Bouillante is a popular municipality on the west coast of Guadeloupe on the island of Basse-Terre. We only stopped there for one evening on our way south. The anchorage was one of the less rolly ones we found, so we were thankful to be in a secure haven for the night.
The town of Bouillante was founded in the 17th century and is one of the oldest towns in Guadeloupe. It is well known for its hot springs which are heated by volcanic activity. The name of the town actually means “boiling.”
Bouillante attracts a sizable tourist crowd, and what makes it so interesting is that the hot springs flow down from the mountain into the Caribbean Sea and blend together in the bay, making for an unusual hot ocean swim. The area smelled of sulfur, but the bathers didn’t seem to mind. In hindsight, we should have taken time to soak in the warm, mineral-rich waters, but we were so tired from diving the day before and sailing all morning, that we just wanted to rest back at the boat without all the crowds.
Since we arrived so late in the day, we didn’t have time to explore much of the town, but I would recommend it as a stopping point when sailing down the island. Our plan was to tie up to the dinghy dock, fill our gas can, and find a place to eat. It was a Sunday, however, and we soon realized that all the restaurants were closed.
We first walked to the gas station, conveniently located across the street from the dinghy dock, where Kory was able to get fuel for the dinghy. Then we walked next door to the Carrefour Express. It turned out to be more of a convenience store, and not at all like the huge Carrefour Hypermarket we went to in St. Martin. The selection was limited. The guys chose frozen pizzas for dinner. I selected a fresh banquette, cheese, and bananas. And Chilor and I settled on Cookies & Cream ice cream for dessert. It wasn’t the healthiest of meals, but we were fine with that. It was late in the day, we had a long day of sailing, and I wasn’t particularly prepared to cook up a nice meal. No one seemed to mind. It’s all part of the experience!
or Boulevard du Front de Mer
We enjoyed taking a few pictures of the bay on our way back to the dock, but we had frozen food to get to the boat and it was time to go. I can’t tell you the last time we had ice cream, so we weren’t about to let that melt in the sweltering heat. Maybe we’ll visit this little town on our way back north when everything is open, and we can soak in the hot springs and tour the nearby Carbet Falls as well. This little town has more to offer than meets the eye. With coffee plantations, agriculture, fishing, and geothermic being the main industries, there is plenty to see and learn from the people who dwell in this little part of the isle.