West Indies
Sint Maarten / Saint Martin
| Sint Maarten, the Dutch side,
is known for its festive nightlife, beaches, and
plentiful casinos, while Saint-Martin, the French side,
is known more for its nude beaches, jewelry and clothes
shopping, exotic drinks made with native rum-based guava
berry liquors, and rich French Caribbean cuisine.
The island is served by many major airlines that bring in
large jets, including Boeing 747s and Airbus A340s, carrying
tourists from across the world on a daily basis. This fuels the
island's largest revenue source, tourism.
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Sint Maarten/Saint-Martin is home to several
world-class accommodations, including hotels, villas, and
timeshares, many of which are privately available for rent or
sale. Some properties have over 200 rooms, while others have
fewer than twenty. Many are located directly on beaches and in
upscale shopping districts. Villas pepper the coast, boasting
private beaches. Some are private residences, while others are
available to affluent renters. |
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Shopping on Sint Maarten and
Saint Martin offers high quality duty-free goods in numerous
boutiques. The island has a well-earned reputation as a
"shopper's paradise". Popular goods include local crafts & arts,
exotic foods, jewelry, liquor, tobacco, leather goods, as well
as most designer goods. Because of Duty free Tax free abound the
island has become more of a shopping and relaxing destination.
Most often the designer goods are offered at significant
discounts, often up to 40% lower than US retail prices. |
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The island is widely known for its hundreds of gourmet
(and more moderately priced) restaurants on both sides of
the island. |
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St. Lucia
St. Lucia is the sort of island that
travelers to the Caribbean dream about--a small, lush tropical gem
that is still relatively unknown. One of the Windward Islands of the
Lesser Antilles, it is located midway down the Eastern Caribbean
chain, between Martinique and St. Vincent, and north of Barbados.
St. Lucia is only 27 miles long and 14 miles wide, with a shape that
is said to resemble either a mango or an avocado (depending on your
taste). The Atlantic Ocean kisses its eastern shore, while the
beaches of the west coast owe their beauty to the calm Caribbean
Sea.
There is a broad array of exciting and exotic activities
available on St. Lucia. The island's steep coastlines and lovely
reefs offer excellent snorkeling and scuba diving. The rainforest
preserves of St. Lucia's mountainous interior are one of the
Caribbean's finest locales for hiking and bird watching. Of course,
the island also possesses excellent facilities for golf, tennis,
sailing, and a host of other leisure pursuits. Not to be missed is
St. Lucia's Soufriere volcano, the world's only drive-in volcanic
crater.
St. Kitts
St. Kitts is a beautiful island! The weather was
perfect every day... 85º and sunny! Sea kayaking, snorkeling and
diving are very big on St. Kitts and adjoining Nevis. There’s a
superb public golf course.
Both St. Kitts and Nevis are steeped in
history; Brimstone Hill Fortress is the Eastern Caribbean's sole
man-made UNESCO World Heritage site.
2. Luxurious, restored plantation inns
can be found on both St. Kitts and Nevis.
3. Both islands have extinct volcanoes
and luxuriant rainforests ideal for hikes, as well as fine diving
and snorkeling sites.
4. You'll find less development --
particuarly on Nevis-and more cordial and courteous islanders than
on more touristy islands.
Beaches on St. Kitts are free and open to the
public (even those occupied by hotels). The best beaches, with
powdery white sand, are in the Frigate Bay area or on the lower
peninsula. The Atlantic waters are rougher, and many black-sand
beaches northwest of Frigate Bay double as garbage dumps, though
locals bodysurf at Conaree Bay.
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| Saint Martin |
| Saint Martin is home to
several
world-class accommodations |
| St. Lucia |
| St. Lucia
is the sort of island that travelers to the Caribbean dream
about |
| St. Kitts |
| St. Kitts Sea kayaking,
snorkeling and diving |
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