the Botanical Gardens since it was next door to the restaurant, but declined to do so as by now we had already decided we would be returning next year again so would visit it then. Since we were now feeling quite tired, we decided to return to head back to the hotel, just stopping briefly at one of the Banana plantations and to Marigot Bay for a final photo opportunity! Our tour had been absolutely magical and will be remembered forever! Hans and Dane were fantastic guides we had such a fun time with them…..thanks guys!
Another tour is the Friday night Jump Up, Serenity will pick you up from your hotel take you into Gros Islet to the Fisherman Wharf and meet Fisherman Guard who has a very long family history of fishing. We had the most delicious Grilled Conch we have ever tasted plus Lobster and a variety of tasty Creole Fish dishes too..It was also another great chance to mix and mingle with the Serenity crew and locals. Next you head into the streets where the party really starts, the DJ’s are fantastic and play a variety of reggae, soca, dance and chart music and be assured they really do get the crowd in the mood for dancing the night away. 
If you are still hungry there are BBQ meats available and drinks all at very reasonable prices. We absolutely love this tour and always go twice in the fortnight we are on the Island.
A big thanks to Acacia and Fredrick for being our guides on the first Friday party and to – John, Caroline, Hancha, Hans, Dane, Ingrid and Acacia for coming along on the second Friday to celebrate my husband’s birthday – John had very craftily told the DJ to announce my hubby’s birthday celebration, thank you John it really did make it an extra special night for him!
This has been our 3rd trip to the gorgeous island of St Lucia and 3rd time using Serenity Vacation and Tours….and in all honesty each trip surpasses the previous. We can quite categorically state that without doubt the main reason we want to keep coming back is to see our St Lucian Serenity family. The owners John & Caroline Mathurin are a truly wonderful couple along with their children Hans a fine young man who is now a brilliant Ambassador for Serenity and Hancha an adorable young girl who we are sure one day will also play a big part in Serenity’s success.
We were also very fortunate to be invited to their beautiful home one evening during our vacation where Caroline cooked us a fabulous dinner and we spent the whole night eating, drinking, chatting and laughing. We have so much in common with these guys it’s unbelievable! 
The hospitality Serenity provide to all their guests goes above and beyond all your expectations. The level and quality of service is first class and believe me you would be a fool not to use them. My husband is not easily pleased and does not suffer fools gladly, but Serenity tick all his boxes when it comes to excellent customer service.
Thank you so much John, Caroline, Hans and Hancha and all of your fabulous Ambassadors Acacia, Dane, Ingrid, Sherma and Fredrick. (Sorry if we have missed anyone off the list) You have given us a wonderful time so many fond memories to treasure forever that we just want to keep coming back year after year! Looking forward to seeing you all again next year.

Good Time ! – We were picked up at the port on time and met by a nice young lady . She called for our driver Hans and he arrived very quickly in a very nice and very clean car . . It was a short ride to the Rain Forest and Hans was great . We were the only two scheduled for this tour and it was nice not to have to wait for other people and had the car to ourselves. Hans waited for us while we did the Zip line and Sky Ride Combo . Once we finished , he took us back to the market and we enjoyed the rest of the day shopping . Thanks Serenity and Hans for an enjoyable day.

So friendly and welcoming! – We were on our honeymoon in St. Lucia and chose to splurge and have Serenity give us a private transfer to and from the airport. We were promptly picked up by Kaysha and Dane upon our arrival and they gave us a relaxing and welcoming tour of St. Lucia on the way to our resort. We stopped along the way at some beautiful vantage points for pictures, to get us fresh local fruit (they bought us some fresh local mangos from a farmer and even climbed trees to get us fresh guava and starfruit), and give us the chance to bake bread with a local baker. It was everything we were looking for from our private transfer and more. On the way back to the airport, Hans was just as courteous and welcoming.

We also chose to go on the Serenity Rhythm Discovery Tour during our stay to the island’s local rum distillery. If you would like to go, we strongly recommend paying a little extra to take the private tour. After picking us up, Hans and Dane asked us what we really wanted to see in St. Lucia, and tailored the rest of the tour to our personal requests. My wife and I were looking to get some authentic souvenirs and to see some St. Lucian art/fashion. Hans and Dane brought us to a local fabric store and a shop where some St. Lucians were making wood sculptures that were absolutely beautiful. They then brought us to try some local bananas and sauces/marinades. This was all before we even reached the rum distillery, where we were given a private tasting of over 15 different rums, and a tour of the facilities. 

We highly recommend choosing Serenity Vacations and Tours for any of your sightseeing/adventurous needs. The guides are attentive and knowledgeable, and within 15 minutes, we felt like we were touring the island with old friends.

Great tour! – We did a Serenity Rhythm Discovery Tour during our time in St. Lucia. The tour was wonderful and our whole group of 11 people had an amazing time. Our tour guides, Hans and Dwayne, were the best!They were knowledgeable, fun, and made sure everyone was having a great time. I definitely would recommend Serenity to anyone looking for a great tour in St Lucia.

Zip Line via Serenity – We booked a trip to the Zip Line in Dennery via Serenity while on a cruise the week of July 7, 2014.

The two young men they sent to pick us up could not have been better representatives of their island. They shared tons of info about the island and pointed out various sites along the way. On the way back to the ship they stopped at several overlooks to let us take photos as well as stopping and picking fresh local from several trees for us to sample.

The trip to and from the zip line was just about as much fun as the zip line thanks to our guides.

A Truly Wonderful Experience – My husband and I recently spent one week in St. Lucia. Prior to traveling, I read many reviews of tour companies which led me to Serenity. The booking was easy and Acacia was wonderful helping my husband when he booked our tours and transfers. We started with the helicopter transport, and upon landing met Hans and Titus, who would accompany us on our tours during our stay. Our first tour was the Piton Mountain climb, which was a great workout and the view from the top was worth it! After the climb, we ate lunch at the Beacon restaurant and the food was just as good as the fantastic views from the dining room! Two days later, we took the private couples island tour. It was wonderful to have our own private guides, we could ask questions and stop wherever we wanted. We saw tons of sights and learned many things about beautiful St. Lucia. We ate a fabulous lunch at Ladera resort and the views from the dining room took our breath away. We had a perfect view of the Piton mountains that we had climbed on the previous tour. We even had the good fortune of great timing when we arrived at the sulfur baths and were the only ones there! It took me a while to get in (really hot) but Hans was super patient with me! We ate throughout the day, with some homemade delectable treats as well as yummy bread! At the end of our trip, we can truly say that we have made new friends in Hans and Titus. We learned so much and felt very comfortable with them from the instant we met. We were sad to say goodbye when Hans picked us up for our return helicopter transfer. I can without a doubt recommend Serenity for excursions while in St. Lucia. I will absolutely book with them again when we return to paradise! 

Exceeds Expectations – My husband and I booked several tours through Serenity – the Grenadines trip, and zipline, just to name a few. What can I say – we were blown away by the level of customer service and personalization. The tours exceeded all of our expectations. I would highly recommend using Serenity, and would absolutely use them again in the future.

Outstanding Customer Service – Having booked the VIP airport transfer each of our 2 visits to St Lucia, as well as 2 tours this year, I have to say that is company has the friendliest most customer service oriented employees of any we have experienced in visiting many islands over the past 10 years. We even got to meet John and Carol, the owners of the company this year, and spent a few hours socializing with them and some of their team! It was a highlight of our trip. They are just nice people working hard to grow their business by treating people right. 

We took the Ti Kaye Beach and Snorkel trip and the Sunset Cruise, both lots of fun. And the airport transfer is a tour in itself. The staff goes out of their way to make you feel welcome and try to accommodate all your needs. They even stopped at the grocery store for us to pick up a few things on the way back from one of the tours.

Cheers to John and Carol, Hans, Acacia, Celestion, Dayne, Frederick and Amie. We look forward to seeing you in future trips.