Saint Kitts and Nevis. Tourism Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Kitts and Nevis Mauritius

Saint Kitts and Nevis is a small country in the Caribbean Sea. The country is located on two islands: Nevis and St. Kitts. They belong to the Lesser Antilles.

Columbus named St. Kitts after St. Christopher, who is the patron saint of travelers. Over the years, navigators shortened the saint’s name for convenience to “Keats.”

But the island of Nevis received this name because of the mountain peaks shrouded in snow-white clouds, because its name literally translates as “our snow lord.”

Population	49,898 people
Population density	164 people/km²
	English
Religion	Anglican Church, Methodists, Catholicism
Form of government	parliamentary monarchy
	East Caribbean dollar
Timezone
International dialing code
Domain zone
Electricity

Climate and weather

Saint Kitts and Nevis has a tropical climate, formed under the influence of the trade winds. It's hot and humid here. Average temperature is +26 °С, may fluctuate slightly.

There is no clearly defined rainy season here - precipitation falls relatively evenly throughout the year.

The islands are in an area that is often subject to severe tropical storms, especially from August to October. Sometimes hurricanes cause quite significant damage.

Nature

Both islands are of volcanic origin and the landscape is mountainous.

The island of St. Kitts is located on the slopes of a massive volcanic formation Liamuiga. In the southeast it is adjacent to a flat peninsula with many salt lakes.

In the center of St. Kitts, the mountainous part is covered with dense tropical forest. In the north, in the foothills, there are plantations of sugar cane and other crops. The southern slopes are sharper and covered with orchards. Numerous rivers flow from the mountain slopes, which well moisten the central part of the island.

The peninsula in the south is dry. Herbs and shrubs grow here. The shores are sandy and form many bays.

Across the Strait Narrows you can reach the neighboring island of Nevis. It is almost half the size of St. Kitts. Here, in the center of the island, there is a dormant volcano of the same name. Nevis is formed by volcanic rocks. Tropical forests grow on the eastern slopes, and palm trees cover the western slopes, forming coconut groves.

The forests are home to exotic birds, butterflies, and various species of monkeys. Pelicans build nests on the banks.

Coral reefs fringe picturesque shallow lagoons off the coast. There are a lot of fish in the lagoons.

Attractions

Most of the historic buildings of Basseterre, the country's capital, were destroyed by fire in 1867. However, some of the Victorian-style buildings, with wooden second floors and excellent stucco, still survive.

Unique is Fort Street. This is a street with original architecture: here the old fortress walls were simply included in the construction during the construction of houses.

The city also has its own little secret: some of the buildings seem ancient, but they are not. They were built at the end of the 19th century. True, from sooty stones that remained from houses destroyed after a fire.

On the main square of the city there is a statue of a maiden who crowns the central fountain. This statue was presented to the city by Queen Elizabeth II on the Islands' Independence Day. This square was previously home to a slave market, but now serves as a reminder of the country's colonial past.

A few kilometers west of Basseterre - and you will find yourself in an ancient seaside village Old Road Town. It arose on the spot where the first colonialists landed in the 17th century. At one time there was even the capital of Saint Kitts and Nevis.

Now it is a quiet and beautiful town, where the Government House, built of red brick, has been preserved, as well as the marble tomb of Sir Warner, who is the founder of this town.

On the rocks around the village you can find many petroglyphs of the Carib Indians, the first inhabitants of St. Kitts.

There is a botanical garden where the adobe tree grows, dating back over 350 years! This is the oldest tree on the island.

The island of Nevis is famous for its city Charlestown. It is known as an open-air colonial architecture museum. There are many well-preserved buildings from the 17th-19th centuries in the city center.

While in Charlestown, be sure to visit the Nevis Historical Museum. The building itself was built in the Georgian style on the site where the outstanding Hamilton was born. The museum, in addition to an exhibition on the history of the island, has a collection of portraits of Hamilton.

Nutrition

Chefs of local restaurants are constantly trying to add something new to the cuisine that has been developing on the islands for many years. Local chefs add notes of Chinese, Creole, continental, Indian, French and Mediterranean cuisines. It turns out to be a kind of cocktail of dishes, but with bright shades of local cuisine.

Traditional dishes here are seafood in a variety of preparations. The meat they eat here is lamb, pork, poultry and even turtle meat.

You should definitely try the local paella made from rice, peas and pigeon meat. They also bake suckling pig in a rather unusual way.

The side dish most often includes rice or vegetables, often peas or potatoes.

For desserts, they prefer fruit pies.

For lunch in a good restaurant you will have to pay at least $25. Although you can find one of the modest restaurants with seafood cuisine. Here you will pay a little less for your food.

Accommodation

Local resorts are quite expensive. Prices for accommodation in a good hotel here start from $225, and if you want a full package of services at one of the fashionable resorts on the islands, you will have to part with an amount of several tens of thousands of dollars.

The cost of living is also high in old plantation estates converted into hotels. For a night in such a hotel you need to pay from several hundred to several thousand dollars.

Entertainment and relaxation

Around the islands in the sea there are about 400 sunken ships that attract divers from all over the world. In addition, there are incredibly many exotic fish in coastal waters.

But not only ships, reefs and fish deserve the attention of divers. Off the western coast of Nevis there are underwater caves that seem to have been created by nature specifically for speleosorkeling.

Activities here include horse riding and golf. There are also tennis courts on the islands.

St. Kitts hosts several festivals throughout the year. The largest is the Carnival, which runs from December 24 to January 2. During the Carnival, colorful costume parades, a calypso music festival, and dance competitions are always held.

In January, Nevis hosts a number of interesting events dedicated to Hamilton's birthday.

Equestrian competitions are held here in June. Also this month, the islands host a Music Festival, which attracts the best jazz and salsa performers from all over the Caribbean islands.

There are also nightclubs where active nightlife enthusiasts can have a great time.

Purchases

To remember St. Kitts and Nevis, tourists usually bring all kinds of sea souvenirs. These include shells, coral crafts, and small handmade boats. Pirate-themed souvenirs are very popular.

If you want to bring home a piece of the local atmosphere, then it is best to buy things made by local artisans: exotic jewelry, bright fabrics, crafts made of wood and coconuts.

Batik would be a great gift from your trip. These are hand-painted fabrics. Sometimes batik is used to make paintings that look very elegant!

Transport

Transport here is not very developed. There is a railway along the coast that serves cotton and sugar cane plantations.

The total length of the islands' roads is just over 300 kilometers, although only a third of them are paved.

Cities on the coasts have ports. The largest ports are located in Basseterre in St. Kitts and Charlestown on Nevis.

There are also airports here. Flights are accepted to St. Kitts Golden Rock, and on Nevis - Newcastle. There are no airlines here.

Public transport and car rental are almost undeveloped.

Connection

On the islands there are three mobile phone standards: GSM 850, GSM 900/1900 And TDMA. Four local operators provide the full range of mobile services.

Roaming is available for subscribers of the largest Russian operators. If your phone fits the standard TDMA, then you can use the phone without a SIM card - using your credit number. At the offices of local operators you can subscribe to their tariffs or rent the telephone sets themselves.

Payphones are installed everywhere, calls on which can be paid with small local coins and cards, which are sold in shops, hotels, pharmacies and at the post office.

You can make an international call from your hotel room, but it will cost you 10-15% more than from a payphone. The connection quality here is very good.

There are many Internet cafes on the islands; they are located in large hotels and on the central streets of cities. They are served by companies Connections And Cable&Wireless.

Safety

Saint Kitts and Nevis can be described as a country with a very low crime rate. Although pickpockets and scammers of all kinds can be found here too. To protect yourself, it is enough to be vigilant. Most often, pickpockets fall victim to ports, airports and other crowded places. Therefore, you should not carry large sums of money and all documents with you. Also, local police do not advise leaving things in cars while they are parked.

Before visiting St. Kitts and Nevis, it is better to get vaccinated against dengue, leptospirosis and hepatitis A.

Drinking water in small towns is practically not chlorinated, unlike water in large cities, so it may be unsuitable for consumption. It is better to prefer bottled water.

The currents off the coast can be very strong, so you should swim very carefully.

Business climate

Saint Kitts and Nevis is a country with a strong and stable economy. The business climate of the islands can be described as very favorable for investment.

A stable political system has developed here. The country stands out due to its low taxes and open economy, so it is quite easy to start a business here.

When registering firms and companies, founders can choose between a regular tax of 35% and obtaining offshore status, which exempts them from paying taxes.

By investing in the economy of St. Kitts and Nevis, you will receive a second citizenship in a short time.

Real estate

Although life in St. Kitts and Nevis is quite expensive, real estate here is cheaper than on other Caribbean islands.

One-room apartments here sell from $120,000. If you want to buy a villa, then a small house with two bedrooms and a beautiful view from the windows will cost you from $230,000. Of course, there are luxury villas on the coast, but their prices are several times higher.

If you like agricultural work, then by paying from $340,000, you can become the owner of an old villa with a large plantation. True, the villa for this price will probably need renovation.

The peculiarity of Saint Kitts and Nevis is that when foreigners purchase real estate, they are granted a second citizenship within four months. Moreover, they do this for all family members and even elderly relatives.

The best time to visit St. Kitts and Nevis is from June to August. It is also called the summer low season. At this time it is dry and cool, and prices are not as high as during the peak winter period.

Offices of companies and government agencies are open from 8:00 to 17:00, with an hour break for lunch at noon. Shops are open from 8:00 to 16:00. Only large supermarkets close a little later, at 18:00.

St. Kitts is an island about which the average Russian tourist knows little. Or rather, he’s unlikely to say where he is. Some will suggest that somewhere in the tropics. And they will be right. But this island is not just paradise. Unlike Eden, from which a person was once expelled, one can live in St. Kitts forever. For a certain bribe, of course. In this article we will tell you about the economic citizenship program operating in this country. Yes, small Saint Kitts with the even smaller island of Nevis is an independent state that is part of the British Commonwealth, headed by the Queen of Great Britain. It is not difficult to guess that the official language here is English, which simplifies communication between tourists and the local population. The currency is the East Caribbean dollar, which is divided into one hundred cents.

Where is it located?

The main island of Saint Kitts and Nevis, photographed from the air, looks like two pearls on the endless expanse of the ocean. Two pieces of sushi form a federation. Moreover, Nevis has the right to freely withdraw from it. St. Kitts was until recently called St. Christopher. Because of this, on old maps you can find a different name for the state. Saint Christopher and Nevis is the smallest state in the Western Hemisphere. And its population is the smallest - fifty thousand people. Below we will talk about the original method that the confederation government used to raise this figure. Where is the state of Saint Kitts and Nevis located? On the world map you need to look for it in the Caribbean Sea. It is part of the archipelago of the Lesser Antilles (Windward) Islands. All borders of this state are maritime. Saint Kitts and Nevis neighbors similar dwarf powers. In the east, the islands are bordered in the north by the French overseas territory of Saint Barthélemy, in the northwest by the special municipality of the Kingdom of the Netherlands of Sint Eustatius, and finally in the southeast by Montserrat.

Geography

The main island, St. Kitts, is located north of Nevis and is separated from it by the three-kilometer Strait of the Narrows. The state can be called mountainous. St. Kitts stretches from southeast to northwest for thirty-seven kilometers. Its entire area is dissected by mountain ranges. The highest point of the island (and the entire dwarf country) is the extinct Lamiuga volcano (one thousand one hundred and fifty-five meters above sea level). In the southeastern extremity, the relief decreases and forms a flat plain occupied by salt lakes. The coastline here is uneven, replete with coves and sandy beaches. The neighboring island of Nevis has an almost circular outline. It is composed of rocks from ancient eruptions. The highest point of this island is the Nevis volcano (almost a thousand meters above sea level). The state is surrounded on all sides by coral reefs. Therefore, tourists on the beaches can enjoy the tranquility of the turquoise lagoons.

Climate

It is determined by the tropical latitudes in which the island of St. Kitts is located. The weather here is wonderful and practically does not change at any time of the year. The islands can confidently be called the dream of Eden come true. The night temperature never drops below eighteen degrees, and on summer days it never rises above thirty. These are the most comfortable conditions for relaxation. But we should not forget about the second name that the Lesser Antilles have - the Windward Islands. The dwarf state lies in the path of tropical hurricanes. They do not happen every year and are most likely from August to October. The rest of the time, warm trade winds blow over St. Kitts and Nevis. The amount of precipitation depends not on the season, but on the altitudinal zone. In the mountains, rain falls from 2000 to 3700 millimeters per year. On the coastal plains the amount of precipitation is half as much. There is no “wet season” as such. But most tourists prefer to come on vacation to tropical islands in the winter - from November to April.

Brief history of the state

The island of St. Kitts, like neighboring Nevis, was discovered in 1493 by Christopher Columbus. However, his expedition, busy searching for India, did not colonize these islands. England did it for them. In 1623 she founded the first colonial settlement in the West Indies at St. Christopher. The French also tried to "stake out" no-man's territory and founded their own fort. None of the Europeans asked the opinion of the local population: in 1626, English and French troops carried out a joint massacre, killing about four thousand Indians. In this regard, the river, on the banks of which the massacre took place, now bears the name Bloody. In the north-west of St. Kitts, Fort Brimstone has been preserved, from where the British seized lands in the Caribbean. This fortress is called the Gibraltar of the tropical seas. In 1783, France, according to the Treaty of Versailles, ceded all rights to the islands of St. Kitts and Nevis to Great Britain. The state gained independence in September 1983. But the Queen of Great Britain continues to be the nominal head of the country.

How to come to the dwarf Caribbean state

In old directories you can read that tourists from the CIS need a visa to be admitted to the island of St. Kitts. This information is outdated. In June two thousand and thirteen, the Russian Foreign Ministry announced a diplomatic achievement. From now on, Russian citizens can visit tropical islands without a visa. However, the total travel time should not exceed three months. However, you can extend your stay on site. A Russian tourist must have a set of documents with him: a foreign passport that will not expire in the next six months, a bank card account statement that indicates your solvency, and return tickets. The lion's share of tourists arrive and leave the island by plane. It is necessary to pay a certain amount in order to leave the hospitable dwarf state without any problems. When departing from Golden Rock International Hub, you will be required to pay an airport tax (forty-one Caribbean dollars for each person over twelve years of age) and an environmental tax (EC$4).

Nature

The island state, located on just two hundred and sixty square kilometers, contains everything that a tourist dreams of in his dreams of the tropics. On the slopes of the mountains there are cotton and sugar cane plantations. Even higher is the virgin jungle with vines, cinnamon and breadfruit, mango, tamarind, bananas, papaya, and avocado. In some places the mountain tops are covered with meadows. The island of St. Kitts to the north is a rolling plain of farmland. There are many coconut groves on Nevis, especially in its western part. The rain forests of the two islands are inhabited by monkeys, but there are no dangerous predators. The silence of the jungle is filled with the cries of tropical birds, and huge butterflies flutter everywhere. The water area, owned by the state, will certainly be of interest to divers and fishing enthusiasts. Although the coastal areas seem arid and covered with bushes, the islands have many rivers and streams.

Beaches

St. Kitts is an island whose coastline is covered in an interesting black color. But on its southeastern edge there is a flat peninsula composed of ocean sediments. That's why the beaches here are golden. The coast of the island of Nevis is the embodiment of dreams of a vacation by the tropical sea. The resort areas of the dwarf state satisfy all needs. St. Christopher (St. Kitts Island) has a lot of entertainment - golf clubs, nightlife, casinos. The capital of the state, the city of Basseterre, is especially famous for its evening life. The island of Nevis has all the conditions for a measured and relaxing holiday. It's a good place to spend a romantic evening, walking along the promenade and sunbathing in the shade of palm trees. But if you wish, you can find entertainment in Nevis. Entertainment establishments are concentrated in the main city and administrative center of the island - Charlestown. The sea near the beaches is always calm and serene, because the shores are protected from storms by a wall of coral reefs. The entry into the water is gentle, which is safe for children to swim in.

Tourist infrastructure

The backbone of the economy of the dwarf state has long been the export of sugar cane. But in recent years, tourism has pushed this industry away from first place. All conditions have been created here for foreign travelers. The island of St. Kitts has especially succeeded in pleasing vacationers. Reviews from tourists claim that its entire coastline is occupied by luxury hotels and expensive, magnificent villas. Buying real estate in is easy. There are no restrictions for foreigners here, as in some countries. The staff of hotel complexes and restaurants is very kind and strives to fulfill any wish of the clients. As the reviews say, you need to get used to their dialect of English. Even the British don't always understand the locals. The chefs of St. Kitts have fully mastered European cuisine, and the culinary school of Nevis gravitates towards traditional local recipes. The number of serious crimes on the islands is quite low. But, tourists warn, pickpocketing is common, so it is better to keep valuables in a room safe.

St. Kitts Island Tours

Of course, the sea and the beach are the main attractions of the dwarf state. But there are others. If you are vacationing on the island of Nevis, do not be lazy to climb the peak of the same name. The height of this volcano is nine hundred and eighty-five meters above sea level. Your reward for your hard work will be an unparalleled view of the two islands. And you can go down through the side vents of the Hurricane Hill or Saddle Hill volcano. Transport links in the country are well developed. There is even a narrow-gauge railway here. There is also an airport on Nevis - Newcastle.

The island of St. Kitts is of interest to ecotourists. Its attractions are not only natural. Traveling through the Golden Rock Plantation Nature Reserve and Brimestone Hill Fortress Park, you can see an ancient British fort. In its barracks there is a museum whose exhibition tells about the colonial history and the traditional way of life of the islanders. On Nevis you should visit the Historical Museum and the House. Entertainment on the islands includes leisurely sailing on yachts along the strait and lagoons, cycling, and horseback riding. The country has casinos and many golf clubs.

Events

The population of the dwarf state is the descendants of African slaves who settled the islands after the almost total extermination of the indigenous inhabitants - the Indians. Therefore, the main religion is Christianity. The colonial period made its own adjustments to the religion of local residents. Most are Anglicans or Methodist Protestants. But the number of Catholics is also large. The main colorful events are also associated with religion. Reviews recommend visiting the island of St. Kitts during the Christmas season. The twenty-fifth of December is celebrated very beautifully here. And on the second of January, a colorful festival takes place on the island. The beginning of Lent, Good Friday, the Resurrection of the Lord and Pentecost are also celebrated on a large scale. Of the secular holidays, special mention should be made of the British Queen's birthday, which falls on June 12, Emancipation from Slavery (the first Monday in August) and Independence Day (the nineteenth of September).

Saint Kitts: Citizenship

Many tourists, having arrived in this paradise country, simply fall in love with it. But you can stay forever, adding fifty thousand to the population of the dwarf state. When global demand for cane sugar fell, the government of St. Kitts and Nevis launched a program with the eloquent name “Citizenship by Investment”. Anyone who makes a voluntary contribution to the country's Sugar Fund receives a passport from the island power without any problems. The amount of investment donations depends on the number of dependents in the applicant’s family and ranges from two hundred fifty to four hundred fifty thousand US dollars. Some additional amount (but not more than ten percent of the main contribution) will be required to pay various government fees and notary acts. What does citizenship of Saint Kitts and Nevis give? Firstly, it is visa-free entry into one hundred and twenty countries. Citizenship is inherited by children from their parents. You do not need to renounce your country of birth.

Citizenship through real estate

There is another way to obtain the coveted state passport. The islands of Saint Kitts and Nevis have been acquiring luxury housing over the last decade. On the shores and even on the shallow bottom of lagoons, luxury villas are being built on stilts, just waiting for their buyers. Haven't you dreamed of your own house by the sea? And not just any Barents or Laptev, but the Caribbean? If you purchase real estate for an amount not less than four hundred thousand US dollars, citizenship of Saint Kitts and Nevis will be a pleasant bonus for you. This method, reviews say, is more profitable if you want to live on the islands. After five years, you can sell your property without losing your citizenship. But there is a great danger of losing money due to online scams. The government of the country, in order to prevent this, published on its website an official list of all dealers who have the right to purchase real estate in St. Kitts and Nevis.

Do you want to be able to travel without visas to different countries? Do you admire the nature of the Caribbean and want to settle on paradise islands? Dreaming of enjoying ocean views in a warm climate? The Citizenship by Investment program of St. Kitts and Nevis is exactly what lovers of tropical nature and comfort require

Portrait of the country

Located on two islands in the Caribbean Sea - Saint Kitts and Nevis.

• Area – 261 sq. km.
• The capital is Basseterre.
• The average annual temperature is +18-24 0С.
• There is no rainy season.
• The population is more than 50 thousand people, mostly African Americans.
• The official language is English.
• The basis of the economy is tourism and agriculture.

Features: picturesque nature, large national park, developed transport infrastructure, entertainment and tourism industry, holidays and carnivals.

It ranks 6th in the world in the Global Index of Citizenship by Investment Programs.

Visa-free regime with 132 countries, including the UK and EU states.

Geography

Saint Kitts and Nevis is a federation of two islands with a total area of ​​more than 220 square meters. km. The capital of the country is Basseterre. The city is located on St. Kitts, where more than two-thirds of the population lives. The characteristic landscape for both islands is small mountains, abundantly covered with forests. There is an extinct volcano in St. Kitts with a height of 1155 m. In its crater there is a beautiful lake. Almost a third of the territory of St. Kitts is occupied by a national park, protected by the state. Saint Kitts and Nevis are separated by a 3 km wide strait. The nature of Nevis is no less picturesque: tropical forests, a chain of rounded mountains, amazingly beautiful sunsets and suddenly flashing rainbows turn the island into a pearl of the Caribbean.

Saint Kitts and Nevis has a mild climate. There is no rainy season here, and the air temperature is almost constant and ranges from +18 0C to +24 0C.

The islands are famous for their beaches, coral reefs and comfortable bays. Saint Kitts and Nevis boasts not only beautiful nature, but also a rich history. The names of Alexander Hamilton and Admiral Nelson are associated with them. Nevis even has a small Nelson Museum.

The islands contain ancient forts, ruins on ancient plantations, and the architecture itself bears clear traces of colonial influence.

Political and economic structure

The state of Saint Kitts and Nevis gained independence in 1984, and since then it has been part of the Commonwealth of Nations. The head of state is the British monarch, represented by the Governor-General. Legislative power is vested in the parliament, elected by the citizens of the state. Economic power is concentrated in the hands of the prime minister, who becomes the head of the political force that wins the next parliamentary elections.

About 10-15 years ago, tourism and agriculture were the basis of the economy, but after the global crisis of 2008–2009. The tourism industry suffered serious losses. The government has focused on this sector. The result was five-star resort complexes.

Villas and bungalows with sea views, SPA hotels and golf clubs, apartments and studios with swimming pools, marinas and yacht clubs have attracted tourist flows from the USA and Europe to the country. Now the country is visited by about 700,000 people a year. The construction boom also revived the domestic economy, so that now Saint Kitts and Nevis is an economically prosperous state. Construction is underway on both islands: on the active, crowded St. Kitts, and on the peaceful, calm and picturesque Nevis.

The investment citizenship program has been implemented here since 1984; since the early 2000s, the influx of investments has been growing steadily, which makes it possible to implement serious development projects.
The climate, nature and infrastructure of the islands seem to many to be a sufficient reason to decide to go to live in St. Kitts and Nevis or obtain citizenship.

Taxes

The country has an optimized taxation system, where capital gains from foreign operations are not taxed. This encourages investors with international business to place capital in the country and become tax residents. There are no income taxes, no gift or inheritance taxes.

Main types of taxes in Saint Kitts and Nevis

CONDITIONS	TYPE OF TAX	TAX AMOUNT
Capital gains tax on domestic transactions	Charged for transactions with assets located in the country for less than one year from the date of acquisition	20 %
Social Security Tax	Paid by employees
	Earning an annual income of 1000 to 6500 Caribbean dollars	3,5 %
	From 6500 to 8000 Caribbean dollars	10 %
	More than 8000	12 %
Income tax for legal entities conducting commercial activities within the country	Payments are made by resident enterprises of the country operating on its territory	35 %
Tax on transfers of individuals	All individuals pay when transferring funds outside the country	10 %
Property tax	Annual	0.2% of market value

Income received from rental property is not taxed. There is no capital gains tax on the sale of real estate.

Life in Saint Kitts and Nevis

Just over 50 thousand people live in the country, almost 80% of them live in St. Nevis. African Americans predominate among the indigenous population. The official language is English. The currency is the Caribbean dollar, which is used throughout the Caribbean.

The country, although it looks like an untouched tropical paradise, has a very developed infrastructure. The length of roads is over 1000 km. A narrow gauge railway runs along the coast of St. Kitts. Three large ports receive not only sailing ships, but also cruise ships. There are international airports on every island. Construction of a special terminal for receiving private jets is now being completed in St. Kitts.

Entertainment and cuisine

Locals love holidays, so throughout the year several colorful carnivals take place on the islands, mostly dedicated to Catholic celebrations. The developed resort infrastructure includes many sports clubs and facilities: golf and tennis courses, riding clubs, infrastructure for yachting, surfing and diving. The abundance of coral reefs and shipwrecks that abound in these waters make diving especially exciting. There is also plenty to do on land, from visiting swimming pools and spas to excursions to the national park, which is part of the UNESCO heritage.

There are many places to relax with children: a water park, an amusement park, paintball, an adventure track, children's railway excursions with guides.

Nightlife takes place in clubs, bars and restaurants. There are many food establishments here. The cuisine of St. Kitts and Nevis is a bizarre fusion of French, Spanish and local culinary traditions. It has a lot of vegetables and meat fried over an open fire, fish and seafood, and excellent desserts and delicacies are prepared from local fruits.

Prices

As with most islands, prices here are higher than on the mainland:

• Bottle of wine – $14;
• A pack of cigarettes – $12-14;
• Lunch at a fast food restaurant – $7-8;
• Dinner for two in a restaurant – $75-85 without alcohol;
• A cup of cappuccino in a cafe – $3.5-4;
• Can of cola – $2.

Prices in stores differ little from price tags on other islands:

• Chicken fillet – $8 per 1 kg;
• Oranges – $3-4;
• Milk – $3 per 1 liter;
• A movie ticket costs $5-6;
• Subscription fee for unlimited Internet – from $35 per month;
• Public transport ticket for one trip – $1.5;
• A liter of gasoline is about $3.

The country has a high standard of living, one of the highest in the Caribbean, with an average salary of $3-3.5 thousand per month, which encourages immigration to St. Kitts and Nevis.

Real estate

Resort real estate here is quite expensive, so to realize the dream of a villa with a pool and an ocean view you will need at least $800,000 - $1,000,000. The minimum investment contribution under the Citizenship by Investment program for St. Kitts and Nevis is $400,000. For these money can buy apartments with 1-2 bedrooms, a small house in the coastal area or a share in the property.

Rental housing costs from $1000. For this money you can rent a small house in the suburbs with two bedrooms. Renting the same house in the capital will be twice or three times more expensive.

Benefits of obtaining citizenship of St. Kitts and Nevis

The citizenship by investment program of St. Kitts and Nevis is one of the oldest, it has been operating since 1984. According to the terms of the program, you can invest in real estate or pay a contribution to a government fund. What are the benefits of a St. Kitts and Nevis passport?

• Visa-free entry to 132 countries, including the UK, Schengen countries, Singapore, Hong Kong and other global centers of business and financial activity.
• Returnable investment is possible in high-end resort real estate.
• The mild and dry climate makes living or relaxing here as pleasant and rewarding as possible.
• A quick change of tax residence is possible.
• You can register enterprises and conduct business using the received passport.
• The result of participation in the program is full citizenship.
• Money invested in real estate can be returned by selling it after five years (without capital gains tax).
• There are no taxes on profits derived from business activities abroad.
• The purchased property can be rented out, gifted or inherited.
• Citizenship provides an “alternate airfield” in case of a sudden change in the political or economic situation.
• St. Kitts and Nevis recognizes second citizenship, so there is no need to renounce the original one.
• There are no requirements for permanent residence, language, or knowledge of history. There is no need to undergo an interview.

We are official representatives of the Citizenship by Investment program, so we will select an individual solution for you, taking into account your requirements, objectives and expectations.

Beaches strewn with palm trees, comfortable bays with clear azure water, long-dormant volcanoes - this is how they briefly describe the unknown but beautiful places located in the eastern Caribbean. Holidays in 2019 in St. Kitts and Nevis attract tourists with a combination of magnificent sunny beaches and colorful views, where every traveler strives to surrender to the power of exciting adventures with a palette of crazy history.

Saint Kitts and Nevis is a small island country located in Central America, in the vicinity of Puerto Rico. It includes two islands of the same name and is washed by the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. The country annually attracts a colossal volume of tourists from various places around the globe with its lush tropical flora, stunning sandy beaches and aquamarine waters of the Caribbean Sea.

How to get there?

Unfortunately, the lack of a direct flight between the big cities of St. Kitts and Nevis and Russia cannot be considered an advantage. But for real tourists and travel fans there are comfortable, fast and affordable methods of transit to this magnificent country.

By plane

From Moscow to St. Kitts

The most expeditious method for domestic tourists is a flight from New York, with a transfer to Miami. This method will take 26 hours and cost 40 thousand rubles. If a person needs a more affordable flight cost, then there is a method that costs 35 thousand rubles from Moscow to New York, with a transfer to Sint Maarten. Then a short flight to St. Kitts with a flight duration of only half an hour.

From St. Petersburg to St. Kitts

The fastest route, taking 20 hours, goes to Amsterdam, from where you need to go to Sint Maarten and St. Kitts. But this method has one drawback - this method will be expensive (75 thousand rubles). The most accessible method is a flight from the route described above, but 20 hours longer. The cost of such a flight is 70 thousand rubles.

From the airport

The airport is located near the city center. By car the travel time will be approximately 10-15 minutes. Tourists are also offered to use a taxi service, which costs about 400 rubles.

Climate and weather

The sultry atmosphere on the islands of St. Kitts and Nevis is formed due to the influence of the wind. Wednesday is wet and hot, the average air temperature is +26 degrees, which sometimes drops to +18 or rises to +32. Precipitation is divided equally all year round. The wet season lasts from May to November. The islands of Saint Kitts and Nevis are located in the belt of significant hot hurricanes, most often occurring in August-October and occasionally causing great damage.

Active recreation on the beaches

For lovers of a serene, relaxed holiday, the resort offers pristine pristine beaches, palm groves, colorful sea dives, and observation of exotic birds and animals.

Cockshell Bay

Located in the southeast of Saint Kitts and Nevis. The sandy white coast lies untouched, surrounded by hotels and resorts that maintain its natural uniqueness. Cockshell Bay is a mixture of peace and quiet, which is why the beach is perfect for those who like a relaxing holiday.

Banana Bay

The beach is home to beautiful snow-white sand and light, rolling waves. Although there are other coastlines in St. Kitts and Nevis that are distinguished by their seclusion, Banana Bay’s combination of local settlements, uniqueness and other specifics is recommended for tourists. This place is perfect for a vacation with family and children or a trip with friends.

Dieppe Bay

Located on the northern side of the island of St. Kitts, in the vicinity of Deep Bay Town. This is a small coastline with mostly dark sand, surrounded by a large reef. Dieppe Bay is an excellent swimming area and is suitable for tourists looking for a secluded, relaxing holiday in the sun.

White House Bay

Connoisseurs of snorkeling and underwater swimming should definitely visit the coast of White House Bay, because there is an atmosphere suitable for exploring the underwater world. Lovers of natural beauty should definitely see a large number of tropical birds and animals, as well as the magnificent pink lakes with brackish water, of which there are many in this part of the island. The color scheme of the water is due to the huge number of miniature crustaceans living in these reservoirs.

Things to do?

There are approximately 400 sunken ships in the sea near the islands, attracting divers from all over the globe. There are also a huge number of unusual fish species in the coastal waters. In addition to ships, reefs and a wide variety of fish, off the western shores of Nevis there are subaquatic grottoes, created by the world for human eyes as if deliberately.

In addition to water activities, St. Kitts and Nevis offers golf, tennis and horse riding.

Holidays and festivals

A number of festivals take place throughout the year. The most important and significant is the Carnival, which you can catch if you go on vacation to Saint Kitts and Nevis in 2019 from December 24 to January 2. At the Carnival, large-scale and striking costume parades, a calypso music festival and dance competitions are held without fail.

In January, Nevis hosts many exciting events to celebrate Hamilton's birthday. In June, horse tournaments are held, and during this period a Musical Carnival is organized on the islands, at which exemplary salsa and jazz artists who arrive from all parts of the Caribbean perform. In addition, St. Kitts and Nevis has nightclubs that are ideal for nightlife lovers.

Where to go and what to see?

St. Kitts was discovered by Christopher Columbus at the end of the 15th century and was originally inhabited by Carib Indians. The measured lifestyle of the local population, not spoiled by the influence of civilization, preserves its original traditions to this day. For lovers of a serene, relaxed holiday, the resort offers pristine pristine beaches, palm groves, colorful sea dives, and observation of exotic birds and animals. Fans of active pastime will also find a lot of exciting activities for themselves, because St. Kitts is rich in interesting historical places.

It is worth visiting the capital of the state - the city of Basseterre, with its unusual European architecture, stone Victorian buildings, striking with their fancy decorations and elegant stucco.

A must-see is the small coastal town of Old Road Town, located not far from the capital. It is rightfully one of the best and natural attractions preserved in St. Kitts. The place attracts with its colonial buildings, petroglyphs of ancient Indians and colorful atmosphere.

In addition, it is worth visiting the state park, which houses a historical museum included in the UNESCO World Heritage List. The main attraction of Nevis is the city of Charlestown, where the old quarters, the remains of medieval fortresses and stone structures give this place a unique atmosphere that gives a lot of unforgettable emotions.

State Museum of St. Kitts

Located in the Old Treasury building - one of the colossal social houses in the capital of the country - Basseterre. For a long time, it housed a lot of ministries and departments. The building is controlled by the St. Foundation. Christopher and since its opening in 2002 there have been a large number of artifacts showing the wealthy culture and heritage of the island.

Rainforest

Despite the fact that the island is only 176 square kilometers in area, more than a quarter of it is occupied by state parks, generally consisting of tropical forests that are constantly growing.

There are a number of paths in the park, walking along which will not be difficult. A typical tour lasts approximately 4 hours. With the help of trekking, tourists are invited to follow the pristine nature, among which stand out: cheeky vervet monkeys swinging in the trees, graceful hummingbirds, as well as mongooses and lizards.

During the holiday season there is a chance to swim in the natural springs of the reserve. A competent guide will conduct a tour and tell you about the secrets of the local flora and fauna. The price of the excursion is 2,500 rubles.

Basseterre Center

A tourist should definitely spend some time exploring the antiquity of the city, which has applied for the status of a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Established as the first French city in the Caribbean, the capital retains colonial-style structures from France and Britain that perfectly recreate the authentic and sophisticated era when both countries ruled these places and built different architectural structures.

Challengers Village

Located 7 km north of Basseterre. It is popular as the village of the brutal beatings of the island's first settlers, the Carib Indians in 1626. In Challengers, between the green cliffs, lie the largest stones and even solid fragments of stone walls, most of which depict historical petroglyphs, known to many for their unique composition.

Scientists claim that these are the first animations on the planet, in the order of symbols of which certain ancient or state circumstances of Indian settlements are tracked. Travelers very passionately explore the outskirts of the village, because they are fascinating for those who like to explore antiquities.

Video selection of state attractions:

Kitchen and food. What to try?

Chefs of local establishments are constantly trying to add newness to the cuisine that has been developing on the islands for a long time. Local chefs update it with notes of Mediterranean, Chinese, French, Creole, continental and Indian cuisines. This creates an original combination of dishes in the colorful tones of local cuisine.

The national dish is seafood in all different cooking methods.

Meats include poultry, lamb, pork and turtle. A tourist should definitely try the local paella made from pigeon meat, rice and peas. They also bake suckling pig in a very original way. The main side dishes are potatoes, peas, vegetables and rice.

Fruit pies are preferred as dessert.

For a meal in a good establishment you should pay at least 1,400 rubles. It is also worth trying seafood cuisine in relatively modest restaurants, which will be much cheaper in cost.

Shopping

When vacationing in St. Kitts and Nevis, travelers often bring various sea souvenirs. These include: handmade vessels, shells and coral crafts. Pirate souvenirs are also very popular.

If a tourist wants to bring back part of the local environment from his vacation in 2019, then it is better to buy things made by artisans: coconut and wooden crafts, exotic jewelry and colorful fabrics. Batik would be an elegant gift from your travels. These are hand-painted fabrics, which are sometimes used to create artistic canvases of incredible beauty.

Where to stay?

The local resorts are not cheap. The price of staying in a beautiful hotel starts from 12,500 rubles, and if a tourist wants a whole range of services in the popular resort area of ​​the island, he needs to pay more than 10,000 dollars. The ancient estates of planters, reconstructed into hotels, are also very expensive. For a day's stay in such a hotel, the number varies from hundreds to thousands of dollars.

Safety

Holidays in 2019 on the islands of St. Kitts and Nevis is the goal of every lover of a quiet and safe trip. Crimes in the country are very rare. Tourists should exercise normal precautions and try not to carry large amounts of money and jewelry. At night, it is better to avoid lonely alleys, and when spending time at festivals or holidays, it is better to use the services of official taxis to get to the hotel.

Holidays in St. Kitts and Nevis in 2019 will be an excellent solution for lovers of a calm and quiet holiday, and will also be perfect for fans of active life and entertainment. In addition, the islands will be a great place to relax with both your family and children. Here everyone will find something to do with countless attractions and a wide variety of outdoor activities.

Visa
Parks, reserves
Museums
Map
Phrasebook

	Official name:	Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis
	Capital:	Buster
	The area of ​​the land:	261.6 sq. km
	Total Population:	49.9 thousand people
	Population composition:	90% are Africans, 8% are Europeans.
	Official language:	English.
	Religion:	80% are Anglicans, 20% are Catholics.
	Internet domain:	.kn
	Mains voltage:	~230 V, 60 Hz
	Country dialing code:	+1-869
	Country barcode:

Climate

Tropical trade wind, hot and very smooth. Fluctuations in average monthly temperatures are insignificant - from +18 C to +24 C, and the air temperature in summer rarely drops below +27 C even at night and rarely exceeds +30 C during the day.

Precipitation ranges from 700 to 1200 mm per year. The pattern of rain distribution directly depends on the altitude of a place above sea level and its geographical location. Maximum rain falls between May and October-November, and during this period, up to 70% of the annual precipitation can fall on the northeastern slopes of the mountains (in some years - up to 2000 mm), and on the southern slopes the weather differs little from the rest of the year . The relatively dry season lasts from December to April.

Like the other Leeward Islands, St. Kitts and Nevis is in the path of severe tropical storms, which are most likely to occur between August and October.

Geography

The state of Saint Kitts and Nevis is located on the territory of the islands of the same name, lying in the northern part of the Leeward Islands group. It borders on Antigua and Barbuda to the east, Montserrat to the southeast, the Netherlands Antilles (St. Eustatius) to the northwest, and Saint Barthelemy, which is part of French Guadeloupe, to the north (all borders are maritime). It is washed on all sides by the waters of the Caribbean Sea (the total length of the coastline is 135 km). The total area of ​​the state is 261.6 square meters. km (Saint Christopher - 168 sq. km, Nevis - 93 sq. km). It is the smallest country in the Western Hemisphere.

Flora and fauna

Vegetable world. The slopes of the mountains are occupied by sugar cane and cotton plantations, and higher up there are shrubs and small mountain tropical forests.
The vegetation in the interior mountainous regions of the islands is represented by dense tropical rain forests (lianas, mangoes, breadfruit and cinnamon trees, tamarind, avocado, bananas, and papaya grow). At the tops of the mountains, forests give way to meadows, and in the lower parts they are cleared and replaced by plantations of sugar cane and other crops. They are especially common in the northern part of the island of St. Kitts, which consists of gently undulating hills. The southern slopes are steeper and mostly covered with dense forests and orchards.
On the western slopes of the island of Nevis, rows of palm trees rise, forming a real coconut forest. The eastern slopes retain more natural forms of native vegetation and are mostly occupied by tropical forests, bushland and relatively small farmland.

Animal world. The forests are home to numerous tropical birds and butterflies, and there are monkeys. Many seabirds, including pelicans, nest on the coast. The waters abound with fish.

Attractions

The islands known today as St. Kitts and Nevis were settled by Indians from South America long before the new millennium. Columbus discovered them for Europeans in 1493, and from the beginning of the 17th century they became the arena of confrontation between Great Britain and France, with some participation of the Spanish crown. In 1628, the British colonized the island of Nevis, and in 1783 - St. Christopher (St. Kitts), thereby becoming the first British colony in the West Indies. The French settlements that also existed on the islands were either removed from the islands or brought under British jurisdiction by the Treaty of Paris in 1783, and by the early 19th century the islands had become a thriving center for the sugar industry in the eastern Caribbean. In 1816, Saint Kitts and Nevis became part of a single colony with Anguilla and the British Virgin Islands, forming a powerful center of influence of the metropolis on the countries of the region. In 1958, Great Britain attempted to unite St. Kitts and Nevis with other islands into the Federation of the West Indies, but failed - the population of Anguilla categorically opposed such a merger, and after numerous attempts to restore the unity of the three islands, lasting almost two decades, on September 19, 1983 The islands of Saint Kitts and Nevis gained independence.

These days, these two small islands are perhaps one of the most quiet and bucolic places in the region, being one of the few places in the West Indies where agriculture still dominates tourism and commerce retreats under the pressure of tradition. The calm and relaxed way of life of the local residents remains virtually unspoiled by the influence of civilization, and the beauty of nature is only emphasized by the pristine beaches, sea, sunlight and fantastically abundant vegetation.

Saint Christopher Island
Buster

The small and unremarkable capital of the islands lies on the shores of a wide bay surrounded by green hills, being home to almost half the population of St. Christopher (this is the traditional name of the island itself, which is part of the Federation under the name St. Kitts, although local residents use these names interchangeably proportions). The town's name, meaning "lowland" or "lowland", is one of the few remaining traces of the French presence in the islands. The dominant European influence in Basseterre is unmistakably British, reflected in the buildings and even the layout of the city's streets. Basseterre is surrounded by the Szekes ring road, but even with the naked eye you can see that the place in front of the bronze clock of the Berkeley Memorial is copied from Piccadilly, and even the traffic jams seem to be the same (only older cars, and no traditional London smog). Although most of Basseterre's historic buildings were destroyed in a fire in 1867, a number of stone Victorian buildings remain, with second floors made of wood and decorated with intricate latticework or elegant, curvaceous stucco. Many of these houses were built with a certain amount of imagination and ingenuity, most evident on Fort Street, where old fortress walls were simply incorporated into the designs of the houses during construction. Some buildings seem very ancient, but this impression is deceptive, since they were erected at the end of the 19th century from sooty stones left over from a city devastated by fire.

The center of the city is Independence Square - a small public park with a fountain in the center, previously used as a slave market (1790), and now as a reminder of the island's colonial past. The fountain, topped with a statue of a maiden, was a gift from Queen Elizabeth II on Independence Day (1983) and marks the former site of the largest slave market in the Antilles. The front facing the square is the two-domed Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception (1927). The French parish of Notre Dame (1670), which originally stood on this site, was burned by the British in 1706, and in its place in 1856-1859 an Anglican church was built, from which only the Gothic window openings on the ground floor of the modern cathedral have survived .

Part of the city's history is presented in the St. Christopher Heritage Museum, which contains a large collection of historical photographs, shell tools and pottery shards from the Carib Indians who inhabited the islands before the arrival of Europeans. The domed colonial Treasury building dominates the coastline, a reminder of the importance of the island's sugar industry in the past (St. Christopher was the largest supplier of sugar and tobacco to the European market in the 17th and 18th centuries). Almost the entire trade turnover of the island and, until recently, all its visitors passed through its arches.

Also noteworthy in the capital area are the House of Crafts, the Primate Research Center and the volcanic crater of Mount Liamuiga or Misery (1156 m). Liamuiga (“fertile land” is what the Carib Indians called this entire island) rises above the city blocks like a huge natural frame around a painter’s painting, and today the lush volcanic peak of this mountain serves as one of the favorite places for active recreation of the island’s inhabitants, there are many hiking trails, horse trails, cycling trails and easy climbing areas (however, access to its northern and northeastern slopes is limited by local environmental legislation).

Old Road Town

The entire northern part of St. Christopher is bordered by Circle Island Road, which can be driven, and in some places walked, in just a day. The narrow-gauge railway running next to the road, the ancient “sugar trains” that still tow cargo from the nearby cane plantations, as well as numerous fields and factories (more like “factories”) form a rather impressive landscape for which the areas adjacent to Cycle Island Road are famous .

The old town (more like a seaside village) of Old Road Town, lying just a few kilometers west of Basseterre, is considered one of the best historical and natural attractions of St. Christopher. The town grew up on the very spot where the first British settlers landed in 1623. Sir Thomas Warner, who led them, founded the first permanent European settlement in the Leeward Islands. Oddly enough, the inhabitants of the colony were able to establish good neighborly relations with the Caribs (although such friendship did not last long) and began to grow tobacco here, which created the wealth of the Warner clan and the island itself. Until 1727, Old Road Town served as the capital of St. Christopher, and after the transfer of capital functions to Basseterre, it became simply a beautiful and tranquil town, retaining much of its colonial charm, although all that remains of all its old buildings is the red brick and marble Government House the crypt of Sir Warner himself, lying in the old cemetery in the courtyard of the modest church of St. Thomas, 1.5 km north of the main road.

On the surrounding rocks there are numerous petroglyphs of the Carib Indians, who settled here long before the new era and already had a fairly developed and distinctive civilization by the 10th century. Batik, produced in Old Road Town, is also famous; here you can watch the process of creating the fabric, its design and painting, and also buy the finished product at the Caribel-Batik factory, located north of Old Road Town, in the suburb of Wingfield -Estate. Initially, the Romney Manor sugar plantation (XVII century), where the complex is now located, belonged to the great-grandfather of Thomas Jefferson, a prominent lawyer and third President of the United States. Around "Karibel-Batik" there is a small botanical garden, the main decoration of which is considered to be a 350-year-old adobe tree (the oldest on the island). And from the ruins of a sugar plantation that belonged to William Jefferson (brother of Thomas Jefferson) and its picturesque aqueduct (the only one in the entire Caribbean region), many excursions to the nearby tropical forests begin.

7 km north of Basseterre, between the capital and Old Road Town, lies the picturesque islet of Middle Island and the village of Challengers - the site of the brutal massacre of the Carib Indians in 1626. Here, among the green rocks, lie huge boulders and even entire sections stone walls, many of which bear ancient petroglyphs, widely known for their unique compositional structure - scientists believe that these are the first animations on Earth, in the sequence of signs of which some religious or historical events of Indian peoples are narrated.

Brimstone Hill Fortress

Brimestone Hill Fortress National Park is located approximately 13 km north-west of Basseterre. The basis of the park was not forests or reefs, but a large and rather chaotic 18th-century fort of the same name, known in its time as the “Gibraltar of the West Indies.” The main British outpost in the region was built on top of a 244-meter ancient volcanic massif, and its walls are surrounded by sulfur sulfur outcrops, which apparently gave the fort additional impressiveness in the face of a potential enemy. Moreover, the fort was built for almost a hundred years - its foundation was made in 1690 and until its capture by French troops (the fort capitulated in 1782 after just one month of siege, however, a year later the French themselves abandoned both the island and the fortress) new walls were constantly erected here and bastions. After the catastrophic fire of 1867, which engulfed almost the entire vicinity of Basseterre, some of the fort’s structures were partially dismantled, and the stones were used to restore the capital. The main tower of the fortress, the Citadel, is equipped with 24 guns and provides an excellent panorama of St. Eustatius and Sandy Point. Inside the old Citadel Barracks there is now a Museum of Colonial History, which displays cannonballs, blades and other weapons and equipment from the period. There is also a small collection of Native American period objects, some pottery fragments, and recovered petroglyph fragments from Old Road Town. In 2000, the entire complex of fortifications was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.

The town of Sandy Point is the second largest town in St. Christopher. In the 17th century, Sandy Point was the largest tobacco trading center on the island, so its main attraction is considered to be the large tobacco warehouses built at the same time by the Dutch West India Company. There seems to be nothing more to see here, but the nearby coral reef is considered one of the best places on the island for diving. And the coastal strip between Newton Ground and Sandy Bay evokes associations with the era of colonization of the New World, with its windswept shores, fantastic ocean vistas, fields of wild sugar cane and ruins of plantations, many of which (surviving, of course) have been rebuilt today to inns. The island's northernmost bay, Dieppe Bay, marks the beginning of the Atlantic coast, and just to the south begins one of St. Christopher's main natural attractions, the Black Rocks. Black waves of solidified lava fall directly into the sea here, forming a chaotic and mesmerizing landscape.

South East Peninsula

The southeastern peninsula of St. Christopher stretches in a long, flat strip from the mountainous northern part of the island to Nevis. At the isthmus, the coast is sandwiched by Frigate Bay (or rather, four bays, each of which differs from its neighbor only by a prefix to its name, indicating its geographical location), and to the south it expands noticeably, forming a “blade” of the Parish of St. Thomas-Lowland. The peninsula is wild and strikingly beautiful. Dotted with barren salt ponds, grassy hills and sparse vegetation, it is inhabited, for the most part, only by vervet monkeys, flocks of which sometimes even manage to block the only major road here, deer and feral goats grazing on the hilly plain of the south-eastern region. The shores of the South East Peninsula until recently were difficult to reach, but the construction of the road brought some elements of civilization here, although the development of the region as a tourist attraction is artificially restrained by the country's authorities. The country has fairly strict environmental protection standards, so these snow-white shores and pristine reservoirs are planned to remain a natural reserve, developing tourism only within the framework of respect for nature (currently only 3 resort complexes are open here).

Frigate Bay, the main resort and beach area on the island, covers the northern end of the peninsula. Here are the best shores of the island - Turtle Beach (in addition to the most beautiful beach area, there is a colorful restaurant called Ash Turtle), the coast of Booby Island (a great place for water activities), Cockleshell Beach, the modest white White House Beach -Bay (one of the best snorkeling spots on the island), North Fries Bay and South Fries Bay, the long beaches of Sand Bank Bay, and many others. The stunning pink saltwater pools found in this part of St. Christopher provide a vibrant alternative to the colorful seashores. The color of the water is determined by the myriads of tiny crustaceans that inhabit these “lakes.” This sheltered and little-visited area is also home to a huge number of tropical birds, white-tailed deer and monkeys.

Nevis Island

The island of Nevis (area 93 sq. km) lies south of St. Christopher, approximately 350 km southeast of Puerto Rico and 80 km west of Antigua. The Indians called this island Wali ("Land of Beautiful Waters"), and the early British settlers called it Dulsina ("Sweet"). It received its modern name from the light hand of Christopher Columbus, who named it in 1493 Nuestra Señora de Las Nevis (“Virgin of the Snows” - Columbus believed that this cloud-hidden peak was covered with snow). Since the 18th century, the island of Nevis has been known as the “Queen of the Caribbean”, becoming one of the most fashionable resort areas on the planet over the past 100 years. The fertile soil and warm climate made it possible to form a rich plantation estate here, which, along with prosperity and peace, allowed the islanders to quite calmly survive the earthquake and tsunami of 1680, which almost completely destroyed its capital, Jamestown. Intensive clearing of forests for plantations led to the fact that many areas of the once green island were noticeably deserted (the east coast, for example, almost completely lost its forests and even part of the coral reefs), but with the decline of the sugar industry the island gradually began to regain its natural charm, becoming one of the most colorful places in the region. Moreover, unlike its northern neighbor, there is no farmland visible on the island, which further enhances its natural charm.

Charlestown

The largest city, educational and commercial center on the island, Charlestown lies in the very middle of the island's western coast, between Fort Charles and Fort Black Rocks. The city is famous as a real open-air museum of colonial architecture - many small but very well-preserved buildings of the 17th-19th centuries form its central part. Some of them have now been converted into museums, making Charlestown a good place to study local history. Numerous earthquakes, which repeatedly caused considerable damage to city blocks, led to the formation of a special architectural style here - most of the old houses in the city are built on a stone foundation, but with wooden structures on the upper floors - such a “composite” is much more resistant to seismic activity.

The city center is quite compact - most of the historic quarters are concentrated around Cotton Ginnery Mall, where most of Charlestown's shopping spots are located, and Main Street. Typically, all city tours begin with a visit to the Nevis Historical Museum, which occupies a Georgian-style building on the very site where American statesman Alexander Hamilton was born in 1757 (Hamilton's house itself was destroyed by the 1840 earthquake). In addition to Hamilton's portraits, the museum contains a collection of period photographs and a display of Nevisian cultural and history objects. Another very popular object among guests of the island, the Horatio Nelson Museum, lies in the southern part of the city, next to the Government House. The famous British admiral stayed on Nevis in the 80s of the 18th century, fell in love with the niece of the island's governor, Fanny Nisbet, and married her. The museum's collection largely consists of various pieces of tableware painted with portraits of the admiral, ceramic sculptures and several personal items of Nelson. However, it contains the largest collection of Nelson memorabilia in the Western Hemisphere, as well as a rather interesting exhibition on the influence of the "Mistress of the Seas" on the destinies of the Caribbean.

A short walk east of the town centre, on Government Road, lies the small and largely forgotten Jewish Cemetery, a simple grassy field dotted with horizontal gravestones with inscriptions in Hebrew, English and Portuguese. The oldest graves date from 1684-1768, when up to 25% of the free population on Nevis were Sephardic Jews. The path that runs around the cemetery, commonly known to locals as Jewish Walk, leads from the cemetery to a nearby gray stone building (built in 1684), which scholars believe was the site of the first synagogue in the Caribbean. The memorial square, located a little closer to the city center, was created in honor of the citizens of the island who died on the fronts of the world wars.

The Bath House, located a short walk south of downtown Charleston, is an old hotel dating back to 1778 (one of the oldest hotels in the Leeward Islands). The complex was built over a thermal spring, the healing qualities of whose mineral water were the main attraction of the island during the colonial years, when wealthy tourists came here even from Europe. Today, it is still operational, but in order to take a dip in the hot waters of Hot Springs, you need to bring your own towel and other accessories, since there are no facilities here at the moment. Situated between Market Road and the shores of Gallows Bay, Charlestown Market is a real commercial hub and is open from Tuesday to Thursday and on Saturday mornings, when it seems like everyone in the city flocks to it.

Also noteworthy are the Courthouse (1825), the luxuriously decorated interior of the Public Library building (XVIII century), the Alexandra Hospital building, the Nevis Philatelic Bureau (stamps issued on the island are widely known among collectors around the world), Eva Wilkin's studio, the Eden building -Brown Great House, Grave Park with its cricket fields, as well as Newcastle Pottery and a whole quarter of craft workshops south of Prince Charles Street. Some of the old plantation buildings that line almost the entire perimeter of the city have now been rebuilt into cozy boarding houses, of which the Nisbet Hotel is the most famous.

The chaotic landscape of the area, which has received the name Gingerland ("country of ginger") for obvious reasons, stretches south from the walls of Eden Brown Great House, skirting almost the entire southern coast of the island and even part of the western one. This area is famous for the largest concentration of old sugar plantations, the tranquil charm of green hills and gently sloping seashores. The main attractions here are the Fig Tree Church located north of the capital of the island (1680, the site of the wedding of Nelson and Fanny Nisbet), the Botanical Gardens of Nevis (open Monday to Saturday from 9.00 to 16.30) near the Montpellier Hotel, where terraces of purple orchids are interspersed with groves tropical trees, as well as the once formidable Fort Charles (XVII-XIX centuries), which guarded the southwestern part of the island.

The coast north of Charleston is dotted with a string of small forts and fortified settlements, the largest of which is Fort Black Rocks, and the most colorful is Fort Ashby, which was built around 1702. It is Fort Ashby that is considered the only surviving site of the old capital of the island, Jamestown, which was washed out to sea by an earthquake and tidal wave in 1680. Situated almost on the very shore of the luxurious Pinni beach, it has retained several of its old guns and partially restored walls.

Banks and currency

Banks are open from Monday to Thursday from 8.00 to 14.00, on Fridays - from 8.00 to 13.00 and from 14.00 to 16.00-17.00, however, some banks stop working with individuals as early as 13.00. Some bank offices in airports and seaports are open from Monday to Friday from 07.00 to 17.00, and exchange offices - from 8.00 to 12.00 and from 15.00 to 17.00 on weekdays.

Currency can be exchanged at almost any bank in the country, with the best rates usually offered for US dollars and euros.

Credit cards (Eurocard, MasterCard, Visa, American Express, etc.) are accepted for payment in most restaurants, almost all hotels and many large stores. ATM machines can be found in most banks in the country.

Travel checks can be cashed almost everywhere - in bank offices, hotels and large stores. To avoid additional conversion costs, it is recommended to use traveler's checks in US dollars.

East Caribbean dollar (XCD or EC$), equal to 100 cents. In circulation there are banknotes in denominations of 100, 50, 20, 10 and 5 dollars and coins in denominations of 1 dollar, 50, 25, 10, 5, 2 and 1 cent. The East Caribbean dollar is pegged to the US dollar and the exchange rate has not changed since 1976 (EC$2.7 = US$1).

The US dollar is freely circulated on the islands; many prices are indicated both in American dollars and in East Caribbean dollars.

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