Saint Kitts and Nevis is a two-island federation at the northern end of the Leeward Islands in the eastern Caribbean. St. Kitts is the larger and more populated, with the capital Basseterre on its western shore; Nevis sits three kilometres to the south-east, separated by a channel known as The Narrows. Together they make up one of the smallest sovereign states in the Western Hemisphere, with a combined population of around 55,000 people.
St. Kitts is dominated by the dormant volcano Mount Liamuiga, whose forested slopes cover the northern half of the island. The southeastern peninsula, connected by a single road, holds the best beaches. The Brimstone Hill Fortress, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is one of the best-preserved colonial-era military installations in the Caribbean — the so-called "Gibraltar of the West Indies" rises 240 metres above the sea. The old sugar railway, now repurposed as a tourist train, loops the island through former plantation country.
Nevis is quieter, rounder, and altogether more peaceful. Its volcanic peak is almost always capped in cloud. Former plantation great houses ring the island — several operate as small inns. Charlestown is the main town, modest and unhurried, notable mostly as the birthplace of Alexander Hamilton. The ferry crossing from Basseterre to Charlestown takes under an hour.
Both islands have English as the working language, a strong cricket culture, and a people who have largely kept their distance from the mass-market Caribbean tourism model. For travellers who want to see the region at a slower pace, the federation rewards the visit.
