St Barts & St Martin: 7 website checks before high season
High season is won in the summer. Seven concrete — and quick — checks so your website turns November searches into bookings.
On our two islands, everything happens between November and April. But on the web, the game is won now: Google takes weeks to re-index a site, and American visitors plan their stays months ahead. Here are the seven checks to run before the season.
1. The 3-second test
Open your site on a phone, on 4G. If it takes more than 3 seconds to display, you lose more than one visitor in two (Google study). Test it objectively on pagespeed.web.dev — aim for a mobile score above 90.
2. An English version — written, not translated
Your December customers type "private chef St Barts", not "chef privé Saint-Barthélemy". If your site only exists in French, you're not in the race. And an auto-translate widget doesn't count: Google indexes pages, not gadgets.
3. Your Google Business profile
It's often the first touchpoint: up-to-date hours, recent photos, website link, WhatsApp number. Reply to reviews — including in English.
4. Seasonal hours and menus
Nothing scares visitors off like last year's menu or low-season hours in the middle of December. Update them before the first searches land.
5. Frictionless booking
An American who has to send an email and wait two days will go elsewhere. Online booking — or at minimum a WhatsApp button that answers fast — visible from the very first screen.
6. Mobile first
More than two-thirds of travellers' local searches happen on a phone. Your site must be built for thumbs: large buttons, tappable phone number, no impossible-to-close pop-ups.
7. The detail that reassures: "St Barts" and "Saint-Barthélemy"
Your customers spell the islands many ways — "St Barts", "St. Barths", "Saint-Barthélemy", "SXM", "Sint Maarten". A well-built site covers those variants in its copy and tags, without keyword stuffing.
Each of these checks takes minutes. Fixing them is another trade — ours. See the packs, or simply send your website's address on WhatsApp for a free audit within 24h via the contact page.