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How do you explore a nation when you have a limited amount of time? After researching things to do in St Kitts during a Southern Caribbean cruise, we opted to book a full island panoramic tour of St. Kitts. We used Viator to book this trip – it only cost us $55 per person, which was less than the cost through the Shore Excursions Desk on the cruise.
The Best Things to do in St Kitts
The full-day excursion tour is a perfect introduction to what to do in St. Kitts and took approximately 5 hours – plenty of time to be back on the ship before sailing time! Your reservation will tell you how to meet your tour guide. For our trip, we met under the black and gold sign of a jewelry store upon exiting the ship. We were there in plenty of time for our 9 am meeting. We were separated into two vans of eight guests each. The tour we took was led by Ms. Annie and her husband, Spooney. We were in Spooney’s van.
The couple is very familiar with St. Kitt’s history. As we drove through, Spooney would announce the names of the areas. After a quick tour around downtown Basseterre, we drove up the coast to see some of the important sites on the island.
Brimstone Hill Fortress
I love adding to my UNESCO Heritage World Sites list! This well-preserved historical site helps visitors envision how the British military protected St. Kitts. It really is amazing to see what was built and how the displays explain what life was like in this fortress. The tour starts with a short movie and then you’re left to explore the site on your own. There is a small restaurant here if you’re looking for a refreshment. The $10 admission fee was included in our tour price.
You can find out more about it here.
Spending more time on St. Kitts? Look for your hotel room using our Booking.com link!
Booking.com
17th Century Rum Distillery
Technically part of the grounds for Wingfield Estate (which includes Romney Manor). This archaeological dig site provided lots of information about how sugar mills and historical rum distilling occurred on this island. The 30 minute stop here was a bit long until Annie started explaining about the medicinal properties of various plants found here.
Romney Manor – Caravelle Batik
This beautiful manor in a former plantation has wonderful gardens. The views of the surrounding areas were fabulous. Inside, you’ll catch a batik demo and have an opportunity to purchase a batik item – from ties to shirts to everything in between. We got our included drink at this stop. If you’re going on your own, there is a $3 admission.
You can find out more about it here.
Black Rocks
This stop was a newer addition to the tour and still being developed as a spot on the things to do in St. Kitts list. We stopped for too long at this spot. Ancient lava flowed into the ocean in this spot a long time ago, forming black rocks. Construction was advancing for future bars but for now, vendors mostly set up their crafts on tables. It will be interesting to see how this turns out. A pretty place for a photo, but not much to do.
Timothy Hill
This turned out to be my favorite thing to do in St Kitts. At the top of this point, you can see the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea at the same time. Due to the popularity of this spot, several vendors have set up here to sell drinks, snacks, and touristy items. We stopped here for about ten minutes. If you’re not on a tour, you should certainly consider asking a taxi driver to bring you to this spot and it will be the highlight of things to do in St. Kitts.
Keep in mind that this spot is super windy! Watch for yourself:IMG_6689
St Kitts Cruise Terminal
As I mentioned in my post about choosing this Southern Caribbean cruise, we chose not to get the drinking package on the cruise. At every stop, we looked for good drink offers. The great drink deal here was at the MaPau St. Kitts Casino & Bar just before you board the ship. While a bottle of Carib beer is less than 10 ounces, it only cost 99 cents! We weren’t the only ones enjoying this last-minute refresher and free WiFi!
And don’t forget to take advantage of any jewelry deals you’ve had your eye on – I’ve been tempted by morganite jewelry for a bit and so went ahead and bought a ring! Jewelry and duty-free shopping at the St. Kitts port should be added to your list of things to do in St Kitts.
Next time, I plan on stopping by some of the fabulous beaches on this island.
If you’re cruising a Southern Caribbean itinerary, you might be interested in reading:
Happy travels!
Annick, The Common Traveler
Save this things to do in St. Kitts pin for later!
Raised as a third culture kid living in South America and Europe, Annick caught the travel bug early. As an empty-nester, Annick enjoys sharing her tips for traveling for those with champagne taste and beer budgets.
While I have never visited that part of the world up to now, I really would like to! It sounds like such an exotic place, full with things to do and see. St. Kitts does seem like a good location for a day trip 🙂 My first choice would be to see the Black Rocks, as I am a big fan of dramatic views . And based on your photos, this place surely is dramatic :D:D:D
The price is very reasonable for a tour like this. The Brimstone hill fortress is very interesting. Looks like it is still in good shape. I think I will love Timothy hill too. How wonderful it would be to be able to see Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea from the same vantage point. This is offbeat travel at its best!
St Kitts sounds like a beautiful stop over on your cruise tour. I am loving the idea of doing a full island panoramic tour of St. Kitts – and plus it does sound quite affordable. I have personally never been to the Caribbean but it is high on my bucket list. I am love that you do look for good drink deals when you’re on land…and wow had no idea that you could find great jewellery deals.
Wow! I have been long dreaming about a cruise like this. A beautiful island and what a beautiful ring! Must be quite an exotic place with an extraordinary nature. I hope to able to visit here someday!
This sounds like a great way to get a comprehensive overview of St. Kitts.Great tip on the drink deals too! I agree that it is always more fun to experience local culture and drink specialties at port versus paying for pricey beverages on the cruise ship!
Cruising and seeing many destinations is a great way to travel but sometimes you want to see more of a place and St Kitts will surely be a place I would want to spend more time on. But must say you covered this island in a 5 hour tour perfectly. Viator gives you some great deans when you want to cover a city in limited time. Timothy hills and black rocks look beautiful. Thanks for sharing a great post.
St. Kitts looks gorgeous with its stunning scenaries, beaches and historical sites. Exploring the island for $55 per person is a good deal and looks like its all worth it. And the finger ring you bought is a beautful one, loved the design of it…
Thank you so much! Everything was wonderful!
I think a full day island exploration tour is a great idea for a place like St Kitts and that’s probably the exact thing I’d also do so thank you for recommending the perfect company and local people to do it with. The black rocks looks pretty awesome as does the Brimstone Fortress. I would also love to visit a rum distillery! St Kitts is gorgeous!
A full day tour is perfect for a limited stop like this. Rum distillery = yum!
I haven’t explored Caribbean area and that too with a cruise. Cruising around this beautiful St. Kitts must be a memorable experience. Your island tour looks great with full of nature . I loved that Black rocks area. Good they offered you drinks at every stop and I liked your ring.
Thank you! A cruise was a great way to get a feel for lots of different places.
Beautiful pictures. The Carribean is one area I have not explored. I love the ring. I always bring my mother a piece of jewerly back when I travel.
Thanks! My mother collects spoons from different places, so that’s usually what I bring back.
What gorgeous photos! It definitely looks like you picked the right tour to make the most of your time at that spot.
Thank you! I loved it!
I’ve never spent time in the Caribbean, and this looks gorgeous! (I also LOVE that ring you picked out!)
Thank you!
What a great stop! We’re always looking for new places in the Caribbean to experience and I love the history combined with the nature! It looks like fantastic place to explore!
It was a great day!
It was a great stop!
I’ve been on 3 Caribbean cruises and don’t recall ever stopping at St. Kitt’s – will have to make sure it is on my next cruise itinerary!
We found it on the Southern Caribbean itinerary. You should add it!