As if it were the custom in the Caribbean, St-Kitts and Nevis changed hands many times between English and French, which has left it a heritage of cities with names from both countries. Contrariwise, the architecture there is very Anglo-Saxon (Style Victorian) with driving on left and especially in downtown Basseterre: Circus Place the reproduction of the 'Berkeley Memorial Clock'. The islands became an associated state of the United Kingdom with full internal autonomy in 1967. The island of Anguilla rebelled and was allowed to secede in 1971. Saint Kitts and Nevis achieved independence in 1983. In 1998, a vote in Nevis on a referendum to separate from Saint Kitts fell short of the two-thirds majority needed.
There are also several ancient British fortifications which have been restored with minutiae and reproducing the tiniest details of original construction. St-Kitts and Nevis will be called to be developed in the near future, in fact many projects are in progress or completion, notably vast dockings to accommodate the largest liners and cruisers with terminals, loading docks, etc.
What is really remarkable on St-Kitts and Nevis is the natural aspect. Many tropical birds which one rarely finds elsewhere are present in great concentration in the nature and there are also the famous monkeys which, it is said, were introduced by the pirates. An all-new road permits going to the southeast end of St-Kitts (Turtle Beach) where one feels that a certain febrility in the air will make of this part of the island an appreciated place. Indeed, one has only to take a little adventure in the underwoods with some fruit in hand to see oneself quite soon surrounded by monkeys coming gently to meet one to get fed. For the inhabitants of the islands, on the other hand, the monkeys are not perceived as as big a joy, for these pretty little hairy beings plunder the harvest and nose around everywhere they can go.
With coastlines in the shape of a baseball bat and ball, the two volcanic islands are separated by a three-km-wide channel called The Narrows; on the southern tip of long, baseball bat-shaped Saint Kitts lies the Great Salt Pond; Nevis Peak sits in the center of its almost circular namesake island and its ball shape complements that of its sister island. The highest point is Mount Liamuiga (St Kitts) at 1,156 meters. there is a great pic of saint kitts at google
There is a cruise ship terminal as well as a marina for yachts in Basseterre.
Take a catamaran/snorkel excursion with '''Blue Water Safaris''' or '''Leeward Island Charters'''.
You can also charter a boat with '''No Problem Boat Charters'''.
For ferry from St Kitts (Majors Bay) to Nevis (Cades Bay) you can take the Sea Bridge which runs from 8am till 7PM. For times go to [http://www.seabridgeskn.com].
There is a scenic railroad tour [http://www.stkittsscenicrailway.com] that goes through portions of the narrow gauge railroad formerly used for the sugar mill.
Taxis and buses outnumber those needing them in St. Kitts. Be sure to negotiate upfront the costs of the trip, pay special attention if the fare is in US or EC dollars.
Temporary drivers licenses are available, as well as several car rentals agencies.
There are many popular tour guides in St. Kitts that will give you a tour of the island. One such tour guide is Thenford Grey's Island Tours or Grey's Island Excursions [http://www.thenfordgrey.com].
Micro buses form the public transportation system on the island. These are much cheaper than taxis and can be flagged down while in route. If they are full the driver will flash their lights and proceed on. Service does not generally extend to Frigate Bay or the Southern Peninsula. That is the domain of taxis. Taxis and Buses use the same format of Micro buses, the difference is that taxis have a yellow license plate and start with the letter T and buses have a green one which starts with the letter H. Bus fare varies but in 2005 was between 1.25 EC and 5 EC depending on length of trip.
The language of Saint Kitts and Nevis is '''English'''. However if you have never visited the Caribbean before you may have difficulty understanding the patois, or more correctly the Creaole, of the locals which is based on the English language but to the untrained ear sounds nothing like it. For example "a-come" means coming "a-knock" means knocking. Most notable is the simplification of use of pronouns as in "I and I" which replaces all other pronouns like she/he, we/my, yours, hers/his and ours. The Caribbean patois has its roots not only in African languages (west, central and Nigerian), standard English, Scottish and Spanish but also Perso-Arabic and Sanskrit. Unusually the end result is not just a language but also a philosophical statement which emphasises the group relationship rather than the personal.
See also discussion of this topic under BasseTerre.
There are many dining options in St. Kitts. Some of the popular restaurants are:
You'll find lots of beach bars located in the Frigate Bay and South East Peninsula.