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St-FranA§ois
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What glamorous
ST-FRANA?OIS
, a posh harbour town another 20km due east of Ste-Anne, lacks in beachfront, it makes up for with its mast-filled
marina
, where a boardwalk lined with chic boutiques, cafAİs and restaurants draws attractive mainlanders for people-watching over drinks. Often used as a convenient departure point for
ferries
to Guadeloupe's offshore islands, some boats here also take
divers
out to nearby waters. The major land activity happens next door to the marina, at the eighteen-hole
golf course
, Guadeloupe's only greens; the closest
beaches
are a few kilometres east of town, along the Pointe-des-ChA?teaux.
The town centre has none of the marina's polish, but is a fun place to wander about. Radiating from the
Place du MarchAİ
, a roundabout circled by an active covered
market
, the tapered one-way streets are so disjointed it's easy to get lost here. You'll find some atmospheric, albeit downtrodden,
wooden colonial houses
; there used to be more before the town was hit by hurricane Hugo. You can pick up an excellent
map
marked with addresses and information at the Office du Tourisme (Mon, Tue, Thurs & Fri 8am-noon & 2-5pm, Wed 8am-12.30pm, Sat 8am-noon; tel 0590/88 48 74) on the right-hand side of avenue de l'Europe as you head towards the marina. Other useful information
for tourists (each section contains more specific sub-sections): |
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Guadeloupe,
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