Terra Online sponsors 2010 Kitesurfing Fiesta

Terra Online was one of the main sponsors of the 2010 St Lucia Kitesurfing Fiesta held at The Reef Kite + Surf in Vieux Fort on 27th-28th March. The event spanned two days and attracted both professional and amateur contestants from around the world.

Melissa Gil, professional kitesurfer and current kitespeed world champion kept the women's field on its toes, while Jeremie Tronet, internationally-renowned professional rider put the men through their paces. Heading the team of judges was Damien Leroy, professional kitesurfer and the 2008 US National courseracing champion.

Sandy Beach is one of the top kitesurfing locations in the Eastern Caribbean and the annual Kitesurfing Fiesta brings together world-class action on the water and a great St Lucian party atmosphere on land. Night time entertainment this year included live music from "4th World" reggae band and "Off-Island" Rock band, while food booths provided a variety of scrumptuous St Lucian fare from fresh seafood to Rastafarian 'ital' dishes.

Terra Online is proud to be associated with this kitesurfing festival which is a community-based, not-for-profit venture endorsed by the Ministry of Tourism.

Overall Results:

Pro Women
1. Beth Lygoe (St Lucia)
2. Melissa Gil (Costa Rica)
3. Linn Svendsen (Norway)

Pro Men
1. Jeremie Tronet (Martinique)
2. Mickael Neral (Martinique)
3. Benjamin Todd (UK)

Amateur Men
1. David Heritier (France)
2. Nicholas Borgne (Martinique)
3. Tim Fishleigh (Dominica)

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St Lucia among 'Top 10 Second Home Markets'

International Property Journal recently ranked St Lucia among the top 10 vacation-home destinations offering the best potential for luxury, relaxation, adventure and rental income. The list is presented in no particular order but includes such locations as RIVIERA NAYARIT (Mexico), NATAL (Brazil), HERMOSA (Costa Rica) and PLACENCIA (Belize).

"Of the emerging islands in the Caribbean, St. Lucia has all the elements in place for steady growth. Its array of spectacular coves and beaches is augmented by its unique Creole culture, pristine twin Piton peaks and swatches of rainforest, a rarity in the Caribbean.

More importantly, investment money is flowing to the island, which is still in a relatively early development stage. Many of the second home projects are clustered on the north end of the island around Rodney Bay, where there are clusters of luxury homes. A fairly easy drive from the international airport as Castries, the area offers classic Caribbean style at prices below the sky-high offerings in Barbados."

Read the full article here.

A match made in heaven

When the emailed enquiry came through to our offices, our very first reaction was 'surely someone must be playing a practical joke'? Here was a very specific request from a developer for a rather unusual property - and the requirements almost exactly matched a listing that we had recently taken onto our books: 100+ acres, working cocoa plantation, great seaviews etc...
Naturally we treated the enquiry seriously and it quickly emerged that the request was genuine - this really was to be a match made in heaven.

With not a moment to be lost, we worked hand-in-hand with both parties to formalise the sale and as the developers, Hotel Chocolat, state on their website: "... after a long and difficult search, we found what looked like an ideal old estate in St Lucia. Co-founder Peter Harris and I shot over and in the face of strong competition signed contracts within a week to buy Rabot Estate."

The story of Hotel Chocolat at Rabot Estate in St Lucia has to date been one of successful collaboration with the local community and of governmental support.

The Hotel Chocolat website best explains the project:
"... Our move to buy a cocoa estate goes against the overall trend in the chocolate market, which is to specialise more and more in a particular part of the chocolate making process. However we decided to do it for these reasons:
a) We can make it a successful West Indian business in its own right.
b) It fits with our Engaged Ethics programme.
c) The future battleground in super premium chocolate will be about true chocolate expertise.
Our cocoa estate connects the origins of chocolate (cocoa growing) directly with our consumers. We are one of the very few in the world market to do this. Our plan to make it a successful West Indian business is in three phases:

1. Re-establish Rabot Estate as a viable, thriving cocoa grower.
2. Build a chocolate factory in St Lucia.
3. Build a boutique chocolate hotel."

THE ROYAL VISIT

On 7th of March 2008, as part of their Caribbean tour, HRH The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall visited Rabot Estate for the ground- breaking ceremony of the chocolate factory.

Terra Online is proud to have been a part of this success story.