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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. |
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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 |
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. |
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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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