Saint-Pierre is built among the ruins of old Saint-Pierre. The town was once the main city and port on the island. The former town was destroyed in 1902 by the volcanic eruption of Mont Pelée. The town's 30,000 residents were killed in the blast, with the exception of one prisoner. The thick cell walls protected him from the heat and blast.
Built on a hillside, a walk down to the waterfront ends at a stretch of black sand beach.
The Centre d'Art Musée Paul Gauguin is a tribute to French artist Paul Gauguin who came to Martinique in 1887 to paint. The museum displays reproductions of his works, books on the artist, and other notes on his life.
The museum is located between La Carbet and St Pierre.
Ceron Plantation is the site of an old sugar mill, with ruins of the 17th Century mill still visible. Today, the plantation and manor house is surrounded by crops of various varieties. The real attraction here is the restaurant serving local cuisine.
The plantation is located at the northern tip of Martinique with day excursions leaving from Fort-de-France.
The Earth & Sciences Discovery Center is a uniquely designed building with para-seismic supports. The front is glass and faces Mt Pelee. Visitors can learn about Mt Pelee and other volcanoes and eruptions.
Address: Earth & Sciences Discovery Center Habitation Perrinelle, Quartier La Galere, Saint-Pierre, French West Indies 97250, Martinique
Hours:
9am-5pm; Closed: Mon, Tue
Tips: Open and closing times are one hour later during July and August.
All but one of the boats anchored in the harbor on May 8, 1902 sank in the tidal wave which followed the Mont Pelée eruption. The area is now popular with scuba divers who come to see the wrecks. There are 12 boats which are common dive sites approximately 150 m (500 ft) off shore.
Mont Pelée is an active volcano which erupted on May 8, 1902, destroying the city of Saint-Pierre and killing thousands of people. The volcano is currently in a quiet phase but is still considered an active volcano in the West Indies. A road leads up the mountain to within an hours walk from the summit.
The ruins of the old town can be found throughout Saint-Pierre. Of particular interest is the old theatre, "cachot de Cyparis" which is the jail which contained the only survivor of the blast, and the ruins of Le Figuier - a group of single story houses below the Musée Vulcanologique.
The Volcanological Museum provides information on the 1902 eruption of Mont Pelée and displays items salvaged from the old town and harbor. The charred displays are a tangible reminder of the disaster that occurred here.
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Mount Pelée, Saint-Pierre
Saint-Pierre
