St Kitts & Nevis in April
 

My wife and I are going to St Kitts and staying at the Marriott for a week in April. We love the beaches and snorkling but also love to hike and explore the area. It appears that a trip to Nevis is a definite day trip. Anything else that is a must do while we are there? I would really appreciate any suggestions for day trips, fun local bars or restaurants, hikes or anything else that was a favorite for you. Thanks.

billnc,

A day trip to Nevis is well worth doing--hire a taxi to take you on a round the island tour.

There is a lot of information here on St. Kitts (do a search)--visit Brimstone Hill Fortress, take a rain forest walk or climb to the volcano. Go out on a catamaran snorkel trip and explore the beaches on the Southern peninsula. You may want to rent a car to make it easier to explore.

For specific St. Kitts/Nevis information including a lot of restaurant recommendations, visit http://myislands.myeyez.net/forum/ and www.nevisforum.com.

Those forums will tell you everything, and you can ask any other questions you may have.

Definitely a day on Nevis--my opinion is relative of course, but I strongly prefer Nevis over st. Kitts.

I agree with cw's suggestions of Fort Brimstone. Go early before any cruise ship passengers descent on the location and you'll have the place to yourself--it's a gorgeous location with the sea and views of Saba and Statia stretching in one direction and the green slopes of Mt. Liamuiga in another direction.

Drive around the island one day. Stop at the Golden Lemon near Dieppe Bay for a splendid lunch. Check out the black lava rocks on the north/east coast. Drive down the peninsula and enjoy some time sampling the beach bars. Meet Wilbur the Pig. Stop by in town to do a little shopping. Caribelle Batik (I may have spelled that incorrectly) is one nice shop, but there are others, too.

Thanks. Are the mountain/volcano hikes really strenuous with a need for hiking boots and a guide or a nice trail that would be okay with running shoes? Also, it sounds like one or two days is plenty of time to rent a car and see the island. I was glad to hear ejcrowe prefers Nevis and cw suggestion to hire a taxi to see the island because we were not sure about the Nevis trip. Thanks again for your time.

Check out Caribelle batik where it's made rather than in Basseterre. Here's a link to their website. Romney Manor is worth visiting even if you're not interested in buying the hand made batiks.

http://www.caribellebatikstkitts.com/Faq/faq.asp

Most people recommend a guide for the volcano hike. It's slippery (humid, rainforest) and hiking shoes would really be better than sneakers but you can make do if you'd rather not bring hiking shoes. The round trip takes about 3 hours with a guide. I haven't done it for 20 years but back then it was easy... now I'd describe it as a moderate hike (fairly steep in parts with tree roots to negotiate). Look out for hermit crabs along the way.

My husband and I (both in our 50's at the time) did the hike to the top of the volcano a couple years ago. I have to admit it was tougher than I anticipated. I had good hiking/walking shoes, was certainly glad for the good traction. There was more 'climbing' than I anticipated, having to use vines to pull yourself up large 'steps'.

We had a marvelous time, but were exhausted when we got back to the base. We had lunch at the top, had to closely guard our food from the maurading mongoose(s). Cute critters, but definitely food thieves.

Definitely use a guide for the trek to the volcano. The route is not well-marked and you will enjoy hearing about your surroundings by a local person. Wear sturdy shoes but you really don't need to bring hiking boots.

When you go to Nevis there will be taxi drivers parked near the ferry. They are quite used to giving round the island tours and will stop anywhere you want. You might have lunch at one of the inns along the way. Golden Rock for beautiful views or Nesbit Beach bar for lunch on the beach.

You can also stop at Pinney's beach just before getting back to town and enjoy a visit to Sunshine's or Chevy's beach bar.

Nevis isn't known for shopping but there is a nice pottery store just outside of Charlestown, Bocane Pottery, which has beautiful locally made plates, bowls, etc. It's nice to bring back something from the islands. Enjoy!

My problem would be where to eat

Sunshines? I see they have rebuilt it after Omar.
Nisbet? Nice food and staff - we've stayed there twice
For a one off my choice would be Golden Rock - nice food and a tropical setting, if you are lucky you'll see the monkeys

I bet next time you'll choose to stay on Nevis - It's a wonderful island. :-)

I'm sure you will agree with alya after your visit.

We spent a week in Nevis and there were so many "must eats". I can't imagine choosing St Kitts over Nevis, but hope you have a great trip!

We split our trip between St. Kitts and Nevis, and, if we should return to the islands, I'd do the same again. I really enjoyed both islands.

Billnc I am from Nevis an there are so many things that you can do here while visiting Nevis such as exploring Nevis Peak, Visiting the island historical sites and most of all the lovely local bars that we have. There is a new restaurant that was open by the name of Lime Cafe very nice for Lunch. If you need any further info please feel free to contact me

We are also staying at the Marriott St. Kitts in April. We read about a Catamaran sail from St. Kitts to Nevis. The day includes snorkeling and lunch on the beach. On another day we plan to take a tour of Nevis. Any suggestions on where to stop for a nice lunch?

There are numerous places to have lunch on Nevis. On the catamaran day sail you'll be stopping for lunch at one of the beach bars on Pinney's Beach (most likely Sunshine's) so when you go over for your second trip you'll probably want something different.

Consider stopping at one of the Plantation Inns for a nice leisurely lunch up on the mountainside. There are several inns located about mid-way around the island from the ferry dock that, timing wise, would be perfect if you are planning to circumvent the island. The Hermitage, Montpelier, Golden Rock or Old Manor are in close proximity to one another. They are located at the edge of the rain forest and offer lunch in a quiet garden settings. Dining at any of these is like going back to yesteryear when sugar was King and Nevis was the Queen of the Caribbean. Another very nice lunch spot is 1787 at the Botanical Gardens. There you can have lunch in a pastoral setting with great views of Nevis Peak and the Caribbean. If you'd like something more casual try having lunch at Nisbet's Beach Bar where you'll get friendly service and top notch food just steps from one of the nicest beaches on the island. If you are visiting on a Thursday through Sunday you might like Gallipot where you can dine while overlooking the Caribbean and St. kitts. On Sundays they offer a wonderful traditional English style Roast Beef and Yorkshire Pudding brunch. If you want something more upscale (with prices to match) try Coconut Grove (it's near Nelson Springs). A new beachside restaurant that has resently opened to good reviews is Chrishi at the Inn at Cades Bay.

If you want "beach bars" you have your choice of the aforementioned Sunshine's, Double Deuce, Lime, Chevy's (currently closed but in the process of rebuilding after being damaged by Hurricane Hugo) - all on Pinney's Beach.

If you want "local cusine" there's V's Courtyard, Rodney's, and Home Breeze.

Don't worry, you won't go hungry on Nevis.

Hello,
The Marriott St. Kitts better to be in the main building or one of the outer buildings?

Thanks

Take a trip to the South Peninsula on St Kitts and vist the beaches and beach bars there, inlcuding Turtle Beach (great restaurant), Cockleshell (great beach bar) Majors Bay. Just the drive down there is an experience!

Again, we are staying on St. Kitts and will be taking the ferry to Nevis. What about renting a car on Nevis instead of using a cab? I think I would prefer to go at my own pace instead of having a guided tour at least for one day. Any thoughts?

Will you be renting a car on St. Kitts as well? If so, you may be able to make arrangements with your rental agency to use a car in Nevis for the day. There is also the Seabridge (car ferry) to Nevis. You would have to verify that your car rental agency allowed you to take the car over.

To get to your original question: renting a car and doing it yourself is very doable. There is one main road around the island--you can't get lost. Though, unless you have done some research, you may miss some of the sights you'd see with a guide/taxi driver. The drivers are flexible, will do what you want, and will either wait for you or come back and pick you up from any place.

We did both on different day trips from St. Kitts. Each has its advantages, but given a choice I like doing things on my own. It's easier to explore and you can go and spend time where you want. If you do it on your own, take the turnoff towards the racetrack and Windward Beach. It's a dead end eventually, but it's a scenic detour on the Atlantic side. The street would be off the main road going counter-clockwise from Charlestown, between the turnoff for the Hermitage and Golden Rock Plantation.

Enjoy!

cw-Thanks for the information on the rental car for Nevis. It really did help and now we might get a taxi the first day and rent a taxi the second day but we still like to do our own thing. We will definitely take the turnoff towards the racetrack for the Atlantic scenic trip. Thanks again.

If you are interested in doing a tour while you are in St. Kitts check out http://www.stkittstourstore.com

You can book all the island excursions there.