Jounen Kwéyòl Celebrations

Welcome to the Creole Season!

'Tis the time for wearing madras, eating traditional creole food and listening to the sounds of local drums!

“Jounen Kwéyòl” or Creole Day is celebrated annually in St. Lucia as part of Creole Heritage Month on the last Sunday of October. It commemorates St. Lucia’s French and African culture which is present in the language or local dialect, cuisine, games, music, and folklore. Throughout the island, people come alive with entertainment and unique delicious local cuisine, such as Green Fig and Saltfish (St. Lucia’s National Dish), plantain, kingfish, Manicou (opossum), Souse (a soup made of salted pork and cucumber), fried (or roasted) bakes (a circular, flat fried or roasted bread), accras (fish cakes), and much more. Kwéyòl Music and traditional dances can be heard and seen island wide or even worldwide by the diaspora during this season, some of which has been passed down for many generations. Creole day is observed by wearing the traditional Wob Dwiyet, which is the island’s national wear.

As a locally owned and operated resort chain, all the Bay Gardens properties are decorated in traditional Kwéyòl colours with various artifacts on display throughout the month of October. The award-winning chain joins in on the celebrations with opportunities to take in the music, cuisine and culture by hosting two major events.

Over the coming weeks we will provide guidelines on attire, food, music and other interesting things to note when partaking in our upcoming Jounen Kwéyòl festivities.

Stay tuned!