CaribbeanTravel.com Directory - (Page 181) ST. KITTS & NEVIS lush settings for UNIQUE EXPERIENCES L ooking at a map, it’s easy to picture St. Kitts as a baseball bat — its volcanic spine, thick at the top, narrowing to a small handle at the bottom — and small, round Nevis, as a ball which curves from a central peak to the sea. A two-island member of the British Commonwealth, St. Kitts and Nevis were among Britain’s first and richest sugar-growing colonies in the West Indies, and remain tranquil, bucolic and relatively prosperous to this day. St. Kitts is the larger and more developed of the two. Tourism is the main source of foreign exchange. There are a few larger hotels and one luxury mega resort, but for the most part, development has been limited to small properties: bed-and-breakfast inns, villas and apartments, and several plantation great houses that have been converted to inns. RAINFORESTS AND REEFS About one-third of the island is protected rainforest, ideal for hiking, mountain biking, ATV and horseback treks. Along the way, visitors may spot green vervet monkeys, giant vine-entwined trees and a variety of birds, including brown boobies, frigate birds, cattle egrets, black-faced grass quits and black-whiskered vireos. Hardy hikers can climb Mount Liamuiga for a look into a 700-foot crater. Thanks to volcanic origins and offshore reefs, St. Kitts beaches come in black, grey, gold and white, lapped by calm Caribbean or rougher Atlantic waters. The mile-long white-sand beach at Frigate Bay is action central for swimming, windsurfing, waterskiing and ST. KITTS & NEVIS GEOGRAPHY: St. Kitts is located in the northern Leeward Islands of the Eastern Caribbean, and is separated by a 2-mile wide channel from its sister island, Nevis. The island is 23 miles long and 5 miles wide, encompassing a total area of 68 square miles. Highest point of elevation is Mt. Liamuiga, at 3,792 feet. The beaches of St. Kitts boast great variety as well as great beauty, with volcanic black sand gracing the northern beaches and shimmering golden or powdery white sand beaches in the south. LANGUAGE: English. POPULATION: 46,325 (2001 census) for St Kitts & Nevis combined. Approximately 36,000 of these make St. Kitts their home. CLIMATE: Temperature: High/Low Summer 90ºF /76ºF. Winter 84ºF /72ºF. Average humidity: 71.5%. Annual rainfall averages 55 inches. TIME: Atlantic Standard Time is in effect throughout the year: EST+1 in the winter (Daylight Savings Time is not observed). GMT -4. 181
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