Colombier Beach, St Barts: The One You Walk or Sail To

Colombier has no road. The beach sits at the north-west tip of St Barts, a beautiful stretch of sand in a bay where yachts anchor, and you reach it on foot along the coast or you arrive by sea. That small effort works as a filter: it keeps the crowds off, the water stays clear and calm, and on the right morning you have a Caribbean beach almost to yourself. This page is the practical half: the trail, the boat, what to bring, and when to come.

The walk in

The trail to Colombier is the one walk to do in St Barts, and the one most locals name first. Most walkers start from the end of the road at Flamands, on the Petite Anse side, which is the shorter and more scenic way in. The path is roughly twenty-five to thirty minutes each way, cut into the hillside with the sea beside you the whole time. It climbs and dips along the cliff, never hard but never quite flat, and you will probably share it with a few of the island’s goats. Wear closed shoes rather than flip-flops, since the ground is rocky in places, and pick a cooler morning for it. If the steep lanes up to the trailhead do not appeal, a private driver can drop you at Flamands and collect you when you are done. Our hiking guide has the rest of the island’s walks, and the lookout toward Colombier at the north-west tip catches the bay and the boats at anchor on the way.

By boat

Plenty of visitors arrive the other way, anchoring off the sand on a boat trip around the island. From the water St Barts is a different island, and Colombier in particular is best arrived at by sea: a half-day trip is the easiest way to reach it, snorkel the quiet coves on the way and see the coast from its best angle, and a full day reaches Colombier or Île Fourchue with time to linger. Our guide to boat trips explains how a day on the water works here.

On the sand and in the water

The reward is clear, calm water, some of the best snorkeling on the island straight from the beach, and a good chance of seeing turtles. The clearest reefs around St Barts sit offshore, around the islets and Colombier itself, which is why the walk and the boat pair so well. There are no facilities and nothing for sale, so bring water and something to eat, and take everything home with you. Because it takes effort to reach, Colombier stays calm even when the road beaches are busy.

Staying above Colombier

The hillsides above Colombier hold some of the most secluded villas on St Barts, with the bay below and the trail at the end of the road. If the quiet of this beach is what you want from the whole trip, this is where to look. The villas in Colombier are listed by position on the hill.

Of the island’s fourteen beaches, Colombier is the one you have to earn. For the others that stay quiet, see our guide to the quietest beaches.