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April 29, 2026 — when 53 million subscribers discovered the French Caribbean for the first time
For three hours yesterday, Guadeloupe stopped being an obscure dot on the Caribbean map and became the trending destination of the entire internet. On Wednesday, April 29, 2026, IShowSpeed — the 21-year-old American streamer with 53 million YouTube subscribers and over 150 million fans across his platforms — landed at Maryse Condé Airport for one of the most chaotic, joyful, and unforgettable stops of his entire Caribbean Tour.
He came in from Dominica. He left for St. Kitts and Nevis. In between, our archipelago threw him the welcome of his life — and pulled thousands of fans into the streets of Pointe-à-Pitre, Le Gosier, and Les Abymes in the process.
A quick word on guadeloupe (for everyone Googling right now)
If you’re one of the millions who searched “is guadeloupe a country”, “guadeloupe language”, or “guadeloupe flag” in the last 24 hours: welcome. Guadeloupe is a French archipelago of six islands in the Eastern Caribbean. The official language is French, but Creole is the everyday one. The currency is the euro. Direct flights to Guadeloupe leave from Paris, Montréal, Miami, and most major Caribbean hubs. And the food — we’ll get to the food but if you’re in a hurry, here’s an article we wrote on the food he ate in Guadeloupe
Speed packed his three hours with fried chicken, gwoka drumming, jet skis, colombo, a memorial visit, a foot race he might have actually lost, and an unauthorized motorcade of several hundred riders. Here is exactly what happened, in order, with our take on each stop.
What ishowspeed actually did in guadeloupe
KFC les abymes — the first bite off the plane
It’s a Speed tradition: rate the KFC of every country he visits and crown the world’s best. The Les Abymes branch — minutes from Maryse Condé Airport — passed the test with flying colors. He bit, he chewed, he approved. A solid opener for a streamer who has eaten his way through dozens of countries on this tour alone.
Geedme’s note : The irony isn’t lost on anyone here. Guadeloupe has its own answer to fried chicken: the bokit, a deep-fried bread sandwich stuffed with cod, chicken, ham and cheese, or smoked fish. Roadside bokit shacks line the coastal roads from Le Moule to Saint-François. Speed got there eventually — but for first-timers, the bokit is the dish to beat.
Did speed just lose his first race against a fan?
After defeating Ashton Hall, KSI, Travis Scott, and dozens of his own fans in viral sprint challenges across the world, Speed met his match somewhere on a Guadeloupean street. The footage is debatable. The result is contested. The fan is now a local legend. Locals are taking it as a national victory either way — new hero unlocked.
➡️ His instagram
Geedme’s note : Guadeloupe takes athletics seriously. The island has produced Olympic medalists Marie-José Pérec, Christine Arron, Patrcia Girard, Murielle Hurtis, Wilfried Happio, and a long line of sprinters trained on the same school playgrounds. Sprinting against a Guadeloupean is, statistically, a bad idea.
First crowd bath in pointe-à-pitre
Pointe-à-Pitre, the economic capital of Guadeloupe, lost its mind. Thousands of fans flooded the streets — kids on shoulders, teenagers waving Guadeloupean flags, drivers honking from every block. This wasn’t a meet-and-greet. This was a city briefly forgetting how to function.
Rue piétonne and the Gwoka welcome
Speed was led to Rue Piétonne, the symbolic heart of Pointe-à-Pitre’s pedestrian district. Every Saturday, the gwoka drummers — players of Guadeloupe’s traditional music — gather here for hours-long open jams. Yesterday they made an exception and showed up on a Wednesday.
Surrounded by giants of the local scene like Fanswa Ladrézeau, Raymonde Pater Torin, and Jenny Paulin, Speed got his first lesson in gwoka — the rhythm that powered every act of resistance, every celebration, every funeral on this island for centuries. He danced. The crowd roared. The drums won.
Geedme’s note : gwoka is recognized by UNESCO as part of humanity’s intangible cultural heritage. Seven rhythms, one drum (the ka), and a circle that opens to anyone willing to step in. The Saturday afternoon sessions on Rue Piétonne are free, public, and the easiest way for any visitor to experience it.
Voici un article pour en savoir plus sur le Gwoka si jamais vous êtes de passage en Guadeloupe, vous pouvez réserver une initiation au Gwoka ici
Introduction to the mas
What’s a stop in Pointe-à-Pitre without a taste of carnival? The groupes à peau — Guadeloupe’s traditional skin-drum carnival groups — gave Speed a quick introduction to the mas, and specifically to the fouettard: the masked whip-cracker character whose snap echoes through the streets every January and February.
Geedme’s note : carnival in Guadeloupe runs from early January through Mardi Gras and Mercredi des Cendres — almost two full months of parades, costumes, and overnight street energy. If you’re already booking flights to Guadeloupe after watching the stream, this is the window to aim for.
The bokit moment — speed meets guadeloupe’s iconic street food
A few steps from the carnival drummers, Speed was handed what every first-time visitor to Guadeloupe should be handed within their first hour on the island: a freshly fried bokit. Soft inside, crisp outside, generously stuffed. Speed bit, paused, gave the verdict live on stream. Approved.
Geedme’s note: the bokit is the dish that defines Guadeloupean street food. Born in the post-abolition era, refined by generations of roadside vendors, it now exists in dozens of variations — morue (salt cod), chicken, ham and cheese, lambi (conch). Every Guadeloupean has a favorite spot, and the debate over the best bokit on the island is roughly as old as the bokit itself. Speed got his first bite. Up to you to judge whose recipe wins.
Maison karukera and a vr tour of the archipelago
A few steps from Rue Piétonne, Speed visited Maison Karukera — a cultural space designed to introduce visitors to Guadeloupean heritage. The highlight: a VR headset that walks you through the archipelago’s most iconic spots in a few minutes. Useful when you’ve got 53 million people watching and three hours to spare.
Geedme’s note: Karukera is the original name of Guadeloupe in the language of the Kalinago people who lived here before European arrival. It means “the island of beautiful waters.” The name still carries.
Mémorial acte and the old creole games
On the parvis of the Mémorial ACTe — Guadeloupe’s vast museum dedicated to slavery and the trans-Atlantic trade — Speed was greeted by the Gwajéka association (devoted to traditional Creole games) and TV host Damien Lurel. They handed him a jeu à roulette: an old skill game where you guide a wooden wheel between two sticks and race flat-out down the courtyard. Harder than it looks. Speed found out.
He then got a brief tour of the Mémorial itself — a place that holds the weight of the Middle Passage, of slavery, and of the long road to the Guadeloupe of today. A heavy stop in a frantic day, but the right one.
Geedme’s note: The Mémorial ACTe deserves at least two hours, not fifteen minutes. The permanent exhibition traces the history of slavery from antiquity to today, with a specific focus on the Caribbean. It’s one of the most important museums in the region.
Whip-cracking initiation: speed meets the masters
Still on the parvis of the Mémorial ACTe, Speed got another initiation — and this one was much more physical. The president of the Guadeloupean Whip League and the reigning champion of the discipline were waiting to teach him the art of whip-cracking, a tradition that has echoed through Guadeloupean carnival for generations.
The verdict came fast: nothing about it is obvious. The motion looks simple — a sharp flick of the wrist — but producing the clean, powerful snap that defines real fouettards takes years of practice. Speed tried, persisted, and eventually pulled off a few honorable cracks. The pros, meanwhile, watched and smiled.
Boat to îlet du gosier — first taste of the sea
No rest. Onto a sleek boat in full Expedia branding (his Caribbean Tour partner) and off to Îlet du Gosier — a tiny offshore islet famous for its red-and-white lighthouse and crystal-clear water. Waiting for him on the beach: cabri colombo, rice and red beans, chicken, fresh tropical fruit, and lambi (conch) skewers. Streamer life.
geedme’s note: Îlet du Gosier is one of the easiest, most photogenic short trips in Guadeloupe. Boats leave from Le Gosier beach all day, the crossing takes ten minutes, and the water around the lighthouse is as clear as it looks on the stream. Bring a snorkel.
Jet ski chaos (and one lost phone)
A jet ski ride was always going to deliver. It delivered — including the moment Speed lost his phone somewhere between Le Gosier and the open sea. Classic. He shook it off and pulled into Anse Tabarin beach, where another massive crowd had been camping out, waiting to catch his last hour on the island.
Geedme’s note: jet ski tours in Guadeloupe usually run along the southern coast — Le Gosier, Sainte-Anne, Saint-François — or out to the protected lagoon of Petit Cul-de-Sac Marin. Most operators offer half-day excursions with stops on uninhabited islets. Phone pouches strongly recommended
The climb to parc paysager du calvaire
Final boss. At the top of the hilltop park overlooking Le Gosier, fitness influencer Glady waited for him. After a full day of running, eating, dancing, and jet-skiing, Speed gave it everything he had left — and closed his Guadeloupe stop the way he started it: out of breath and laughing.
The ride back: an unofficial motorcade to the airport
If there’s one moment that summed up the day, it was the ride from Le Gosier back to Maryse Condé Airport. Dozens — maybe hundreds — of motorcyclists pulled wheelies, rode in formation, and self-organized into an unofficial escort all the way to the terminal. No permits. No coordination. Just people who wanted to send him off properly.
Then he flew to St. Kitts and Nevis. The stream moved on. Guadeloupe didn’t.
Thank you, Speed.
How you can walk in ishowspeed’s footsteps without the 3-hour countdown
Speed had a job to do and 180 minutes to do it across an archipelago of six islands. His team gave him the highlight reel: a rushed tasting menu of culture, food, and adrenaline. It worked for the stream.
But you’re not a streamer with a flight to St. Kitts in three hours. So here’s how to actually enjoy the route — at the pace it deserves.
Slow down in pointe-à-pitre
The economic capital of Guadeloupe rewards anyone willing to stay more than thirty minutes:
Saturday gwoka sessions on Rue Piétonne — open, free, electric.
Pointe-à-Pitre by tuk-tuk — small-group rides through the historic streets. ➡️ En savoir plus
Pointe-à-Pitre street art tours — the city has quietly become one of the most colorful in the Caribbean. ➡️ En savoir plus
Architectural walking tours of the colonial-era buildings, the Saint-Pierre and Saint-Paul cathedral, and the spice market. voir plus
Mémorial ACTe — visited slowly, not in fifteen minutes. The museum deserves at least two hours.
Carnival — if your trip lands between January and Fat Tuesday, change every other plan.
Actually try the water
Guadeloupe is a sea kingdom, and three hours barely scratches the surface.
Boat excursions to Petit-Terre or La Désirade — protected waters, sea turtles, frigate birds, lemon sharks in the channel.
Jet ski tours along the southern coast or into the lagoon.
Kayaking in the Réserve Cousteau off Bouillante or around Les Saintes.
Mangrove cruises in the Grand Cul-de-Sac Marin, one of the largest mangrove ecosystems in the Lesser Antilles.
Every kind of water — lagoon, river, mangrove, open sea — is within an hour’s drive.
Eat your way through the islandl’île au complet
Speed got the sampler menu. You can get the full one.
Bokit — the deep-fried bread sandwich. Best from a roadside stand on the way to the beach.
Sorbet coco — coconut sorbet, hand-cranked under a tree, sold by sorbet makers who’ve been doing it for forty years.
Colombo — the Antillean curry. Goat, chicken, or pork; every family has its version.
Local confectionery — sucre d’orge, tablettes coco, doucelettes, kilibibi.
Agoulou — bokit’s bigger, messier cousin.
Lambi (conch) — grilled, in fricassée, or in a creole sauce.
➡️ Découvrez l’essentiel des spécialités culinaires locales en Guadeloupe
Meet the people
Guadeloupe’s culture isn’t in monuments. It’s in the artisans, fishermen, farmers, drummers, distillers, beekeepers, and chefs who keep it alive every day.
Workshops in pottery, Creole language lessons, traditional cooking classes, agroforestry visits, beekeeping sessions, rum distillery tours, and gwoka initiations are all bookable — and the experience always beats the brochure.
This is the side of Guadeloupe Speed didn’t have time for. It’s also the one that stays with visitors longest.
Plan your own guadeloupe trip
Whether you found us through Speed’s stream or you’ve been planning a Caribbean trip for months — Guadeloupe is closer and easier than most people think. Direct flights from Paris, Montréal, Miami, and the Caribbean hubs land at Maryse Condé Airport. Car rentals start the day you arrive.
And every activity Speed touched yesterday — and the dozens he didn’t have time for — is bookable on Geedme, the local platform built by Guadeloupeans for travelers who want the real version of the island.
