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Navigating St. Kitts & Nevis: Coral Reefs, Rainforests, Volcanoes, And More

Accordion Content

Overview

Introduction

From white sandy beaches that line the islands’ 135km of coastline to exhilariting rainforests and dormant volcanoes, St. Kitts & Nevis are a tropical paradise.  The island’s natural beauty, charming harbors, historical sites, and diverse range of activities have been able to capture the hearts of many celebrities including:  Michael J. Fox, Oprah Winfrey, Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Zones.  St. Kitts & Nevis are guaranteed to provide visitors with a dream vacation they will never forget. 

Geography

Saint Kitts & Nevis are two volcanic islands in the Caribbean Sea approximately one-third of the way from Puerto Rico to Trinidad and Tobago with coastlines that fit the shape of a baseball bat and ball.  The Narrows is a 3km-wide channel that separates the baseball bat-shaped, Saint Kitts from its ball-shaped sister island, Nevis.  Mount Liamuiga is the highest point on St. Kitts at 1,156m or 3,792ft while Nevis Peak at 985m or 3,232 ft remains the highest point on the island of Nevis.

History

The Caribbean, as it is called today, received its name from the Carib Indians who were the original settlers of St. Kitts & Nevis and many other islands in the Caribbean.  Eventhough Christopher Columbus discovered St. Kitts & Nevis during his second voyage in 1493, it was Sir Thomas Warner who claimed Saint Kitts for the British in 1623 and subsequently named the island “St. Christopher” .  Sir Warner, his family, and fourteen others began colonizing the St.Kitts and remained the only non-Spanish European settlers of the island until 1625 when they were joined by the French.  The British and French eradicated the Caribs from St. Kitts in 1626 shortly after joining forces only to later find themselves battling eachother for control of Saint Kitts and the surrounding islands.  These battles continued for over 100 years until 1784 when the Treaty of Versailles gave the British permanent control.  In 1967, St. Kitts-Nevis-Anguilla became an Associated State of the United Kingdom with full internal autonomy.  Anguilla rebelled in 1971 and was allowed to secede.  St. Kitts & Nevis finally gained their independence in 1983.

Economy

Of all the English colonies in the Caribbean, St. Kitts was known to be the wealthiest due to its many sugar plantations that lined the island back in the 1700’s.  Although sugar cane was the main source of income in St. Kitts and Nevis for many years, its production diminished in the late nineteenth century after slavery was abolished.  Despite the high costs to grow, harvest, and process sugar cane, St. Kitts remains the only Leeward Island in the Caribbean to still grow it.  The tourism industry has replaced sugar cane as the staple of the islands’ economy.  Other industries contributing to the economy of St. Kitts and Nevis are offshore banking and export-oriented manufacturing.

Location:
  • Caribbean
  • Saint Kitts and Nevis
Keywords: diving guides, st. kitts and nevis, mv river taw, skin diver magazine, sandy point, devil's cavern, coconut tree reef, the vents, ponds bar, monky shoals Author:
Melissa Gwaldis
Related Tags: Diving Guides