Just got back from St. Kitts. Any questions?

Old Jan 27th, 2000, 08:03 AM
  #1  
julie
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Just got back from St. Kitts. Any questions?

I just returned from a wonderful week in St. Kitts. Does anybody have any questions?
 
Old Jan 27th, 2000, 09:58 AM
  #2  
Denise
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
I am looking for an island to visit this spring. I've been to a few, but St. Kitts is not one of them. How was it? I want a romantic, quaint and clean island to visit. I also like a place where there is a little night life and good shopping. I can't stand places like the Bahamas where the locals hassel vacationers to buy things on the beach. Tell me all that you can. Thanks.
 
Old Jan 27th, 2000, 04:16 PM
  #3  
Vanessa
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Denise, I loved St. Kitts and would go back in a minute. But to answer your questions...St. Kitts is very clean, has some night life and next to no shopping. I spent a week at the Jack Tar and was approached only once by a guy trying to sell Aloe leaves. The residents are generally friendly toward the tourists -- I think because they've not been over run yet.
 
Old Jan 28th, 2000, 08:29 AM
  #4  
julie
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
hi denise,

i went to st. kitts with my boyfriend and we both loved it. we would return in a minute.

i, too cannot stand the bahamas or jamacia. they are both far too loud, overdeveloped and crazy for my tastes. i found st. kitts to be very romantic and lovely! the island is not at all overdeveloped as no mcdonalds, high rise condos or hotels are anywhere! you definatley feel you are in the carribbean - not in miami beach.

nightlife is very quiet. i think there is a casino on the island, but we didn't check it out. restaurants are very good - lots of seafood, etc. our nightlife consisted of an early dinner and then sitting on our balcony at the hotel for a few hours talking, drinking pina coladas, etc... very relaxing and incredibly quiet!

st. kitts is definatley not for those who like alot of action, people and american influences - which is why we loved it so much! we did meet several people who were "bored" after a few days as they expected to be partying all night and found the food to be "restrictive" as they wanted to eat at pizza hut and burger king. the natives were friendly and not nearly as aggressive as those in the bahamas. they are generally very proud of their home and anxious to tell you about it. we did, however, run across several natives trying to sell stuff on the beach, but they did not bother or harrass us. st. kitts is a very safe island -

the hotels are very clean and safe. depending on your price range, several hotels are established in old plantation inns (ottley's, etc.) and are incredibly beautiful and very quaint. other more moderate hotels are also very nice and small.

the southern peninsula is totally undeveloped. there is only one establishment (turtle beach bar & grill) on the entire peninsula! it is lovely on that part of the island - deserted little beaches, lots of seclusion.... very wonderful!

as far as shopping goes, you can find better shopping on other islands. we did go shopping one morning and found a few things...

if you have any more questions, please let me know!
 
Old Jan 31st, 2000, 03:48 AM
  #5  
Mike
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
My wife and I are thinking of going to St Kitts this March, and were wondering if we needed to go all inclusive or not. Have you heard anything about Jack Tar village, that is one of our destination choices. How were your choices on restaurants? Did you feel safe outside the resort when sight-seeing? Do recommend renting a car or relying on the resort tours. Any insight you could give us would be greatly appreciated. Thank-you
 
Old Jan 31st, 2000, 03:49 PM
  #6  
Vanessa
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
I stayed at the Jack Tar when I was there in October. The rooms were large and nicely decorated. The food in the restaurants was very good. They kept the selection in the buffet restaurant varied. The service in the a la carte restaurant was poor but the food was good.

We felt totally safe outside the resort. Only once on the beach were we approached to buy anything.

An island tour for up to four people is $60US. The taxi drivers are required to take a course on the island history, etc. so the ones we met were well informed and able to answer all our questions.

We didn't bother with renting a car as we generally found the taxi prices more reasonable than paying car rental. As well, you had to pay for a license (I think they said $20US). And drive on the left-hand side of the road. Something I didn't want to try.
 
Old Feb 1st, 2000, 03:42 AM
  #7  
Mike
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Thanks for the info Vanessa your help is appreciated.
 
Old Feb 4th, 2000, 10:59 AM
  #8  
julie
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Hi Mike -

We did not stay at Jack Tar, but walked by the resort several times. I am not a fan of all-inclusive resorts as I prefer to explore and do my own thing. My impression of the Jack Tar Village was it was very average. The resort grounds are not spectacular, but they did appear to be clean.

Restaurants on St. Kitts are very good. Many specialize in local seafood dishes. However, they are somewhat expensive. We asked some natives who worked at our hotel and they recommended some more "local" places and we enjoyed those very much. I am sure an all-inclusive might save you money in the long run - if you eat all meals at the hotel, but you would be missing out an many fine dining experiences.

As for car rental, we did rent a car for the first few days. We are not really fans of organized tours as we enjoyed researching destinations and driving around by ourselves. We did enjoy the car very much! However, most people we met did not rent cars. Taxis are always very readily available all over, but we found the taxis to be very expensive - especially if you want to be driven into town and to the beaches on the southeast peninsula on the same day. You can find moderate car rental prices - our jeep was only $40 US daily. A roundtip cab from Frigate Bay to Basseterre will be $16 while a roundtip cab from Frigate Bay to the southeast peninsula (Turtle Beach) is about $20-25 US.

The island is quite safe - not at all like some of the other islands I have visited. The natives are very friendly and very proud of their island.

I wish you luck on your vacation - I am sure you will have a wonderful and memorable time!

- Julie
 
Old Feb 6th, 2000, 05:19 PM
  #9  
Mike
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Thanks alot for the info Julie I really appreciate it.
 
Old Feb 9th, 2000, 09:11 AM
  #10  
NiNi
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
I will be going to St. Kitts in September for my honeymoon. We will be staying at the Jack Tar Village...any comments??? There seem to be many conflicting reports about the hotel itself...do they have hairdryers!?! I also want to know if we are being foolhardy about traveling to St. Kitts during the hurricane season...should we go to Aruba instead!?! I have traveled to the Bahamas during the hurrican season with no problems except rain (it is warm rain anyway). However, the Bahamas is more north than St. Kits. I need HELP!
 
Old Feb 9th, 2000, 02:02 PM
  #11  
Vanessa
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
I quite enjoyed the Jack Tar. All-inclusives generally aren't my favourite way of travelling but I found most of the staff very accomodating and was surprised by the quality of the food for an all-inclusive. And, yes, there are hairdryers in the room.

Hurricane season is always iffy. I was there in October 1999 -- just one week before the hurricane hit. We had wonderful weather.

I was Aruba in October a few years ago and we had a bit of rain everyday. I loved Aruba too.

Comparisons? More shopping in Aruba. More history on St. Kitts. St. Kitts is a prettier island. More to do on Aruba. Both have some great beaches. Less tourism on St. Kitts.

Have a great time wherever you decide!
 
Old Feb 10th, 2000, 10:39 AM
  #12  
NiNi
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Thanks! I think that lack of shopping is a good thing for me (ha! ha!)...less opportunity to get myself into trouble!
I have made up my mind to keep our honeymoon on St. Kitts, we are looking forward to the volcano and rainforest excursions. We both like to explore and will enjoy less people around...besides you can't beat the price!!!

Thanks for your input, I appreciate it greatly and will be happy to give everyone another update.
 
Old Feb 13th, 2000, 01:22 PM
  #13  
spanous
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Is there a lot of noise from the nearby airport? We were going to book the jack tar, but the website says that the airport close. Is it too close??
 
Old Feb 15th, 2000, 01:28 PM
  #14  
julie
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
hi spanous -

do not worry about hearing airplanes at jack tar. i promise - you will never hear any. the only thing you may hear is the nearby atlantic ocean crashing against the beach! st. kitts definatley does not suffer from noise pollution.

have a great time!
 
Old Jan 24th, 2001, 12:52 PM
  #15  
Laura
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Hi Julie,

After reading your post I was happy to hear that you enjoy the same type of vacation as my husband and I do.

We have been looking at the Ocean Terrace Inn but there are some negatives, ie. cruise port.

What about other non-inclusive resorts that are in a moderate price range? How about your rating of them?

Laura

 
Old Jan 25th, 2001, 11:21 AM
  #16  
Robin
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Can anyone tell me how the golf course was at the Jack Jar Village. We are planning to go there in march of this year and I am planning to bring my clubs down
 
Old Jan 25th, 2001, 12:28 PM
  #17  
Allison
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
I have read the posts on this site about the two places I am going to ask about, but since a few of you were just there, I thought I'd ask you:
1.)What did you think about Ottley's Plantation? Did you get a chance to see their beach?
2.) What about the Golden Lemon?
3.) Did you go to Nevis for a day trip? or do people not do that?
Thanks for your help. Trying to plan our honeymoon....
 
Old Jan 25th, 2001, 12:54 PM
  #18  
mary
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
How are the beaches and the water? Is it a turquoise blue? How is the snorkeling? Thank you.
 

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are On


Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Manage Preferences - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information -