Top 10 Marinas in Guadeloupe
Seen from the air, Guadeloupe looks like a butterfly — Grande-Terre to the east, flat and planted with sugarcane, and Basse-Terre to the west, mountainous and crowned by the active volcano La Soufrière at 1,467 metres. Between the two wings runs the Rivière Salée, a narrow mangrove-lined channel that connects the sheltered Grand Cul-de-Sac Marin to the south with the Petit Cul-de-Sac Marin to the north, creating a sheltered inland waterway unlike anything else in the Lesser Antilles. This geography is what makes Guadeloupe an unusually interesting sailing destination, with the Route du Rhum race departing from Pointe-à-Pitre every four years as the archipelago's calling card to the global sailing community.
Marina de Bas-du-Fort (Pointe-à-Pitre)
Bas-du-Fort Marina is the largest marina in Guadeloupe and the main base for the Route du Rhum preparations. Located on the eastern outskirts of Pointe-à-Pitre, the marina accommodates 1,050 berths for vessels up to 25 metres, with a haul-out area served by a 50-tonne travel-lift. Fuel, water, 220 V and 110 V shore power are standard. The marina village has a ship chandlery, a sail repair loft, and several restaurants, and the ferry across the Pointe-à-Pitre roadstead to the city centre runs every 30 minutes. This is the start point for the Route du Rhum solo transatlantic race, held every four years; the most recent editions have seen over 130 entrants, from IMOCA 60s to multiHull prototypes.
Marina de Saint-François
On the eastern tip of Grande-Terre, the marina at Saint-François offers 230 berths, a travel-lift to 30 tonnes, diesel and water. The town itself is the most anglophone settlement on the island — a legacy of the English occupation in the 18th century — with a lively waterfront market and a casino. Saint-François is an excellent departure point for Marie-Galante, 20 nautical miles to the south, or Les Saintes, 30 miles to the southwest, and the marina's depth of 2.5 metres at the entrance is the limiting factor for deeper-drafted vessels.
Les Saintes (Terre-de-Haut)
Administratively part of Guadeloupe but physically separate, the eight small islands of Les Saintes (Îles des Saintes) offer one of the most beautiful anchorages in the entire Caribbean. The main anchorage in Baie des Saintes, off Terre-de-Haut, holds in five to twelve metres of sand and benefits from the complete shelter of the surrounding islets. There is no full-service marina, but the village quay has fresh water, and fuel is available in jerry cans from the local garage. Les Saintes is a day sail from Pointe-à-Pitre via the channel between Basse-Terre and Marie-Galante.
Port de Rivière Salée
The passage through the Rivière Salée is one of sailing's unusual treats in the French Antilles. The channel, navigable by vessels drawing under 2.7 metres, runs for about 12 miles between the two wings of the butterfly island, passing through mangrove forest, fishing villages, and the swing bridge at Pont de la Gabarre — which opens for sailboats on request at specified times daily. Anchoring is possible at several points along the channel in five to eight metres.
Marina de Deshaies
On the northwestern coast of Basse-Terre, the marina at Deshaies is a popular first stop for boats arriving from Antigua and the northern Leeward Islands. The anchorage in the bay holds in five to ten metres of sand, and the small pier adjacent to the village quay has fuel delivered by can. The Marine Nationale clearance office in the village processes entry formalities. Deshaies is known for its botanical garden — the Jardin Botanique de Deshaies — and its relaxed atmosphere compared to the busier southern marinas.
Malendure and Pigeon Island
On Basse-Terre's western coast, the marine reserve around Pigeon Island (known as the Cousteau Reserve, established by Jacques Cousteau in the 1970s) creates a no-anchor zone but a spectacular dive site. Boats anchor outside the reserve boundary in eight metres and dinghy in to the dive centre. The reef around the two small islets has visibility to 30 metres and regular sightings of hawksbill turtles and spotted eagle rays.
Marie-Galante
Twenty miles south of Pointe-à-Pitre, the circular island of Marie-Galante has two anchorages: the main one off Capesterre-de-Marie-Galante in the south, and a smaller anchorage off Saint-Louis on the west coast. The island is known for its rum distilleries — Bellevue, Bielle, and Poisson — and its sugar-producing tradition. No marina exists, but the holding at both anchorages is reliable in five metres of sand, and fuel is available in Capesterre.
Anse Bertrand and the North Coast
The northern coast of Grande-Terre, from Anse Bertrand to Pointe de la Grande Vigie, is exposed to Atlantic swell and has no protected anchorages, but the cape itself offers impressive coastal scenery for a day passage. Boats rounding the north of Guadeloupe to reach Antigua (45 nautical miles northeast) or Montserrat typically time their departure for dawn.
Weather and Route du Rhum Legacy
The Route du Rhum departs Saint-Malo in Brittany and arrives in Pointe-à-Pitre, covering about 3,542 nautical miles across the Atlantic. The race, first held in 1978, has shaped Guadeloupe's sailing identity more than any other event. The northeast trades between 15 and 25 knots dominate from December through May. The Saintes and Marie-Galante channels between the main islands can funnel stronger gusts when the trades are fresh, and the passages between the islands are best made in the morning when swell is manageable.
Explore on the map
The butterfly shape of Guadeloupe, the Rivière Salée passage, Les Saintes anchorage, and the starting line of the Route du Rhum all come to life on the interactive map. Use the map to trace the inner waterway between the islands, identify the depth limits at each marina entrance, and plan your passage from Guadeloupe south to Martinique or west to Dominica.