What is the budget for a trip to Guadeloupe?

At the time of writing, we’ve been living in the islands of Guadeloupe for just over 2 years. We’ve already written a few articles about things to do, see and hike in Guadeloupe. But when I looked more closely at the articles we’ve written about French Polynesia, where we’ve lived for 6 years, I realized that there was a lack of general articles that would be useful for your stay here. So, without further ado, I’m going to start with an article that I’m sure will be of interest to a lot of people: what is the budget for a trip to Guadeloupe?

For many visitors and travelers, this will be an important, even decisive question, because even if I tend to say that the West Indies are a very good compromise when you consider what you can discover and the price, it’s still a budget, especially with the increases in all areas of travel expenditure in recent years. At the same time, can you think of a destination that hasn’t had a price increase in recent times?

Other general articles will no doubt follow. Our aim, of course, is to create as much content and articles as possible to help you prepare for your trip to Guadeloupe (booking site, cheapest flights, make best flight deals, hotels budget, budget airlines, budget to eat) . We want to highlight the heavenly aspects of the island. I have to admit that preparing for a trip to Guadeloupe is a lot easier than planning a 3-week stay in Polynesia, where you had to work out which archipelago to visit and where to stay. In short, I was struggling with the training.

If you’re in the middle of planning your roundtrip, we’ve written a full article explaining when to come to Guadeloupe.

Find out everything you need to know about budgeting for your trip to Butterfly Island.

Getting to Guadeloupe (flight tickets) is often the first expense of your stay, unless you’re renting a luxury car or staying in one of the superb hotels on Grande-Terre. Indeed, I’ve already written a full article exploring all the options for getting to Guadeloupe and visiting the island. It covers everything you need to know. However, I’ll try to cover the essentials here to give you a good idea of what to expect.

Of course, it all depends on where you start your journey. Since this is a French blog, it’s a safe bet that most of you will be coming from Paris or the provinces of France. But other French speakers will be coming from Quebec (Canada) or other French islands such as Martinique, Saint-Martin or Saint-Barthélemy. I’d also like to mention those living in the United States or elsewhere who would like to come and visit Guadeloupe.

I’m talking about fly search, of course, the most common way to get around. Although it may surprise you, many people ask if it’s possible to get to Guadeloupe, and the West Indies in general, by boat. I don’t want to go into too much detail, as it is relatively rare for people to come from France to discover the islands by boat. However, you should know that it is possible, at prices that are of course higher than those for flying. I’ve found prices in the region of €1,500 to €2,000 for a 10-day crossing.

Of course, most people reading this will choose to visit Guadeloupe by flying with an airline. To sum things up, the cheapest flights are from Paris, although it has been possible to find a few reasonably priced flights from certain towns in the provinces. However, this seems to be becoming increasingly rare and prices have really shot up recently. It is becoming increasingly difficult to find a flight ticket to Guadeloupe at an affordable price.

However, it’s still possible to find cheapest flight tickets from Paris for around €500 if you’re flexible with your dates and don’t necessarily want to travel during the high season. During the summer months (July-August), prices rise quickly and are often in the range of €800 to €1,000.

If you’re coming from the French islands, you can expect to pay between €200 and €250 for a return flight from Martinique, Saint-Martin or Saint-Barthélemy. From French Guiana, you can expect to pay between €400 and €600.

For our French-speaking friends in Quebec, there are direct flights from Montreal for between 700 and 1,000 Canadian dollars, although there has been a recent spike in prices as well. Check the following link to compare prices and find the cheapest flight and find a good deal for you to go to Guadeloupe.

From any departure, don’t forget to book your flights to Guadeloupe in advance to take advantage of the cheapest prices. If you book at the last minute, flight prices will be very expensive.

Once you’ve arrived in Guadeloupe, you’ll obviously need to find your own transport. In case you’re wondering, there is a semblance of a bus network, but reliability leaves a lot to be desired. Trying to visit Guadeloupe for several weeks relying solely on buses is a bit of an adventure, haha.

So my advice would obviously be to consider hiring a car. However, especially if you’re coming during a busy tourist season such as the Christmas holidays or July and August, I would advise you to plan several months in advance (it will be easier to find a great deal on car hire).

Car hire prices vary enormously depending on the season, and I was surprised to find car hire for less than €150 per week for a small car in May. So it’s clearly possible to get around Guadeloupe without breaking the bank if you come outside the high season. On the other hand, you can expect to pay between €300 and €400 a week for a small car during the classic July-August holiday period (and even Christmas). For a Duster, for example, you can expect to pay close to €500.

As we do ourselves to find the best unbeatable prices during the holidays, I advise you to check and compare prices on the Discover cars website. This will allow you to compare prices with a large number of reputable local car hire companies. Find your Rental car!

You should of course be aware that it is also possible to find cheaper cars by going directly to private individuals or small local agencies, although I don’t really have any specific recommendations to give you at the moment. I’m going to try and contact several agencies and see if I can arrange a partnership for our readers. By the way, if you are a small local agency and you would like to consider working with us, don’t hesitate to send us an e-mail.

I also wanted to say a few words about the type of car to hire. To be clear, it’s by no means compulsory to hire a 4×4 to get around during your stay in Guadeloupe. However, the roads can be quite steep in places, especially on the island of Basse-Terre. So having a car that climbs hills fairly easily is still an advantage. After that, you’ll always manage, even if you’ve hired a small car, haha.

It’s also possible to hire a scooter, especially on the islands. If you’re spending several days on Marie-Galante or Désirade, you’ll also need to hire transport. You can choose between a rental car, a scooter (€25/30) or, why not, a bicycle.

I’m still talking about transport, even though this budget will end up being quite small during your stay in Guadeloupe. In case you don’t know, Guadeloupe is actually an archipelago of islands. Many people have the impression that Guadeloupe is just one island, but it is actually two main islands: Basse-Terre and Grande Terre (connected by a bridge). Off these two main islands are the famous Marie-Galante (thanks to Laurent Voulzy), the island of La Désirade, the archipelago of Les Saintes and the islands of Petite-Terre.

From what we’ve seen since we’ve been here, most tourists choose to visit Basse-Terre and Grande Terre, but also decide to discover at least one or two of the above islands (weather permitting) during their itinerary vacations. The budget won’t be huge and it all depends on how you want to visit the islands. It’s certainly possible to visit them on your own, by choosing a company that offers a return trip to the islands and making your own way around during the days you spend there. It is also possible, depending on the island, to choose day trips that can be booked in advance.

Here’s what you need to keep in mind.

I’ve written a whole article on everything you need to know to have a great stay on Marie-Galante, and most importantly, you’ll find all the information you need to get there. In short, there are two companies that serve the island of Marie-Galante from the Bergevin ferry terminal at Pointe-à-Pitre: Val ferry and l’Express des îles. Fares are similar, around €45 per adult return. You can book the ferry tickets directly using the following link. There is also a company (Comatrile) that offers a shuttle service from Saint-François, but at a higher price, around €60 per adult return.

As far as I know, there are very few companies offering day trips to Marie Galante from Guadeloupe. However, I did find this one. They offer a day trip if you don’t have much time to explore the beautiful beaches (and more) of Marie Galante. But in general, I’d still recommend spending several days there. There’s so much to do and to see.

Things are a little easier here because there is only one airline company, Comadile, that offers flights from Saint-François to the island of La Désirade. It will cost you around €35 return per adult. Once again, have a look at our special article on the island of La Désirade. You’ll find everything you need to know to get there, including all the attractions and must-sees. It’s a beautiful and breathtaking island, a stopover that is generally off the beaten track compared to traditional itineraries.

Some operators also offer day trips that include the islands of La Désirade and Petite-Terre. Again, this is an option if you have limited time during your stay to explore the islands.

Off the coast of Trois-Rivières and Vieux-Fort, where we live, we recommend a visit to the Saintes archipelago, which includes the islands of Terre-de-Haut and Terre-de-Bas. We had the opportunity to spend several days on each of the two islands and have written two full articles on the subject. Don’t hesitate to consult this information and set off for a real change of scenery.

The archipelago is easily accessible from Trois-Rivières, Pointe-à-Pitre and Basse-Terre. As for Marie-Galante, L’Express des îles and the Val Ferryboat company offer trips to and from the islands. The return fare from Pointe-à-Pitre is between €35 and €40 per adult. From Trois-Rivières, the fare is cheaper. The average price is between €20 and €25 per adult. You can also opt for a catamaran trip for an even more extraordinary experience!

In our opinion, even if you only have a week in Guadeloupe, spending the day in Terre-de-Haut is a must!

Petite-Terre islands can only be visited by private operators. There is no shuttle service as there is for Marie-Galante, Les Saintes or La Désirade. From Saint-François, you will find a large number of companies offering excursions to these islands. I particularly recommend this one, which has an excellent reputation. On average, you can expect to pay around €120 for a day trip to the islands, including meals. These islands have beautiful white sandy beaches, gorgeous turquoise seabeds and you can also strut your stuff on the beach.

As for accommodation, there’s something for every taste and budget. You’ll find small, inexpensive Airbnbs and villas with swimming pools for rent, as well as guesthouses and large hotel complexes. This means you can choose from a wide range of places to stay in Guadeloupe, which also varies greatly depending on the season.

Here are a few examples to give you an idea of the prices (based on 2 adults per day):

• A single room with a local or in a bungalow/small cottage: from €25 to €60. You’ll find plenty of choices on the Airbnb site, for example.
• A villa with a swimming pool for a family: €150 to €250 on average (prices can be much higher depending on location and services).
• A double room in a hotel with a swimming pool: €150 to €250 on average.

Of course, these are only approximate ranges. Remember that you can get weekly discounts if you rent through Booking or Airbnb, or directly from private individuals through local classifieds.

For those who want to enjoy your trip in luxury accommodation, prices can rise very quickly in large hotels offering unique services. Prices can easily exceed €500 or €700 per night, which, between you and me, is starting to look like a lot of money.

In short, there’s something for everyone. If you want to be careful, it’s perfectly possible to find quality accommodation at reasonable prices and make great deals. If you want to stay in hotels or atypical accommodation, that’s also possible. Guadeloupe is very well equipped to meet all your accommodation needs.

Here are some accommodation ideas we recommend, sorted by price range :

Budget-friendly

• Chez Maité : a lovely apartment that includes a fully equipped kitchen, terrace/balcony and a hot tub, in Basse-Terre!
• Sur l’Anse : A holiday home just 50 meters from Grande Anse beach and very close to the town center. Plus, pets are allowed on request!
• Banana EcoLodge : Here’s a standalone bungalow that’s quiet, nicely decorated, and well equipped: pool, terrace, kitchen—everything you need!

Mid-range

• Jardin des îlets : Here, you’ll be 200 meters from Malendure beach and the Cousteau Reserve, staying in lovely bungalows with a terrace and sea view.
• TropicAngel : A charming 4-star ecolodge set in the heart of a tropical garden with a pool and spa. We had the chance to try it and can confirm it’s approved—read our experience at TropicAngel in a dedicated article.
• Jardin des colibris : Another ecolodge we stayed at—we’ve even planned to go back. We truly fell in love with Jardin des colibris.

High-end

• Gaetana Hotel : A luxury property with magnificent sea views from the spacious suites!
• Hôtel La Christophine : A hotel with an intimate, exclusive setting—perfect for exploring Grande-Terre.
• Aqualodge Guadeloupe : As the name suggests, it’s a floating house for a unique experience during your trip to Guadeloupe!

This is a rather special area as it depends on how you see your holiday. Personally, we don’t necessarily like to pay for activities when we travel as a family. Even if we do a bit. For Guadeloupe, it’s the same as for accommodation: there’s something to suit every taste and budget.

Of course, Guadeloupe will delight lovers of outdoor activities. You don’t have to spend an exorbitant amount of money on paid outdoor activities to discover Guadeloupe, and you can limit your budget if you wish. Free activities include hiking, both in the lush forests of Basse-Terre and on the cliffs of Grande-Terre. Guadeloupe’s National Park is a wonder to behold, and it goes without saying that you’ll be thrilled by its rainforests! It’s a nature lover’s paradise, with the Soufrière volcano, Carbet Falls and Bassin Bleu to name but a few.

Other activities that don’t cost much include snorkeling in the sea, where you can discover the underwater world with your own mask, fins and snorkel. Swimming and having fun in the turquoise waters of the lagoon isn’t too expensive either, haha! For rum and sugar cane lovers, visits to the distilleries are often free.

Although it’s clearly possible to do nothing but free activities during your holiday in Guadeloupe, I would still find it a bit of a shame. It is indeed possible to think of paid activities that will not break the bank (good deal) and that will really make your stay unforgettable.

We’ve put together a whole article on all the activities you need to enjoy while staying in Guadeloupe! Don’t hesitate to come and find what you are looking for!

Here are some examples of paid activities:

• Scuba diving: between €50 and €70
• A 2 hours snorkeling excursion in the Cousteau Reserve: €40
• Kayak hire for a couple of hours: between €10 and €25
• Jet ski rental (1 hour): €130
• Canyoning (4 hours): €60
• Visit to Grand Cul-de-Sac Marin, including islets, snorkeling, swimming, turtle and fish watching: half day, approx. €50
• Admission to a botanical garden: €15/20
• Microlight flight: €50 to €200 (depending on timing)
• Guided hike to La Soufrière (full day): €45
• Paddle or kayak in the mangroves (½ day): €40

If you’d like to read about some of the activities we tried with Manawa before we left for Guadeloupe, here are some dedicated articles:

• Discover La Soufrière with a guide
• Diving at the Cousteau reserve
• Microlight Flight over Guadeloupe
• Discover the mangroves on a paddle in Morne-à-l’eau
• Visit to the Parc de la Source in Bouillante
• Half-day sailing in Les Saintes

In short, there’s plenty to do and to see, whether or not you want to spend a lot of money on these activities. In my opinion, it’s still worth setting aside a small budget per person, depending on the number of days you’ll be there, to consider a few paid activities. I’d say a budget of €200 per person (for 1 week / 10 days) is a good starting point. This will allow you to take a day boat trip (around €100), followed by some small activities (kayaking, paddling).

Of course, if you want to try more expensive activities such as jet skiing or microlighting, your budget will quickly increase.

As with your accommodation budget, this can vary greatly depending on how you travel. The cheapest option is, of course, to cook for yourself, at least for breakfast and dinner. If you want to limit your food budget, avoid eating anything imported from France (it will still be much more expensive).

To give you an idea of your budget, here are some ranges:

• Meal in a lolo (snack bar): €10/€15 per dish (in tourist areas there are often formulas of around €25 for starter, main course and dessert).
• Meal in a mid-range restaurant: between €15 and €25 per dish
• Meal in a fancy restaurant: between €25 and €45 per dish

If you don’t want to break the bank and you’re renting for a week, for example, I’d recommend having breakfast at home, lunch in a snack bar (or a snack if you’re out walking) and cooking at home in the evening.

It’s always difficult to talk about a budget because it really depends on the person, the way you travel, how you prioritize your money, etc. In short, it depends on you.

But as I did in my article on the budget in French Polynesia, I’m going to try to give you some approximate ranges depending on your budget: small, medium or rather large. Don’t get upset if you think it’s too high or too low. These are only approximate ranges, as it’s impossible for me to predict a budget for everyone.

For small budgets (per person) I’ll give a basic figure like this:

• Flights (per person from France) €500.00
• Car hire (total): €200.00
• Car hire (per person): €100.00
• Petrol: €60.00
• Accommodation (total): €250.00
• Accommodation (per person): € 125.00
• Meals: € 275.00
• Transport within the islands (per person) € 50.00
• Activities (per person): €200.00
• Total cost: €1,250

Let’s say between €1,300 and €1,800 for 1 person on a small budget, which could be further reduced by not eating in a snack bar and by limiting travel to the islands and activities.

Based on the amounts mentioned above, and taking into account better services (accommodation, eating, more activities) or a more expensive flight, I’d therefore say :

• For medium budgets: between €1,500 and €2,200
• For large budgets: between €2,200 and €3,000

If I double the amounts foreseen for 1 week, it would be approximately (per person)

• For a small budget: between €2,500 and €3,000
• For medium budgets: between €3,000 and €3,500
• For large budgets: between €4,000 and €5,000

• For small budgets: between €3,000 and €4,000
• For medium budgets: between €5,000 and €6,000
• For large budgets: between €7,000 and €8,000

I’m going to repeat myself once again because I know that some people are going to disagree with these figures or complain about them, but these are just ranges. The safest budget I can think of for a 15 day trip (the classic one, not luxury but not cheap either) for 2 people would be between €6000 and €7000. I don’t think I’m too far off the mark!

As I did for French Polynesia when we lived there, I’m going to look for information about travel agencies that offer trips to Guadeloupe. The initial research I’ve done shows that it could be an interesting case to consider.

Indeed, I’m going to try to find a good local contact to recommend to you in the long run. If you are a travel agent and are interested in this topic, don’t hesitate to get in touch with us.

The results of my initial research give me the following approximations:

• Budget for 1 week/person with car hire: €1,200 (excluding flights and meals), which can quickly rise to €2,200-2,500 in the high season, given the recent price of flights.
• Budget for 2 weeks: €1800-2000, again excluding international flights and meals, which also brings us to an average of €2800-3500.

Of course, these are just initial estimates, but I’m going to dig into all of this for you and come up with a dedicated article as soon as I have enough information. I need to know more, but you should know that my initial research always gives me prices excluding international flights and meals. So be careful not to be tempted by a very attractive price if you’re leaving in July or August. You’ll already have almost €1,000 worth of tickets. If you add to this the fact that you will have to eat at a snack bar every lunchtime, for example, and go shopping for food in the evening, the bill will be even higher!

I’d like to end this article on budgeting for a trip to Guadeloupe with a few words about high and low seasons. You really need to be aware that prices can vary considerably between the two seasons, especially in the following areas:

• International flights: Let’s be clear, the days of finding flights under €400 from Pointe-à-Pitre to Paris are over. But if I looked hard enough and out of season during my research, I found cheapest flights for €500 without too much difficulty (best travel deals during the low season to save money). On the other hand, if you come in August or for Christmas, flights can quickly approach €1,000 or more (flight prices are higher).
• Car hire: This is another area of expenditure where there are price differences, and I did a lot of research and comparison. So be careful as prices will obviously rise in July and August and at Christmas (in this period it will be complicated to save money and to do great deals on car hire).
• Accommodation: From what I’ve seen, I can’t say that this is always the case. If you use Booking or Airbnb, I haven’t really noticed any significant difference (you can find great deals in both seasons for you but not in lastminute booking).

So that’s the end of this article about the budget for your stay in Guadeloupe. It’s always tricky to talk about money and it depends on so many factors that not everyone will find their way through this article. But I think you’ve got a good general idea of how much you can expect to spend here in the West Indies.

We hope to see you soon for a new article of Guadeloupe.

Written by Sylvain PONS

Since 2021, I've been living in the Guadeloupe archipelago with Mélanie and our two children. We are exploring these beautiful islands and discovering the treasures that we are happy to share with you!

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