We continue the series of Caribbean reports.

So, you ended up in Saint Martin, and not on a cruise ship, for a period of daylight hours, but in an honest way - having arrived by plane. Most likely you have at least a week left to spend correctly, agree. The option - to lie all week on Maho Beach is welcome, but it is much more interesting to visit the surrounding islands. In the vicinity you can find three fairly large and inhabited islands - Saba (territory of the Netherlands), Anguila (Great Britain) and St. Barth (France). And here it all depends - what kind of visa you have in your passport. They usually fly to Saint Martin with a French or Dutch overseas visa, I recommend that you immediately apply for a French one, because with this visa you can visit the most interesting island of the above - the island of Saint Barthélemy, as it is called officially. A piece of France in the Caribbean. Dream Island.

2. So, on the road. There are two ways to get to St. Barth - a short flight on a small plane, or an hour-long boat trip on a modern catamaran shuttle. If you decide to fly by plane, especially during the season, take tickets in advance, it’s difficult to take a day, they sort it out. For this reason, we decided to go to the island by sea. Ferries run from Marigot and from Phillipsburg, with new catamarans running from the first capital, the Voyager company (www.voy12.com). The first flight is at 9.15 am, back - at 17.15, which of course is a little early, it is better to fly back here by plane, on the last evening flight. The cost of a round-trip ticket is 67 euros, the duration of the flight is an hour - an hour and fifteen. On the way, it will seriously rock, if sea crossings are not your strong point, be sure to buy a remedy for motion sickness in a pharmacy, as an option - French Hepatoum Mercalm, checked - it helps a lot.

So, early morning, February 1, 2013. Our path lies on the other end of the island, in the town of Marigot, the capital of the French part of the island. It is from there that the ferries of our choice leave. An hour - and we are at the company's office. Easy to find - if you enter Marigot from the north, then immediately after the marina, on the right, on the corner there is a small office, do not get lost.

3. It is better to book tickets in advance via the Internet or by phone. Well, or, if you're lucky, buy on the spot before sailing. We were lucky:)

4. We took ice-cream beer, loaded on board, having previously passed through passport control. Strange, but true - they put a stamp in the passport, moreover, the territory of Guadeloupe.
The catamaran, turning its stern, turned around on a patch and rushed into the sea. in the Caribbean, yes.

5. The ferry is quite comfortable, there are two open decks, two halls. There is a business class lounge.

6. It's more fun on the open deck, splashes in the face do not let you get bored :)

7. On the way, the stewards offer light drinks, and when the ferry goes out to the open sea and the main fun begins - they smear some kind of menthol on the wrists of everyone who wants it - it helps from motion sickness, slightly. who does not help - those sachets :) full swervis. but we did our best, as the next picture shows - Estai and Togzhan enjoy the sea views.

8. Boats and yachts frolic around, just a mosquito fleet! But one of these villas on the hill is ours for a week :)

10. There are many uninhabited islands and reefs along the way.

11. The distance to St. Barth is 30 kilometers, and now we are approaching Gustavia, the capital of the island. On the mountain is an old fort.

12. here is the port of Gustavia

13. We unloaded on solid ground, hugged her, my dear, and set about reconnaissance of the area. They immediately made the mistake of looking for a rental car office elsewhere. Public transport? never heard of her, millionaires don't ride minibuses. There are taxis, but the prices are breaking where Paris is. So, do you see a man on the left in a T-shirt with the emblem of Hertz? Catch him, he's the one in charge of skeet here. It was then that I saw him in the photo. While we were clicking our beaks, all the cars were snapped up and we were offered to walk to the airport, where there is another rental office.

14. They didn't cheat. At the box office, a lone Frenchman was bored, perking up at the sight of such wonderful clients. At first, there was an idea to take such a crazy stool.

15. But they decided that this hybrid of a scooter and a Lamborghini looks too suspicious, and it’s unreasonable for a bolivar to endure four, and it’s unreasonable to take two. Therefore, we settled on a battered BMW convertible - as the most appropriate for the moment.

The distributor surprised me - he did not even block the funds on the card, everything was on trust. Moreover, he took out a map and told in detail where it is better to go and where it is more interesting to swim. As for dinner, when he found out that we wanted to visit Eden Rock, he just rolled his eyes and breathily said that we were unlikely to find a table there. as practice showed the deluge - he was mistaken.

16. Oh well. Go, explore the island! The main driver was self-appointed Alimzhan (although I then drove a little along the serpentines)

17. So, actually the whole island. The population lives just nothing - about 9,000 rich people. Well, a third, perhaps, is the attendants, but in any case, the level of millionaires per unit area is off scale. The island is a resort just for them. Various glamorous reports about the stars on the island are excellently googled on the Internet. Well, for understanding - a map.

18. First of all - planes, as usual. And here is the airport

19. We go down to the beach, Baie de St. Bay. Jean

20. The strip is not fenced on this side, smoothly rolls down to the beach and dives into the sea

21. Amazing trust in vacationers!

23. It is very convenient to shoot airplanes. This, of course, is not neighboring Saint-Martin, there are no large liners here, but there is some charm here too. Pilots are not spoiled for attention here :)

24. However, taking off planes from the end is somewhat extreme to shoot - a complete feeling that now the belly will touch the lens :) In this picture, the board took off normally, and after it the pilot probably deliberately extended it to the end of the runway :)

25. The beach itself is also worthy of attention - white, clean, as, indeed, the rest of the beaches here. There was a windsurfing championship that day.

26. Dozens of bright sails filled the lagoon

27. Not only we shot here

28. While we splashed in the waves caribbean, it was time for lunch. So let's check out Eden Rock? they say that stars of world magnitude deign to dine here. A certain Abramovich no-no comes here from his villa

29. This is not just a restaurant, this is a six-star bungalow complex. In principle, there are very few hotels in St. Barth, mostly villas are rented here, and for a long time. In Eden Rock, the price tag starts from 480 euros, other hotels are slightly cheaper. Now you understand that it makes sense to come here for a day, well, or take a tent with you :) Although, again, it all depends on you

30. View from the hotel balcony

31. Actually a restaurant. Haute French cuisine at its best. In fact, everything is very tasty! Prices, surprisingly, were not introduced into the trance, everything was within reason. Service at the highest level, as indicated in the glamorous report on the above link - this is not Paris, they are not rude here :)

32. Celebrities (in a word!) Was not noticed. Although, who knows, maybe a Hollywood actor was sitting at the next table, and the heiress of millions was sunbathing on the beach .. I still don’t know them in person :)

33. After dinner, we went further to conquer the highest peak islands. The roads are quite good, and, as Vinsky rightly noted in his report, there are no black horsemen here who like to stand in the middle of the road on their treadmill and talk nicely with a friend. Note that there are practically no blacks here, it's expensive, sir. Also, there are no, respectively, Negro settlements, so surprising me on Marten. Here everything is about the same level - expensive and cool, there is no poverty at all. But the roads are narrow :)

34. Climbed up, observation deck

35. Climb up and take your breath away from the beauty!

36. Rocks interspersed with small and very cozy beaches

37. The parapet is painted - what and from which side rises above sea level

38. Yachts rest in a quiet lagoon. Modest and tasteful :)

39. Ships gliding between the islands

40. Why not a postcard from exotic countries? :)

41. Beaches, by the way, are very different. From large and equipped with all the benefits of civilization

42. to small, domestic

43. But with nature, everything here is the same as in Saint-Martin, the main plant is various types of cacti

45. Pyalzh Guverner. It is clear why this collection of cans hangs at the entrance?

46. ​​Not equipped with anything, only the sea, sand, rocks around the edges. But it's all top quality.

47. There are very few people on the beach, rest - I don’t want to! Clean, mind you! There are no janitors, no lifeguards, there are only sedate French and surprisingly civilized Americans.

48. There are also nudist beaches here, we did not go there. We also had enough experience on Saint-Martin, from where we ran faster than a fallow deer :) But French customs reign here too. Pourquoi pas?

49. Appreciated this beach too, good! and what waves here! But time is running out, the sun has long passed past noon, and there are still so many things to do! Let's move on. I am a navigator, I take out our crew on a paper map (GPS on hundredths decided to temporarily refuse). We drove into the very heart of the island, admired the valley and the pond named after Comrade Saint Jacques, even stood in a mini traffic jam

50. and suddenly left again for the airport. well, how suddenly, we are spotters or not spotters :) this time - its upper part. everything is strict here!

51. Airport in full view!

52. Planes come right overhead and dive down sharply to the runway! This photo, for some time now, is displayed in a quick Google image search for St. Barth among the first:) Vox Hello!

53. Landings are not always successful, sometimes it happens (video is not mine)

54. but the view from the side of the pilot (again, video from the network)

55. We remove small things, French women and Creoles on motorolas rush past

I never carefully prepare for a trip. I don’t want to form any stereotypical expectations, so that later I don’t compare reality with them, but simply absorb it.

This time I was especially glad that I was flying completely unprepared. How do you like this phrase from a neighbor on the plane: “Do you know that St. Barts airport is the most dangerous in the world?”. And when she saw my rounded eyes, she added: “What, didn’t you really watch the video on YouTube?”

Already at the hotel I looked. And you look.

But at that moment I was not ready for such impressions.

A twenty-seater aircraft with pilots sitting almost next to you, after several turns, sharply gains altitude absolutely vertically in front of the mountain itself, goes around it and also starts falling vertically. It is a fall, because it smoothly sits down on a short strip, resting directly on the snow-white beach and the ocean, is impossible. It was necessary to close his eyes, but natural curiosity did not. It was the most exotic landing of my life. Then I found out that every day hundreds of vacationers specially come to this beach to watch the landing show of a regular flight. I also came.

The first person to arrive in St. Barts by plane was the Dutch smuggler Remy de Haenen, the future mayor of the island's capital, Gustavia. It was he who invited the first VIP guests - David Rockefeller, Greta Garbo and Rudolf Nureyev. They became the first of a series of world celebrities who fell in love with St. Barts.

Breakfast in the port of the capital of the island of Gustavia in the circle of the local elite - the governor, ministers. Yes, they have fun there to the fullest with state control. All the attributes of elitism are also evident: a motorcade, which is unrealistic to deploy on three two-hundred-meter streets, a state yacht, a state dacha, and much more.

By the way, about yachts. You can watch for hours how a team of tanned young sailors polish all four decks of multimillion-dollar ocean beauties millimeter by millimeter. At this moment, you understand that it is better to have a friend with a yacht than a yacht. A great option, for example, is to have Roma Abramovich as a friend.

He, with his Russian band of oligarchs, took a fancy to St. Barts, bought a land plot, and, according to rumors, and according to bright notes in a local Russian-language glamor magazine, periodically throws noisy parties on his yacht or in his villa. They say that they are not difficult to get. You just need to refer to the name of a common hat acquaintance. And the doors to the Great Gatsby party are open.

Why is everyone in white pajamas? No, well, not exactly pajamas, but the dress code is very specific - thin, translucent cotton or linen tunics barely covering the very beginning of the legs of ladies, mostly of model appearance, and spacious trousers or Bermuda shorts with shirts, respectively, also snow-white for Hollywood men. Probably, they do not want to spoil the harmony of colors with other colors.

Turquoise ocean, ivory sand, emerald green, red roofs of villas and hotels, boiling white clothes. But if the color does not allow the creativity of designers to play out, then the decoration completely compensates for this: lace, embossing, pearl threads. In general, everything that can reflect the individuality of the owner in this "simple village" for billionaires. Tags with big names of designers "accidentally" exposed are also welcome.

I decided to immerse myself in the life of the island. The choice between an open jeep and a retro bike with a picnic basket in front is difficult, but after learning the distances between the sights (from 500 meters to three kilometers), I decided on a two-wheeled friend.

As you know, a woman cannot be put before a choice. And it happened to me every step of the way. For example, which of the 22 luxurious beaches should you go to? I decided to conquer a few that will meet along the way and attract attention. I didn't do it alone. On the third beach, I saw one couple, who also wandered in search of their favorite place on the ocean. Recognizing each other on the third beach, they could not resist getting to know each other. A couple, about 40, French and Parisians in such a knee that I think their great-great-grandmother watched Napoleon's deeds. He is a shoe designer, she is a pool architect. She was just given an order to design a swimming pool in one of the St. Barts villas and the guys decided to combine work with vacation. I think a lot of people here do it.

The third day on the island, and they are already talking about selling some of the Parisian real estate and settling on this “nice island”. Well, work remotely or fly to clients. This is what many do here as well. Many of those who have been and can afford it.

The administration of the island is very critical of the origin, status and financial condition of the new settlers. They make sure that there is only cream. Those who have moved to the island are not idle. Someone opens a restaurant. As a result, there are over a hundred of them on such a tiny island.

Someone makes handmade shell jewelry from 100 euros for a bracelet.

Walking in the evening, at 10 o'clock, along one of the central streets, I looked into the ajar blinds of one of the boutiques. There, a tanned man of a very aristocratic appearance was sewing suede moccasins. They were displayed in the window even without a price. I am sure that the moccasins sewn on St. Barts by the hands of an aristocrat in the tenth generation are simply priceless ... You will not see such diligence everywhere.

On the fourth beach, I stopped near the famous Eden Rock Hotel. In the Rock Stars villa, owned by this hotel and equipped with a full-fledged recording studio, the hits of The Beetles were born at one time.

I stopped not because of Beatlemania, but because of the great restaurant on the rock. You know, it's when you look at some view and already realize that years will pass, but the picture will be alive in your memory. The kitchen did not disappoint either. True, at first I was surprised that I was alone in the restaurant. But, the smiling waiter explained to me that there would be no empty seats closer to eight in the evening.

And in general - night life active on the island. In one of the nightclubs, eighty-year-old Americans, again in white pajamas, danced fervently on the tables, often kissing the necks of five-liter bottles of champagne. Flocks of model girls flew through the dance floor, and fireworks exploded incessantly outside. It was even hard to imagine that during the day this island is half-asleep and sparsely populated.

In general, I found my formula for an ideal village: clear ocean, perfect weather, magical beaches, unobtrusive hotels and the same service, open people who clearly understand the word “tact”. Ah, yes. I almost forgot about the white pajamas made of the finest linen.

#tourssaint barthelemy#new year tours #holidaysantbarthelemy#tours #weddingtours #stbarthelemy #caribbean #santour #suntour

And probably the most glamorous on our planet. There is only one city on the island (which is difficult to call even a city). Throughout the rest of the island, you will only find comfortable hotels and luxurious villas. And of course boutiques of the world's leading brands. It is no coincidence that St. Barth is called "millionaire's paradise", although it would be more accurate to call it "millionaire's playground". Everything is the best here. The richest and most famous vacationers. And their favorite toys: the most expensive villas, the most luxurious yachts and the most beautiful women. The restaurants have the most delicious food, and St. Barth's beaches are, of course, the whitest and most sandy.

Getting here is not so easy. Usually they fly from neighboring St. Maarten for a quarter of an hour in a small plane that provides beautiful, mesmerizing views while flying through the window, or directly from the cockpit! Alternatively, from the same St. Maarten, a 45-minute boat trip. Well, or, like some, on your own yacht. Despite the fact that the island was discovered by Columbus already in 1493 (and named by the great navigator in honor of his brother Bartalomeo), due to its small size, it remained unclaimed. Neither Spaniards nor pirates visited it. The shorter and simpler the story, the happier the people. This expression can be redirected in its entirety to St. Barth. Amazing story for Caribbean. No coffee or sugar cane plantations, no black slave imports from Africa, no major clashes between colonial powers. There is a completely unique fragment for the region - the base of the Swedish West Indies campaign here.

Tranquility, luxury, serenity… These words are only a small fraction of those praises that come to mind to those who have decided to appreciate Saint Barthélemy. Everything around is the embodiment of perfection, or at least as close to perfection as possible.

Being thus effectively a neutral territory, the island served all other players on the Caribbean map as a place of resupply and trade, due to which its prosperity began. In fact, the history of St. Barth, one might say, started only in the middle of the last century. David Rockefeller was the first to appreciate it and founded it here. Further, as if to keep up with Rockefeller, on the opposite side of the island, in La Gouverneur Bay, Edmond de Rothschild's property appeared. Ford's possessions soon appeared, and then all the others followed suit.

Of our compatriots, the first to settle on the island, who came all from the same France, was the famous choreographer and “defector” Rudolf Nureyev. Despite the fact that the outstanding choreographer has died, and the owners of the house have long since changed, his home is still known in St. Barth as “La maison de Noureev”. The island is also unique in that it seemed to be in the wrong place on the world map. In terms of atmosphere and mood, St. Barts most of all resembles the French Riviera, as if someone took and, cutting out a piece of it, threw it ten thousand kilometers to the other side of the ocean.

Saint-Barts is a French territory, or rather an overseas community of France. Unlike other Antilles, the entire population here is the descendants of Europeans, which can be considered an ethnographic curiosity for the region. The population of the island is constantly increasing, no one is emigrating towards the United States in search of a better life, as in many countries around. On the contrary, over the past couple of decades, the population of St. Barth's has doubled. Basically, this addition is world celebrities, their families and just rich people, usually from continental France. The level of literacy and well-being, respectively, is the same as in Europe, and perhaps even higher. After all, it’s absolutely impossible to meet at least one poor person here! Well, and to compete with French cooking, which fell under the fertile Caribbean sauce, it will certainly not be easy for any other cuisine in the world! On a very small (21 square kilometers) island, about seven dozen of the most exquisite restaurants will be found. Each of them will be a real discovery for gourmets, having their own dishes from the freshest products and some gastronomic customs. Well, and of course, the stellar composition of regular visitors. There are no special architectural and historical sights here.

The only city and capital of Gustavia (whose name refers exactly to the era of the Swedish presence) can be bypassed in half an hour, with all its churches and historical dilapidated forts. This is if you, of course, do not linger in one of the many boutiques. But the main attraction of the capital will be its Shell beach. As the name implies, this is the only non-sandy beach of the island, entirely consisting of the smallest white shells, even if outwardly far from the white sand and indistinguishable. It is not at all necessary to buy a souvenir here, for example, you can weave beads for yourself directly from the past material. However, it is the white beaches and their guests that are the main attraction not only of Gustavia, but of the entire island. Actively developing, as elsewhere in the Caribbean, diving, snorkeling, surfing and fishing. And of course, massage, water and spa treatments for those who come just to relax.

St. Barts is without a doubt considered the most prestigious and expensive holiday destination in the Caribbean. From glamor magazines and similar news, almost everyone knows about the island, but very few people really managed to visit there. For a long time, due to the high cost and popularity among the powers that be, booking a room in St. Barth's hotels was not an easy task. Especially on the eve of Christmas and New Year holidays. All hotels had their regular customers. Basically, visitors try to rent a villa for themselves, but they rent for no less than 6-7 days, and on holidays no less than 10.

It is easier to buy this villa than to deal with the reservation somehow every time! This is exactly what our compatriot Roman Abramovich did, who acquired a villa in the same area as the Rothschilds - next to La Gouverneur Bay. For Roman Arkadyevich, they are drawn here to New Year holidays his friends, as well as numerous representatives of domestic and world show business. With his purchase, our oligarch made a significant contribution to the tourist attractiveness of the island! Recently, the situation has become simpler, the number of hotels and rooms in them has increased, and for many it has become possible to fulfill their dream - to get to the fabulous glamorous island of St. Barthélemy!

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Misha, you haven’t been to St. Barth yet, how is it, we go there twice every year, said my girlfriend from the States. There are incredibly delicious lobsters in garlic sauce, and nightly discos, well, for sure, the best in the world.

But is this really an argument that we don’t have crayfish in Saratov, but you can jump up and down under swotting with sluts in Khimki. Another thing has weighty power, in 2007 St. Barth left the French Guadeloupe and became an independent territory, which means you must visit.

Today, we will walk around St. Barth, the richest Caribbean island.

In today's consumerist society, posting a photo with a glass of champagne and tagging the place "St. Barth" is cool. People come here on expensive yachts to buy trousers from Louis Vieton and eat the livers of fattened ducks. But the harbor of the capital is small, and there are a lot of dudes with yachts, those who want to save money park right in the sea, and further to the coast already on tender boats or zodiacs.

Tourist yellow submarine.

But this yacht is parked right in the port in the very center. The owner, or the tenant, rests in full, at 100)

St. Barts is small and mountainous, the paths are narrow, so it is very convenient to ride scooters or quads here.)

And walk barefoot.

St. Barts, or St. Barts, which is also acceptable, is actually called St. Barthélemy. Columbus discovered this island and named it after his brother. After the island went to the French, who in turn sold it to the Swedes, although they later acquired it again through the British. But since Swedish times, in honor of the king, the capital is called Gustavia.

But St. Barthélemy sounds sluggish and dull, which means it is not used. Remember why, but because everything is cool in St. Barth!

This is a very unusual airport. Small planes take off from behind the mountain and immediately go down. Selfie with an airplane is a branded card of St. Barts.

A meter to the ground, and still fly to the take-off. The landing is dangerous for experienced pilots.
But the pilot did it, the plane landed and you can take a selfie with the flag

And this is how selfies were done before, in the “pre-iPhone” era. After this photo, model Lisa Glaviana stated: "I took a photo on the island for Vogue magazine in 1974. It was a big mistake because everyone saw it and started taking pictures of themselves in the same place."

The airport runway ends right at Saint Jean beach. You can lie on the beach and spot. But on Mach, the mustache is still cooler).

Get your free magazine at all St. Barts shops and restaurants. They explain that since you are here, it means that you are a VIP, and not a cent less, and therefore we will offer you 100 places where you can spend all your money with pleasure.

In Russia, St. Barth is known for the fact that the ex-governor of Chukotka bought a villa here. Here is his estate on the "governor's beach".

You give a motor race from Anadyr to St. Barth!

Although the entire coastal area is private and belongs to Abramovich, the beach is public. It is impossible to enclose the coastal territory with a fence, the law is the law. We seem to have such a law too, but the “good guys” are made an exception to the rule.)

So everyone can walk in the neighborhood with one of the richest people in Russia. You can wear bathing suits

and you can do without, as it is more convenient for you, in France free morals)

This is how a person who takes off people's swimsuits on the beach looks like)

The roads in St. Barths are winding, sometimes uphill, sometimes downhill. At first we stopped on every hill to photograph the beauty, and then somehow we got tired of it (

There is also a small one on the island national park, and in it Colombier beach. The beach is like a beach, but it is interesting because you can’t get there by car. You need to go on foot, stepping over the lizards.

scenic road,

a beach is normal. In Saint Barth, topless women can easily approach a man and ask, for example, the weather on the Anjou Islands. And no problem.

"Forget about Courchevel (writes "Ekspress-gazeta" and "Kompromat.ru") - once considered fashionable and prestigious ski resort no longer in favor. Now only middle-class businessmen and seekers of wealthy husbands rest there. All the rich and famous are now flying to the Caribbean island of St. Barts for the New Year holidays. There, on a blessed piece of land, Hollywood stars and famous athletes, black rappers and world magnates who made their fortunes have chosen their place in the sun. And - more recently - the Russian elite. With a light hand Roman Abramovich, who bought himself a fashionable estate on the coast, Russian speech on the streets of the capital of the island of Gustavia now sounds almost more often than English.

St. Barts (or St. Barthélemy)- a kind of "reserve" of billionaires: the island is lost in the Caribbean Sea, you can get to its shores only on a yacht or a small plane. The local runway is so short that the private jet of Abramovich, who is known to love large sizes, simply does not fit into it.

In order to get to the island of St. Barts, you need some serious money. St. Barts is the most expensive island in the Caribbean, both in terms of hotel prices and the level of prices on the island itself. Taxi drivers on the island joke: if you have enough money to get here, it's not a fact that you have enough money to take a taxi.

The island is located in the northern part of the Lesser Antilles. The name of the island was given by Christopher Columbus in honor of his brother Bartolomeo. The island is a former French colony and belongs to the French overseas territories. Saint Barthelemy Island located 200 km north of Guadeloupe, near (less than 20 km) from the island of Saint Martin, in the northern part of the Leeward Islands. The shores of the island are rocky (but there are also sections of beaches), surrounded by small reefs and several islets, the central part of the island is hilly. The climate is tropical, the temperature almost does not change.

The island is called the "Caribbean Saint Tropez" and it is the favorite destination of stars from all over the world. The two most expensive hotels on the island - Eden Rock and Ile de France - are frequented by Paris Hilton, Penelope Cruz, Michael Douglas, Bon Jovi, Robert De Niro, Bradd Pitt, Johnny Depp and Tina Turner.

There are very few hotels on St. Barth - almost all Hollywood stars come there on their boats. The largest ships are in the port of Gustavia, a small town on the island.

Russians make record deals with housing in the Caribbean

A source: newsru.com

Russian citizens are making record deals in the Caribbean real estate market, shelling out tens of millions for villas. At the same time, buyers from Russia rely on hotel operators. Having bought a house in the Caribbean, customers can use the hotel infrastructure for free, Kommersant FM reports, citing a Knight Frank report.

According to realtors, 85% of Caribbean property buyers are foreigners. Most of the transactions are made by clients from the USA and Latin America. Russians account for 5%. However, these are the most expensive options. Wealthy clients are attracted to the Cayman Islands, they are the sixth largest banking center in the world and the first in the jurisdiction of hedge funds. Most often, residents of New York and Miami buy real estate there. The Russians choose the Dominican Republic and the island of St. Barthélemy.

In the Dominican Republic, the price of an apartment in the economy and business class segment will start from 100,000 to 1 million dollars. Branded projects, such as Donald Trump's, which is being built in the Dominican Republic, are much more expensive. As for Saint Barth, here we are talking about the segment of $5 million and above. Knight Frank also has information about $90 million deals that took place on this island. A lot of people buy on the company, while the company can be registered in the same place, in the Cayman Islands, and it is extremely difficult to determine the beneficiary.

The interest of Russians in real estate in the Caribbean manifested itself in the mid-2000s, when many people discovered the Dominican Republic for themselves and bought villas managed by hotel operators there. The owners of such real estate can use the entire hotel infrastructure for free, from the beach, the pool to the golf course. The maintenance of the villa costs 2-3% per year of the value of the property, experts explain.

Meanwhile, the authorities of the Caribbean Islands are reluctant to grant residence permits to foreigners. Although there are exceptions. Among them, Saint Kitts and Nevis is a state in the eastern part of the Caribbean Sea, a member of the British Commonwealth. You can get a residence permit, and in the future citizenship, by investing at least $0.5 million in the island's economy. There are two options - buy real estate there or invest $500,000 in sugarcane plantations.

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