Diving & Snorkeling in St. Kitts & Nevis

Diving & Snorkeling

St. Kitts

Though unheralded as a dive destination, St. Kitts has more than a dozen excellent sites, and the government hopes to increase their visibility by creating several new marine parks. The surrounding waters feature shoals, hot vents, shallows, canyons, steep walls, and caverns at depths from 40 to nearly 200 feet. The St. Kitts Maritime Archaeological Project, which surveys, records, researches, and preserves the island's underwater treasures, has charted several hundred wrecks of galleons, frigates, and freighters dating back to the 17th century. Bloody Bay Reef is noted for its network of underwater grottoes daubed with purple anemones, sienna bristle worms, and canary-yellow sea fans that seem to wave you in. Coconut Tree Reef, one of the largest in the area, includes sea fans, sponges, and anemones, as well as the Rocks, three enormous boulders with impressive multilevel diving. The only drift dive site, Nags Head has strong currents, but experienced divers might spot gliding rays, lobsters, turtles, and reef sharks. Since it sank in 50 feet of water in the early 1980s, the River Taw makes a splendid site for less-experienced divers. Sandy Point Reef has been designated a National Marine Park, including Paradise Reef, with swim-through 90-foot sloping canyons, and Anchors Away, where anchors have been encrusted with coral formations. The 1985 wreck of the Talata lies in 70 feet of water; barracudas, rays, groupers, and grunts dart through its hull.

Dive St. Kitts (2 mi [3 km] east of Basseterre, Frigate Bay. 869/465-1189. www.divestkitts.com), a PADI-NAUI facility, offers competitive prices; friendly, laid-back dive masters; and a more international clientele. The Bird Rock location features superb beach diving: common sightings 20 to 30 feet out include octopi, nurse sharks, manta and spotted eagle rays, and sea horses. Shore dives are unlimited when you book packages. Kenneth Samuel of Kenneth's Dive Center (Bay Rd., Newtown. 869/465-2670. www.kennethsdivecenter.com), a PADI company, takes small groups of divers with C cards to nearby reefs. Rates average $40 for single-tank dives, $75 for double-tank dives; add $10 to $15 for equipment. Night dives, including lights, are $70, and snorkeling trips (four-person minimum) are $35, drinks included. After 25 years' experience, former fisherman Samuel is considered an old pro and strives to keep groups small and prices reasonable. Austin Macleod, a PADI-certified dive master-instructor and owner of Pro-Divers (Ocean Terrace Inn, Basseterre. 869/466-3483. www.prodiversstkitts.com), offers resort and certification courses running $90-$390. He offers free introductory scuba courses twice weekly at Ocean Terrace Inn. He also takes groups to snorkeling sites accessible only by boat.

Nevis

The Devil's Caves are a series of grottoes where divers can navigate tunnels, canyons, and underwater hot springs while viewing lobsters, sea fans, sponges, squirrel fish, and more. The village of Jamestown, which washed into the sea around Fort Ashby, just south of Cades Bay, makes for superior snorkeling and diving. Reef-protected Pinney's Beach offers especially good snorkeling. Single-tank dives are usually $65, two-tank dives $95.

Scuba Safaris (Oualie Beach. 869/469-9518. www.scubanevis.com) is a PADI five-star facility, NAUI Dream Resort, and NASDS Examining Station, whose experienced dive masters offer everything from a resort course to full certification. They also provide a snorkeling learning experience that enables you not only to see but to listen to sealife, including whales and dolphins. Under the Sea (Oualie Beach. 869/469-1291. www.undertheseanevis.com) is the brainchild of Barbara Whitman, a marine biologist from Connecticut. Barbara's mission is to orient snorkelers and divers of all ages about sea life and various ecosystems so they'll appreciate -- and respect -- what they see. Using hands-on "touch tanks," videos, and self-painted marine murals as familiarization tools, she then offers snorkeling lessons and tours to see the creatures in the wild. Her programs range from $25, and profits go toward educating local school children about their precious natural environment and increasing ecological awareness.