Shop
Get even more with a Lonely Planet guide.
ʴǾԳٱ-à-ʾٰ
Getty Images/iStockphoto
Overview
ʴǾԳٱ-à-ʾٰ is a fairly uninviting place – a graffiti-sprayed concrete jungle of art-deco and socialist-style architecture, decaying traditional houses and terrible traffic – but it's the main town on Grande-Terre and, due to its central location between Guadeloupe's two biggest islands, it serves as the de facto capital. It's well worth getting off the beach for half a day to visit, if only to see the superb Mémorial ACTe, a world-class museum dedicated to the history of slavery and colonialism. The first of its kind in the world, Mémorial ACTe has quickly become the closest Guadeloupe has to a national museum and it's an absolute must-see for anyone interested in the history and culture of these islands.
Attractions
Must-see attractions
ʴǾԳٱ-à-ʾٰ
Top billing in the French Antilles goes to this huge museum of slavery, opened by President Hollande in 2015. Housed in a spectacular silver-latticework…
ʴǾԳٱ-à-ʾٰ
This popular market on the seafront in front of Place de la Victoire is ʴǾԳٱ-à-ʾٰ's main fruit-and-vegetable market. It's full of characters and you…
ʴǾԳٱ-à-ʾٰ
This three-level municipal museum occupies an outstanding example of 19th-century colonial architecture and is dedicated to renowned poet and Nobel…
Cathédrale de St-Pierre et St-Paul
ʴǾԳٱ-à-ʾٰ
Rather than the traditional arches, this attractively painted sand-colored church, nicknamed the ‘Iron Cathedral,’ is supported by iron girders intended…