What's on in Gustavia (St Barts), Saint Barthélemy through the year

Busy — New Year's superyacht week, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

• Festival

  St Barth Music Festival

  5–25 Jan · usuallyBook early

  Running every January since 1984, two weeks of classical music, opera, jazz and dance in Gustavia's churches and small venues island-wide. Intimate concerts with international performers, just after the New Year crush. Source ↗

Still on: New Year's superyacht week (26 Dec – 2 Jan (usually))

Busy — one of its best months for weather

Nothing new starts in February.

Busy — St Barths Bucket Regatta, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

• Festival

  St Barths Bucket Regatta

  10–25 Mar · usuallySporting eventCrowdedBook early

  Invitation-only racing for sailing superyachts of a hundred feet and more, on the second-to-last full weekend of March. The harbour fills with masts, the parties are private and villas are booked a year out. Source ↗

Busy — Les Voiles de St Barth

• Festival

  Les Voiles de St Barth

  5–25 Apr · usuallySporting eventCrowdedBook early

  A week of competitive racing in mid-April for modern performance yachts, with a regatta village and nightly music on the Gustavia quays. Faster and livelier on shore than the Bucket. Source ↗

Shoulder season — an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in May.

Shoulder season — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

• Hazard

  Atlantic hurricane season

  1 Jun – 30 Nov

  Most of the season passes without incident, but this is the island Irma flattened in September 2017 and the rebuild took years. Mid-August to mid-October is the part of the window worth insuring against. Source ↗

Shoulder season — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in July.

Still on: Atlantic hurricane season (1 Jun – 30 Nov)

Shoulder season — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in August.

Still on: Atlantic hurricane season (1 Jun – 30 Nov)

Quiet — school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it, one of its worst months for weather

• Season

  Autumn shutdown

  1 Sep – 31 OctOff-season shutdownClosures

  September and October are when the villas, the hotels and most of the good restaurants close for their annual break and the staff go home. Flights still run and the beaches are empty, but plan on eating wherever is open. Source ↗

Still on: Atlantic hurricane season (1 Jun – 30 Nov)

Quiet — travelers describe it as quiet

Nothing new starts in October.

Still on: Atlantic hurricane season (1 Jun – 30 Nov), Autumn shutdown (1 Sep – 31 Oct)

Busy — St Barth Cata Cup

• Festival

  St Barth Cata Cup

  16–23 NovSporting eventCrowdedBook early

  The island's season reopens with a Formula 18 catamaran regatta sailed off St Jean, and the port fills with crews from Europe and the rest of the Caribbean. Rooms in Gustavia go before the entry list is published. Source ↗

Still on: Atlantic hurricane season (1 Jun – 30 Nov)

Busy — New Year's superyacht week, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

• Holiday

  New Year's superyacht week

  26 Dec – 2 Jan · usuallyChristmas & New YearCrowdedBook early

  The island's busiest and most expensive week: hundreds of superyachts crowd the bay and horns sound at midnight as fireworks go up over Fort Oscar. Minimum stays, top rates, and restaurant tables booked months ahead. Source ↗