Martha

How has the eruption of the volcano on Montserrat influenced water clarity, the coral reefs, etc on neighboring islands? There hasn't been any news coverage lately on the volcano. Has anyone been in this area recently?

We are going to be on St. Kitts in March and were wondering how the snorkelling will be.

LJ

Little effect on St. Kitts, occasionally a little ash in
the sky when the winds shift. Otherwise the winds blow south and no effect on St. Kitts. The islands are almost 90 miles apart.

Call the tourist board to check.

LJ

Little effect on St. Kitts, occasionally a little ash in
the sky when the winds shift. Typically the winds blow south and no effect on St. Kitts. The islands are about 90 miles apart.

Call the tourist board to check.

Fran

Martha: My husband and I just returned from a great week diving in St. Kitts. The island is the most beautiful one I have seen. It's as pretty as a picture with spectacular mountains reaching into the clouds. There are relatively no beaches since the island is volcanic. I'm not sure about the snorkling but our divemaster told us that the volcano in Montserrat has definitely affected the visibility of the water. The ash dropping in has enriched the plankton. The fish love it but the visibility was about 50-60 feet when we were there. Alot different than the Caymans and Provo in Turks. They also fish the waters so alot of the large fish are gone. Tour the rainforest, it's a must see. Pay close attention, there are monkeys roaming the island and you can see them early in the morning and at dusk. Have a great trip and e-mail if you need more info. Fran

Bob

Fran:
I see that you recently traveled to St. Kitts. My wife and I are going there on Jan. 26th. I would love to hear any comments/suggestions you have about the island, restaurants, Mt. Liamunga (sp.?), beaches, nightlife, etc.
We are staying at Horizon Villa Resort, which we read briefly about in Conde Nast Traveler. Do you know anything about it? Apparently it is near Frigate Bay.
I understand that the beaches are not terrific, although Banana Bay is supposed nice. Did you get there? Is Nevis worth the day trip?
Any comments would be most appreciated. Thanks! Happy Holidays.

Fran

Bob: In answer to your questions, I think I saw the Horizon Villa Resort when we were in the Frigate Bay Beach area but I really don't remember it. There is a cluster of hotel/condo places in one area in the Frigate Beach area and a small public beach in the center. It is frequented by all the hotel guests who either walk there or take a taxi and also the natives go there. You can rent wave runners there. The water is rather dark blue on the west coast (Caribbean side) as opposed to the eastern coast (the atlantic side) which is more caribbean looking but has alot more waves. Figure it out. We ate at our hotel the whole week since we were exhausted after our diving. The restaurant at the Bird Rock Beach Resort was very good. We didn't hear about Banana Bay. Friends of ours went to Nevis for the day on the ferry and had a great time. They said the island is incredible. They also said the roads were really in bad condition and had to ride around all the livestock etc. and huge holes in the road. The restaurants there are more exclusive. Definitely take a tour of the rainforest with Greg's Safari's. He did an excellent job and we had a great day. We visited the Batik Village and Brimstone Hill also. The view was spectacular. It only takes an hour and a half to get around the whole island so rent a car and tour. The atlantic side is very beautiful. They bottle a pineapple soda called Ting and they serve "Ting with a Zing" You must taste it. The zing they refer to is a rum called CRS that is bottled also on the island. Good stuff. Have a good time. Feel free to e-mail me if you need anything else. Make sure you stay with the same taxi driver all week if you need. We got ripped off when we were leaving after all our bags were in the taxi. The guy charged us double. We left feeling kind of disheartened. Have a good trip. Fran