After years of welcoming guests to Villa ONLY VIEW, I have a well-tested answer to the most common question I receive: "What should we do for a week?" Every guest is different, of course — some want to fill every hour, others want to do nothing at all. But most people want a loose framework, enough structure to feel like they are making the most of the island without turning a vacation into a schedule. Here is the itinerary I recommend to everyone who asks. It is built from real experience, real places, and real days spent on this island. Take what you like, skip what you don't, and know that the best moments on St Barth are usually the ones you did not plan.
Day 1 — Arrival & Settling In
Most flights arrive at Gustaf III Airport in the early afternoon, either from St Martin or via private charter. The airport is ten minutes from Villa ONLY VIEW, so you will be at the villa quickly — no long transfers, no waiting for shuttles. That first walk through the front door is always special. I love watching guests see the view for the first time: the infinity pool stretching toward the horizon, the Caribbean Sea filling the entire frame, the late-afternoon light turning everything gold.
My advice for Day 1 is simple: do not plan anything. Let the villa do its work. Unpack slowly. Jump in the pool. Open a bottle of rose from the welcome basket. Walk out to the terrace and watch your first sunset from Pointe Milou. The sunsets here are not a marketing line — they are genuinely extraordinary, and they happen every single evening. After sunset, if you are feeling hungry, keep it easy. L'Isola in Gustavia is a short drive and serves beautiful Italian food in a relaxed harbor setting. Or order in — our concierge can arrange a private chef dinner at the villa, which many guests prefer on their first night. There is something wonderful about dining at your own table, overlooking the sea, with nowhere to be.
Day 2 — Lorient Beach & St Jean
Start the morning slowly. Coffee on the terrace, fruit and pastries from the welcome provisions. There is no rush. Around mid-morning, drive five minutes to Lorient Beach — our closest beach and the one I visit most often. Lorient has a relaxed, local atmosphere. You will see surfers in the water, families on the sand, no velvet ropes or bottle service. Pick up fresh baguettes and croissants from the boulangerie JoJo on your way — it is right on the main road near Lorient.
Spend the morning swimming and reading. Around noon, drive eight minutes to St Jean for lunch. La Plage at Tom Beach Hotel is right on the sand — grilled fish, cold rose, feet in the warm Caribbean water. After lunch, walk through the small shops in the St Jean village area. There is a pharmacy, some boutiques, and the small supermarket Match which is good for stocking up on wine, cheese, and snacks for the villa.
Back at the villa, the afternoon is for the pool. Late afternoon brings the golden hour, when the light shifts and the water glows. Dinner tonight: Orega in Gustavia. Japanese-Peruvian fusion, beautifully done. Book ahead — it is deservedly popular.
Day 3 — Saline Beach & Gustavia Evening
Today is for one of the island's most beautiful beaches. Saline is a twelve-minute drive from the villa, and the last part requires a short walk over a sandy trail past salt ponds — it feels like entering another world. The beach is long, wild, and undeveloped. No restaurants, no loungers. Bring water, snacks, towels, and reef-safe sunscreen. Our concierge can prepare a full beach bag for you before you leave.
Saline can have waves, so keep an eye on conditions. The far end of the beach is clothing-optional, which is very much part of the relaxed European culture of the island. Spend the morning here. It is the kind of beach that makes you forget what time it is.
In the afternoon, drive to Gustavia — the island capital. Park near the harbor and walk. The port is lined with superyachts during the season, and the narrow streets are home to Hermes, Louis Vuitton, Cartier, and other luxury boutiques alongside local galleries and jewelry shops. For an afternoon drink, Le Select is the oldest bar on the island — casual, open-air, cheeseburgers and cold beer. It is where locals and visitors have mixed for decades.
For dinner, Bonito overlooks the harbor from a hillside terrace. French-Latin cuisine, creative cocktails, and one of the most atmospheric settings on the island. Or walk to Shell Beach (five minutes from the harbor) for sunset drinks at Shellona before dinner.
Day 4 — Pool Day & Colombier Hike
Every vacation needs a slow day, and Day 4 is it. Sleep in. Have a late breakfast by the pool. Read a book on the terrace. Swim. Repeat. The heated pool at Villa ONLY VIEW is one of our guests' favorite features — it is warm enough to swim comfortably even on breezy mornings, and the overflow edge creates that beautiful visual merge with the sea beyond.
In the late afternoon, when the heat softens, drive fifteen minutes to the Colombier trail. This is the island's most rewarding short hike — a twenty-minute walk along a cliffside path with stunning panoramic views, leading down to Colombier Beach, a pristine bay accessible only on foot or by boat. The water is crystal clear and the snorkeling is excellent — sea turtles are common here. Bring a mask and fins. The hike back up takes about twenty-five minutes, and the views of the sunset from the trail are extraordinary.
Tonight, stay in. Ask our concierge to arrange a private chef to come to the villa. It is one of the most popular experiences we offer — a professional chef cooks a multi-course Caribbean-French meal in your kitchen while you watch the stars come out over the pool. Many guests say this is the highlight of their trip.
Day 5 — Grand Cul-de-Sac & Water Sports
Today is for the other side of the island. Grand Cul-de-Sac is a fifteen-minute drive from the villa, and it could not be more different from Saline. A protected lagoon with a coral reef barrier means the water is flat, shallow, and warm — perfect for paddleboarding, kayaking, or beginner kitesurfing. If you have children, this is their paradise. If you want to try kitesurfing, several schools operate right on the beach.
For lunch, you have two outstanding options right on the sand: Le Sereno (refined, elegant) or O'Corail (relaxed, fun, Caribbean flavors). Both serve lunch with your feet literally in the sand, the lagoon lapping at the edge of your table. This is the kind of thing that feels impossible anywhere else.
The afternoon is free. Some guests drive to the Toiny coast to see the wild Atlantic side of the island — dramatic cliffs, crashing waves, a completely different character from the calm Caribbean side. Dinner tonight: Le Tamarin, set in a tropical garden under tamarind trees. It is one of the island's most beautiful restaurant settings. French-Caribbean cuisine, lantern-lit tables, a feeling of being somewhere truly special.
Day 6 — Flamands Beach & Sunset Boat Trip
Flamands is, in my opinion, the most beautiful beach on the island — and I say that having lived here for years. A wide crescent of white sand with gentle turquoise water, backed by hills and the elegant Cheval Blanc hotel. It is twelve minutes from the villa. Arrive early, claim a spot, and spend the entire morning. The water is calm enough for young children and clear enough to see fish from the shore.
For lunch, Chez Franky is right on Flamands beach — grilled fresh-caught fish, salads, cold rose, all with your toes in the sand. It is the platonic ideal of a Caribbean beach lunch. Simple, perfect, unforgettable.
In the afternoon, I strongly recommend booking a sunset boat trip. Several operators offer two- to three-hour cruises along the coast, stopping for swimming and snorkeling, with champagne and canapes served as the sun goes down. Seeing the island from the water at golden hour is a completely different experience — the coastline reveals itself in ways you cannot see from land. Our concierge can arrange this for you.
Dinner: Bagatelle in Gustavia. It starts as a restaurant and evolves into something more festive as the evening progresses — live music, dancing on tables, champagne flowing. If you want one big night out on the island, this is it.
Day 7 — Last Morning & Departure
Your last morning. I always tell guests the same thing: do not try to fit in one more activity. The best thing you can do on your final day is exactly what you did on your first — nothing. Wake up without an alarm. Swim in the pool one last time. Sit on the terrace with coffee and stare at the view you have been waking up to all week. Let it settle into memory.
If your flight is in the afternoon, you have time for one last quick visit to Lorient Beach — a fifteen-minute swim, a final walk on warm sand. Or drive to Gustavia for a last espresso at Bonito and a stroll through the harbor.
Pack slowly. Take a photo from the terrace. The view from Villa ONLY VIEW is the last thing many of our guests photograph, and I understand why. It is the image that stays.
The drive to the airport takes ten minutes. Check-in is relaxed and personal — this is a tiny airport, no crowds, no chaos. And as your plane lifts off and banks over the island, you will see it all one more time from above: the turquoise bays, the green hills, the white villas scattered across the hillsides. That is the moment most people start planning their return.
This itinerary is a suggestion, not a prescription. Some guests follow it loosely, others use it as a starting point and go their own way entirely. The beauty of staying in a villa — rather than a hotel — is that every day is yours to design. No breakfast buffet schedule, no checkout time for the pool. Just your own pace, your own rhythms, and an island that rewards both adventure and stillness equally.