Town & Country

Where the locas shops, eat, and sun on the famously posh -yet entirely unpretentious- French Caribbean island.

The Caribbean island of St. Barthelemy - St. Bart's, as it's known - is beautiful, sexy, chic, and fun. The food is some of the best island fare in the world, and the French influence is impossible to miss (it's the official language, after all). The airport is tiny - no jets can fly into the short landing strip - and the residents seem to like it that way. You don't find hotel chains here; only small, charming boutique brands and villas offer accomodations. Here's where to shop, eat, and explore on the Caribbean jewel.

If you prefer a hotel in the hills, choose Villa Marie.

One of the newest additions to the island, Villa Marie offers 22 villas and bungalows designed in colonial-chic comfort by French interior designer Jocelyne Sibuet - the latest from her award-winning Maisons et Hotels Sibuet group. Set high in the hills overlooking Flamands Bay, the hotel's focus is on escape, seclusion, and understatement; less see and be seen than rest and recover. In-house restaurant François Plantation, an homage to the property's original name, excels in French-tropical cuisine, with an extensive wine list that includes, naturally, selections from family label Le Domaine de Marie.