My family of 5 will spend the better part of the week on Nevis at the end of this month. While we will stay at the hotel (Oualie) and its beach most of the time, we will explore the island on one or two days as well, likely going into Charlestown and out for a hike and/or the botanical gardens. Are we better off renting a car or cabbing it? If renting, any recommendations? Thanks!

As you are a large family, I would suggest hiring a taxi to show all of you the sights.
You will also be able to look around instead of paying attention as a driver.
Taxis on Nevis are minivans which will give all of you alot of space.
A good man to ask for is Marlon Brando.
Very knowledgable, personable and a nice van.
Aday trip to St Kitts is very do-able too.
Take the early ferry around 7:30 am and either go to Turtle Beach where there is a huge troop of monkeys or head up to see the World Heritage site of Brimstone Hill. A huge 18th century fort high on a hill with a breath taking view of islands yet further to the North.
Have a great time!

Definitely hire Marlon Brando to take you around. He's knowledgable, friendly, and very accomodating. He can usually be found hanging around Nesbit Plantation when he isn't hired out. Have a great time. You'll love it!

I , on the other hand, would recommend renting a car of your own to get out and explore the island. The roads are good, it's fun to make your way from one place to another, and it gives you a much greater flexibility. If one of you sees something out the window that you want to know more about, just pull off the side of the road to check it out--whether it's a secluded beach, an unusual flower, or just a great photo op of Mt. Nevis shrouded in a cloud. Not that you couldn't do these things with a hired car, but it does mean that nobody else has to keep on your schedule.

Nevis is a wonderful island and I'm sure you'll enjoy your time there.

As a followup to ejcrowe's suggestion, there are blue Heritage signs all over Nevis, indicating the way to tiny historic sights. It is great fun to explore these - the kids would love climbing around the lime kilns, visiting the racetrack, checking out the overgrown ruins along these short trails.

Here's what I recommend - hire a taxi for a tour of the island - Marlon is perfect for this, he's a terrific guy, but if he is not available the people at Oualie Beach can recommend someone equally as capable. The tour will give you the general layout of the island and you'll see all the highlights. After that, rent a car for most or the remainder of your stay. That will allow you to fully explore the island and to come and go as you please. you will also have a familarity with the islnd from your taxi tour. The tour will probably cost you around $60 to $70US. The rental car will run you about $45US per day. If you make several r/t's in a taxi each day (say to visit a beach, go out to lunch and then another trip for dinner) you'll find the costs with tips will add up to more than a rental car.

Have a great time in Nevis! I'm sure you and your family will love it.

Definitely go to St. Kitts for the day. Visit Turtle Beach www.turtlebeach1.com, walk around Basseterre and The Circus, lime with the locals at South Frigate Bay, take a rainforest tour with Greg's Safaris. www.gregssafaris.com

Be sure to post a Trip Report when you return.

A website you might enjoy is www.discover-stkitts-nevis-beaches.com

Sunnyboy ALWAYS has great ideas. Go with that!

Sweege, my husband and I recently returned from Nevis. We rented a cottage just across the road from Oalie. Great choice. You will love the hotel - they are very kid friendly. We were there over Halloween and they had a great costume party for the little ones. I got the impression that the management is very family oriented. The rooms open out onto the beach. The food was very good, and everyone there was super friendly - and we weren't even guests. Be sure to check out Barbara Whitman's Under The Sea adventure - for snorkeling with the kids while learning. We were signed up to go with this nice lady (but I got sick) and we thought she had a first-rate operation, located right there at Oalie. There is also a big sightseeing pontoon boat at Oalie, that makes a daily trek across the channel over to Turtle Beach on St. Kitts - in case you wanted an easy way to travel to STK but didn't feel like going into Charlestown for the ferry...

Sometimes a person just feels like renting a car for a car for a couple of days or maybe they don't make up their mind until after they get there. Is Sweege or other Nevis goers (like us!)going to have a problem with availabilty if we wait until after we get to Nevis and WHO do you recommend we rent from?

I don't know about availability, but we reserved from TDC Thrifty, via email. The car was waiting for us at our villa, and they simply told us to come into town the next day to do the paperwork, which we did.

They also provide a free car in St. Kitts (if you rent for a week I think). All we did was park "our" car at the Nevis ferry dock, walk a couple of blocks to find the Thrifty office in St. Kitts, and off we went for our own tour of the island! Upon our return, we stopped at the office, they inspected the car and drove us back to the ferry dock. Great service. I believe this perk is subject to availability, especially on cruise ship days. Also, the cars are somewhat beat up, but the flip side is that TDC was very fair - even casual - about that. No problems, and I would rent from them again.

Another tip, off topic: Money. Bringing cash and exchanging at a Nevis bank for EC dollars will save you $$. Although US dollars are accepted everywhere, the exchange rate is at the whim of the shopkeeper. Also, some credit card companies charge a hefty exchange fee when you charge in EC and it is then converted to US dollars on the bill. Spending cash eliminates this expense. Besides, it's fun to figure out those EC's after a few Killer Bees!

There are plenty of car rental companies on Nevis and generally you won't have a problem getting a car on short notice. The exceptions are the weeks surrounding Christmas and New Year's and sometimes President's Day week. These are the busiest times on any Caribbean island, Nevis included, so if you are planning to travel on those dates you should consider making advanced arrangements. Other times it's not usually a problem. Rentals are available from Hertz, Noel's (the local Avis affiliate), TDC, Claude Nisbett, Parry's and the aforementioned Marlon Brando, to name a few. You hotel staff will be more than happy to help arrange a rental car for you.