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> Destinations > St. Kitts and Nevis > Trip Reports > Trip Report
My wife & I just returned from a week in St. Kitts and we loved the island. We've been to several Caribbean islands and St. Kitts ranks very high. It is extremely quiet and relatively undeveloped. There is little to do in the evenings except for drinking at the beach bars or visiting the casino at the Marriott. [All $ amounts below are U.S. $.] We took walks on the beach and went to bed early.
Hotel
We stayed at the Timothy Beach Resort (TBR). This is not an amenity-loaded resort with activities, but it was clean, comfortable, and right on the Caribbean beach. The rooms have a small refrigerator which enables you to buy your bottled water at the Rams convenience store (an 8-minute walk) and save mucho $. There was good snorkeling right from the beach ($10/pp to rent equipment for the entire day). Mr. X's Shiggidy Shack and the Monkey Bar are a few yards down the beach. The new Marriott resort (which looks fabulous, by the way) is a 15-minute walk.
Breakfasts
We had excellent and reasonably-priced breakfasts at both the Marriott's Calypso Café and TBR's Sunset Café (overlooking the beach). The Marriott had an all-you-can-eat buffet for $15. They also had breakfasts (Belgian waffle, pancakes, etc.) for $6-9 that included juice and coffee!
Dinners
Thanks to previous reviewers, we did not have a bad meal in St. Kitts. Marshalls (a $6 cab ride from TBR) was by far the best. The food, the scenery, the ambience were superb. Make reservations and request an ocean-view table. Entrees are priced from $15-35. The Marshall's Delight was an excellent drink. Eat there early in your stay, because you'll want to return! Mr. X's Shiggidy Shack (right on the beach next to TBR) was the other place we ate at twice. The fish was excellent ($12), the lobster good ($20). Wear shorts, go barefoot, eat at picnic tables 10 yards from the ocean. We got an excellent pizza and calzone at PJs. PJs is halfway between the Timothy Beach Resort and the new Marriott (an 8 minute walk from either one). We did have to change tables because of many tiny bugs on our first table, but it is an open-air restaurant. The Garden Restaurant at Frigate Bay Resort ($6 cab ride from TBR) was just a bit disappointing. The entrees ($15-20) were good, but nothing special and the side dishes were so-so. Their Cherry Blossom drink (a cherry colada) was excellent! A trip to Turtle Beach Bar & Grill at the far SE tip of the island is well worth the long ride ($32 roundtrip cab fare). Entrees are $12-25. Go before dark, so you get to sightsee on your way. This restaurant is nicer than the beach shacks, but not as fancy as Marshalls or The Garden Restaurant. Ask to see the pig. If you like sweet frozen drinks, you must have their Turtle Colada. We tried to go to the Sunset Bar & Grill (a beach shack) one evening, but it closes at 3 p.m. If you want to try their lobster, go for lunch!
Activities
The Scenic Train (also called the Sugar Train) was a good way to see the entire island ($89 per person). At four hours, however, the trip is pretty long and it does get boring after awhile. Several people told us that we should have hired a taxi driver to drive us around the island for $60 or so. We could have seen the same sights quicker and at a lower cost.
The all-day (9:30 a.m. - 4 p.m., $70 per person) sailing/snorkeling trip on the Spirit of St. Kitts catamaran was excellent. We sailed to Shitten Bay, snorkeled there, then sailed over to Nevis, where we had a picnic lunch on the beach. If you hurry, you can walk up to Sunshine's Bar & Grill, check out their celebrity photos, and grab one of their famous and delicious Killer Bees rum punch. The drinks on the catamaran were served fast and strong, and the crew was great. On the way back, dancing broke out.
Snorkeling from Frigate Bay Beach, (where Timothy Beach Resort is located), was better than Shitten Bay. Rent snorkeling equipment for the day from Mr. X's Watersports ($10) and head left as far as you can swim. We saw the usual colorful fish, plus squid, lobster, and-best of all-three sea turtles!
Souvenir shopping in Basseterre was difficult. Make sure you go on a morning when cruise ships are in dock. Otherwise, a number of stores are likely to be closed (and the selection is not that great to begin with). If you see something you like, pick it up quick. We ended up getting most of our souvenirs at the Rams convenience store halfway between Timothy Beach Resort and the Marriott.
Thanks to Jay for this trip report ...
March 2004
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