Summary
A steep dive into the small St. Kitts airport gives a visitor only a few minutes to see a domineering, extinct volcano covered with lush vegetation surrounded by a thin strip of humanity along the coastline by the Caribbean Sea.

At least it appears that way. Once on the ground, the rolling hills near the mountain unveil the capital of St. Kitts, Bassetterre, along with the usual assortment of neighborhoods, resorts and large vacation homes.

This is an island you visit for a quiet vacation because of the light tourism level and moderate shopping. Crowds are rare and taxis are easy to find, even in the parts of the capital city where tourists rarely venture. It is certainly an island to visit for long days on the beach, staring at the blue-green water and occasionally drifting off to sleep with work and responsibilities left far behind.

As the day winds down, go for a walk to numerous nearby restaurants. Like most of the Caribbean islands with lighter tourism, the people are friendly and eager to make a good impression. English is the official language.

St. Kitts-Nevis (pronounced Nee-vis) is the 20th most popular place to visit in the Caribbean.

Attractions
St. Kitts & Nevis (Nee-vis) promotes itself as an ecotourism destination because it is quiet and undeveloped compared to many other islands. Unique attractions on a St. Kitts vacation include climbing a dormant volcano, numerous hikes, bird watching and the usual assortment of water sports.

Tourism / When to Go
U.S. citizens need a passport to enter the country, while Canadian citizens need proof of citizenship. Cruise visitors simply need to have their ship IDs available when leaving the ship and returning.

About 350,000 people visit the island annually with about twice as many people visiting the island via cruise ships than via stopover. Our week-long stopover visit proved to be a quiet one more suited for couples. Coincidentally, we observed far more couples than families on the island.

Weather
Tropical, tempered by constant sea breezes; little seasonal temperature variation; rainy season (May to November). The hurricane season is July to October. Light dress is normal for the island's consistent weather. Nudity is not permitted at public beaches

Currency / Tipping / Taxes
Currency is the Eastern Caribbean Dollar. Although U.S. bills are accepted most everywhere, U.S. coins are not. Leave 10-15 percent in restaurants, do not tip taxi drivers and do not tip at hotels, which normally add 10 percent automatically to each bill. Rooms and meals have a 7 percent tax.

Culture / Geography
English is the dominant language. The economy is driven by tourism, manufacturing and offshore banking. The island is 69 square miles and has a population of about 32,000 people. Basseterre is the capital. Despite lush vegetation on some parts of the island, much of it is arrid as we saw on our catamaran snorkeling tour along the coastline of the island.

Sources / More Information
U.S. Dept. of State: http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1026.html
CIA Factbook: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/sc.html
Caribbean Tourism Organization: http://www.onecaribbean.org
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration: http://www.noaa.gov