Hotel of the Week: A St. Barts Mainstay Finds New Life as a Fouquet’s Resort
Perched on a hillside overlooking Gustavia harbor, a newly rebranded landmark further infuses Parisian hospitality into this upscale island stay
Before St. Barts became shorthand for excess, its appeal circulated quietly among a small, well-traveled network that valued discretion, familiarity, and ease over spectacle. Development limits kept early luxury hotels intimate by design, cultivating loyal repeat visitors who prioritized being known over being seen. Fouquet’s Saint-Barth, the rebranded successor to landmark Le Carl Gustaf, is one of the few carrying on this original formula, proving that restraint and refinement remain a competitive advantage on the island.
Founded in the late 1980s by French entrepreneur Jacques Laurent, Le Carl Gustaf set itself apart through its singular hilltop position above Gustavia, becoming the town’s first and only five-star hotel, notably without direct beach access. Its appeal lay in proximity to Gustavia’s harbor, buzzy nightlife, and designer boutiques, while giving visitors the choice to participate or retreat to their hillside perch as they wished.
After shuttering in the mid-2010s, Barrière Collection acquired it, intent on preserving Le Carl’s intimate spirit and architectural footprint. After an extensive four-year renovation, Hôtel Barrière Le Carl Gustaf opened in 2020. This year, it rebrands as Fouquet’s Saint-Barth, joining the ultra-luxury Signature Collection as the fourth Fouquet’s location alongside Paris, New York, and Courchevel.
“We have a very high ratio of repeat clients at each location, including in St. Barts,” says Enrique Glückmann, general manager of Fouquet’s Saint-Barth. “Being a smaller hotel allows us to be more in touch with our guests, offering more personalized services and elevated experiences shaped by French hospitality.”
This direct understanding of guests’ needs has allowed Fouquet’s to respond to what modern travelers prefer, which is the seclusion of a villa with the service and accoutrements of a hotel. The 21-key retreat functions more like a private residence than a traditional hotel, with detached bungalows terraced down the hillside toward Gustavia, a position inherited from its predecessor. From the moment visitors enter the lobby, they’re met with some of the most breathtaking views of the island.
Fouquet’s design follows St. Barts’s traditional French Colonial architectural vernacular: signature red-tiled roofs, whitewashed walls, dark wood, natural stones, exposed wood beams, and shuttered windows. In 2020, Barrière tapped Parisian design duo Gilles & Boissier to conceptualize the interiors, which remain today—and frankly, they need no updating. The studio delightfully deviated from typical all-white modern hotel design schemes in favor of something more rooted in place that reflects an island-chic aesthetic. Subtle retro elements blend with tropical references that favor color and sense of place, without losing contemporary French styling, like tailored upholstery, custom furnishings, and soft lighting that sets the nighttime scene even before the sun slips below the horizon.
Public spaces and rooms are just as playful as they are chic with rattan furnishings topped by cushions in tropical hues, whimsical island decor (including a wicker parrot-shaped light shade in the bar), linen details, cream-colored curtains, botanical motifs woven into area rugs, fluted casework, grasscloth walls, and Christopher Farr floral headboards.
The residential-style accommodations include one- and two-bedroom suites, a loft, and Villa Diane, the five-bedroom crown jewel spanning 4,950 square feet. Each offers a different configuration, so no space is oriented or even designed the exact same. Guest rooms are located below the main building (housing the lobby, bar, and Beefbar restaurant), accessed via a spectacular central staircase sweeping down the hill, flanked by tropical foliage and dense vegetation. Each accommodation has an expansive private deck with front-row harbor views; most also boast a plunge pool and vibrant lemon yellow-and-white striped loungers. Soaring palms, bougainvillea, fragrant florals, and thickets of greenery provide Edenic privacy.
The Monaco-born steakhouse concept Beefbar anchors the culinary program from the compound’s highest point, with an indoor-outdoor dining setting and panoramic views of Gustavia. The menu, helmed by executive chef Thierry Paludetto, centers on premium cuts of beef with an eclectic selection that includes locally caught seafood and inventive vegan dishes. Casual luxury defines the restaurant interior that’s outfitted with ribbed wood paneling, fringed accent pillows, and low-slung cane chairs.
For an aperitivo or nightcap, the lobby bar serves island-inspired cocktails and premium Caribbean rum. Fouquet’s second restaurant concept, Shellona, sits off-property on Shell Beach, just a five-minute walk from the hotel. Since opening in 2016, it has become an island fixture for fresh Mediterranean fare served in an open-air, beachfront setting. It provides a contrast to the hotel’s quieter hillside energy, giving guests easy access to the island’s more social, daytime rhythm without sacrificing proximity.
In addition to guaranteed daybeds at Shellona and priority restaurant reservations, other hotel amenities include a calming spa featuring personalized massages, facial treatments using Biologique Recherche products, and futuristic technology to provide skin diagnostic testing. There’s also an attached Technogym-equipped fitness room and yoga studio. A dedicated concierge can arrange any type of activity, from beach yoga to pastry classes, hiking recommendations to daily yacht charters—more than enough to fill the hours and carry guest through to evening turndown, when little treats, like a fresh limey cocktail or scrumptious small bites of pastries and desserts, help cap another day in paradise.