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Another major beach festival is coming to St. Lucia, the Yamaha Sunshine Beach Festival.
This inaugural event will be held on November 2 at the Pigeon Point waterfront and will feature a range of local, regional and international performers.
Organizers hope to attract visitors from the French Antilles, which includes Martinique and Guadeloupe, to the festival, which will be a one-day extravaganza featuring live entertainment, concerts, food, drinks and water slides.
The event, jointly organized by Events Saint Lucia (ESL) and Yamaha Corporation, with support from the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Industries, is expected to attract approximately 200 yachts and boats, making it a major tourist attraction.
ESL and Yamaha have teamed up to launch an entertainment package. ESL Executive Director Lorraine Sidonie shared the excitement at a media conference on Thursday, announcing, “We are going to have the biggest beach party St. Lucia has ever seen,” stressing that it will be “a big beach party, right here on Pigeon Island.”
Sidonie said the event, co-organized by Yamaha, a Martinique-based company with operations in St. Lucia, was aimed at attracting tourists from neighboring French islands and the Dominican Republic, and she stressed the appeal of such events for these tourists.
Regarding the dining, Sidonie mentioned, “It’s definitely a good balance between a French and British (St. Lucia and Martinique) style that mimics the Mercury Beach event, but is definitely ‘Yamaha branded.’
Tourism Minister Dr. Ernest Hilaire also spoke about the destinations and attractions that will promote the event.
The Minister called St. Lucia a “festival country or destination” as the island recently hosted a vibrant Jazz and Arts Festival and Carnival, saying: “This event brings an additional activity to our calendar of events and festivals and we will see what it brings.”
He stressed that visitors from Martinique and Guadeloupe are “strong supporters” of the event in Saint Lucia, as the island continues to enjoy good relations with the French territory.
Kurtrany Cherry, a local representative for Yamaha TH Motors & Marine Inc., said the concept began about two years ago as the company saw a need to get involved in the events and entertainment sector. He said St. Lucia and Martinique have had a long-standing friendship over the years and the event helps expand the economic spin-offs for the island, with vendors, taxi drivers and hoteliers all profiting from such events.
He highlighted the role played by local and French artists in the upcoming beach festival, adding that the main protagonists will be top international artists who will attract the attention of patrons from the French Antilles to St. Lucia.
ESL Board Chair Leo Clarke thanked key stakeholders for their input, including the Saint Lucia Tourism Authority (SLTA), the Saint Lucia National Trust (SLNT) and the Gros Islet Constituency Council, among others.
Clark added: “The Yamaha Sun Festival is a great addition to St. Lucia’s already very successful line-up of festivals and events and is a great addition to St. Lucia’s festival landscape.”
He said one of the goals of ESL is to collaborate with existing institutions, non-governmental organisations and government departments to organise and manage events and festivals of high standards.
Tickets go on sale in late August, so keep an eye out for early bird deals. The festival is a significant addition to St. Lucia’s festival landscape and is expected to further enhance the island’s reputation as a festival destination.
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