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| Welcome to Guadeloupe on the Paradise Islands website. Guadeloupe is part of the Caribbean Leeward island chain, located mid way between Antigua to the north and Dominica to the south. Another close neighbour is the island of Montserrat, just to the north west. Guadeloupe is an overseas department of France and a popular vacation destination for French visitors (83%) and those sailing the Caribbean. |
| Guadeloupe was named "Santa Maria de Guadalupe de Extremadura" by Christopher Columbus when he landed on the island in 1493. Columbus was also the first European to discover the pineapple growing on the island of Guadeloupe. The island was first settled by the French in 1635 and changed hands several times with the British over the next century during conflicts for the lucrative sugar industry. |
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Les Saintes
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Les Saintes East Coast
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Guadeloupe is actually not one, but five islands: Basse-Terre Island, Grande-Terre, La Desirade, Les Saintes and Marie-Galante (see map). The islands land area is quite large at over 600 square miles; with the main island of Basse-Terre having a volcanic mountainous interior. Grande Terre is much flatter with a large number of beaches.
Tourism and agriculture (sugar and bananas) are the main sources of income. The island capital is Basse-Terre and the population is over 450,000.
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| The official language is French and the currency is the euro (Guadeloupe is part of the European Union). Don't expect many of the locals to speak much English or the shops to accept US dollars; this is very much a French island catering for predominantly French speaking visitors. |
| Travel, holiday, vacation and cruise guide to Guadeloupe and the Caribbean. All text and images are Copyright Paradise Islands org. All photographs on this Caribbean travel guide website are obtained with the permission of the owners and come from various sources including the islands tourist boards. Some of our own photos maybe reproduced with permission - please see notes attached to each image to avoid any copyright penalty. |
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Quick Facts
Capital
Basse-Terre
Main Airport
Pointe-à-Pitre
Main Port
Basse-Terre
Language
French
Currency
Euro
Government
France
Island Size
600
Square Miles
Population
450,000
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Cruise Port Guide
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