During our recent trip to Guadeloupe, we also passed through tiny Deshaies, which is a cute little village by the sea, and the main filming location for the BBC-produced police procedural “Death in Paradise”, in which a cast of oddball detectives has to solve so many crimes of greed and passion, that you kind of have to wonder how anyone is still alive on their fictional island of Saint Marie.

As Stefanie is a fan of the program and we always like to check out filming locations on our trips, we took a walk around town to match up the real-life locations with their fictional counterparts. That said, the pretty village with its beautiful surroundings is definitely worth a visit, even if you’re not interested in fictional murders.

Here’s everything you need to know about visiting Deshaies.

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Where is Death in Paradise Filmed?

In the show, the bad guys are being caught on the fictional island of Saint Marie, but it’s actually Guadeloupe’s north-western coast, where the biggest part of the show is filmed.

Most locations that you regularly see in the show can be found in the small town centre of Deshaies, while a few others are located along the coast. I’ve outlined them below.

Guided Tours of the Filming Locations

If you would like the company of someone who really knows all the important filming locations, there are now guided tours of the Death in Paradise Locations available, including one where you can enter the ‘Police Station’. You can check them out below.

Visiting the Death in Paradise Locations

Deshaies Presbytery – Honoré Police Station

Coordinates: N16°18.385 W61°47.625

There are a couple of main locations, which appear in virtually every episode of the show, and they can all be found in Deshaies’ small centre. Arguably the most important one is the tiny police station of the fictional town of Honoré.

In real life, the building serves as the presbytery of the town’s church, and sits directly to the south of it at the eastern edge of town. We could only check it out from the outside, but you can now book a guided tour, that allows you to visit the interior as well.

Eglise Saint Pierre et Saint Paul

Coordinates: N16°18.400 W61°47.625

The little red-roofed Eglise Saint Pierre et Saint Paul directly to the north can always be seen in establishing shots in the show and we also found it to be worth a peek inside.

We’re not sure if it’s always the case but when we were there, the altar was beautifully decorated with palm fronds, which we had seen in some Buddhist and Hindu temples but never before in a church.

Le Madras – Catherine’s Bar

Coordinates: N16°18.457 W61°47.683

If you head towards the coast with the church in your back and then turn right to walk along the sea, you’ll come to restaurant “Le Madras”.

In the show, this is Catherine’s Bar, where the detectives and deputies regularly meet up for a bite to eat or a drink, usually on the small deck right by the sea. It’s a nice place to do the same and have a cocktail or try some seafood, if you’re feeling peckish.

Other Filming Locations Around Town

There are some other places in the village and around, which can be spotted in one episode or another. For instance, Deshaies’ small harbour area (N16°18.260 W61°47.730) at the southern end of town can be seen many times in the show, mostly in opening shots, but occasionaly also when someone tries to flee by boat from the police.

The Botanical Gardens (N16°17.961 W61°47.863), which lie about 1km south of town, have also been used as backdrop in the show.

Finally, the Detective’s beach house is constructed on Anse La Perle (N16°20.388 W61°46.800), which is about 5km north of the village, but it gets disassembled every time filming is finished for the season. You can still visit the beach itself, though.

Other Sights in Deshaies

Plage de Grande-Anse

Plage de Grande-Anse is a long golden stretch of sand backed by coconut palms to the north of the town centre. It’s a beautiful place for a swim or to relax for a bit, but it’s also one of Guadeloupe’s most popular beaches, so it can get rather crowded

We came in the evening, when it was a little quieter, but naturally, there were still a few people around, especially because it’s also a nice place to watch the sunset. Behind the beach, there are a couple of stalls selling cheapish fast food.

To get here, walk or drive north to Ziotte and turn left at the roundabout. Alternatively, there’s a footpath leading to the beach directly north of the football field on the northern edge of Deshaies. Anse La Perle, where the inspector’s hut is built every season for the filming of Death in Paradise is another 2km or 1.5mi. to the north.

Pointe Batterie

If you are a serious history buff or have an hour to kill before your bus arrives, you might want to consider checking out the remains of a small 19^th-century artillery battery south of town.

There’s not much more to see other than a tiny collapsed building, a few foundation walls and some cannons lying around. Still, when you continue down towards the sea, there are some nice views back along the coastline and to Deshaies harbour.

To get to the battery, walk south along the main road from the harbour for about 10 minutes and then turn right at the Pointe Batterie Bus stop.

Other Things to Look Out for in Deshaies

It’s not exactly a sight, but we spotted some enormous caterpillars chewing away at some Golden Trumpet bushes in the village. Apparently, they’re the larvae of Pseudosphinx Moths and quite a plague across the Caribbean, but we only ever spotted them here (although we can’t say that we were ever actively looking before).

At well over 10cm or 4in. in length, they were certainly the biggest caterpillars we had ever seen and made short work of the poor bushes. Due to their red, green and black colouring, they’re also referred to as Rasta caterpillars. Just an interesting observation we made around town.

Map of Deshaies

You can find all of the places that I mentioned above in this map of the Deshaies and the surrounding area.

Practicalities

How to Get to Deshaies

All buses that drive the coastal loop around the western half of the island stop in Deshaies. We took the overland bus from Basse-Terre bus station, but you can also catch a bus at Pointe-à-Pitre’s Gare Routière de Bergevin.

Where to Stay in Deshaies

As this is such a small village, we were quite surprised that Deshaies and the surrounding area were full of apartments and bungalows for rent (although the beaches might be the reason). That said, real budget choices are a little sparse.

We stayed at an affordable private bungalow in the village of Ziotte, which is about 3km/2mi. north of Deshaies. A cheapish option closer to Deshaies proper would be Gite All Comfort, about halfway to Ziotte.

There’s no shortage of mid-range options, of which Bleue de Mer is especially well-rated, and Palm Bay Villa would be a top-end choice. You can have a look at the map below for more options.

Where to Eat in Deshaies

There are plenty of restaurants along Deshaies’ small waterfront, which mostly serve seafood and the catch of the day. If you’re a fan of “Death in Paradise”, you might want to eat at “Le Madras”, the filming location for Catherine’s Bar.

Apart from that, there are some cheapish snack stalls, serving sandwiches, pizzas and burgers at Grande Anse.

Where to Go Next

La Soufrière Volcano, the highest mountain in the Lesser Antilles

Pointe-à-Pitre, the cultural capital of the island

The Îles des Saintes, to the south of Guadeloupe’s main island