Cremation and ashes transport

Cremation in Guadeloupe and bringing ashes home

Cremation is available in Guadeloupe. Ashes may be repatriated to the UK in a sealed urn. This page sets out what Guadeloupe requires, and what to check before you decide.

Send an enquiry Full repatriation guide for Guadeloupe

Cremation in Guadeloupe

Can you cremate someone in Guadeloupe?

Cremation is available in Guadeloupe. Ashes may be repatriated to the UK in a sealed urn.

Religious context: Predominantly Roman Catholic.

Weighing cremation abroad against bringing your loved one home intact? How families decide between the two.

Who must release the body

Mairie (municipal civil registry: mairie of the commune of death); Gendarmerie nationale or Police nationale (non-natural deaths)

Documentation language

French, Antillean Creole

Airline guidance

Can you carry ashes on the flight home?

Routing out of Guadeloupe: Pointe-à-Pitre Les Abymes Airport (PTP) has direct Air France service to Paris Charles de Gaulle (CDG). Flight time approximately 8.5 hours. All UK repatriation routes via Paris CDG. Deaths on outer islands (Marie-Galante, Les Saintes, La Désirade) require inter-island transfer to Grande-Terre. Saint-Barthélemy and Saint-Martin (French) are separate collectivities: different jurisdictions.

Departure airports: PTP (Pointe-à-Pitre Les Abymes International Airport, Grande-Terre); outer island airports on Marie-Galante, Les Saintes, La Désirade

Airline rules that apply on any route.

What affects the cost from Guadeloupe

We do not publish a figure, because it turns on the specifics of the case. For Guadeloupe the things that move it are:

Distance from where the death happened to the nearest crematorium
Whether Mairie (municipal civil registry: mairie of the commune of death); Gendarmerie nationale or Police nationale (non-natural deaths) has to release the case first
Translation, since documentation is in French, Antillean Creole
Routing home. Pointe-à-Pitre Les Abymes Airport (PTP) has direct Air France service to Paris Charles de Gaulle (CDG). Flight time approximately 8.5 hours. All UK repatriation routes via Paris CDG. Deaths on outer islands (Marie-Galante, Les Saintes, La Désirade) require inter-island transfer to Grande-Terre. Saint-Barthélemy and Saint-Martin (French) are separate collectivities: different jurisdictions.
Whether you carry the ashes yourself or need them shipped

Considering full repatriation instead?

Some families decide they want their loved one brought home intact. The full Guadeloupe guide sets out that process.

Full repatriation guide for Guadeloupe

First steps guide

What to do if someone dies in Guadeloupe

The step-by-step first response guide covers the first 24 hours in Guadeloupe.

Sources: FCDO: death abroad · FCDO travel advice · Repatriation from Guadeloupe

Talk to us about cremation in Guadeloupe

We deal with Mairie (municipal civil registry: mairie of the commune of death); Gendarmerie nationale or Police nationale (non-natural deaths) and the local funeral directors directly. Tell us what has happened and we will take it from there.