St. Kitts port-Can you describe?

[JRoeT]

Can anyone describe the area right around the cruise ship port at St. Kitts?

[Zeno]

Ok - trying to remember some details:

The town is fine to walk around and shop in. Some of the older buildings are interesting around The Circus (circular round-about). Traffic can be a bit hectic here (the streets are narrow) so be alert when crossing streets. Lots of taxis will be available at the dock -if you want to arrange a taxi tour. Personally I highly recommend a tour that includes Brimstone Hill (beautifully restored fortress with great views).

[stebul]

Having been to Baseterre, St. Kitts about 2 weeks ago, here's my thoughts. There is a modern pedestrian-oriented shopping arcade right outside the welcome pavillion at the entrance to the pier (beyond the taxi queue). There were some tourist-focused liquor and souvenier stores in this area, but it was about half vacant. Proceeding through, you came to another open air shopping area and an indoor shopping area with many smaller tourist-focused stores. Beyond that, you are in the town. There are some older, interesting buildings but Basseterre is not developed as a tourist destination the way some other ports are (St. Johns, Antigua comes to mind). You can walk through the streets to see how the island residents lead their lives, and if you are adventerous you can shop in the same stores they do. I agree with the previous poster that a van/taxi tour around the island is a good bet on St. Kitts, or a day at one of the Southern beaches where there are some resorts and restaurants. St. Kitts is much less developed and less populous than other Caribbean islands, so it is interesting to see the environment and landscape with less impact from development. I would recommend skipping the train ride, also -- you can get just as good of a view of the sugar cane fields from the van plus you get to see Brimstone Hill which is very impressive. The Batik store that most of the vans stop at is also interesting (even if you don't buy anything the gardens are nicely maintained and you can watch the ladies applying the Batik patterns to fabric). Van tours take 3 or 4 hours, depending upon how long you want to stop along the way.

[DoreenD]

Loved St Kitts! We took a tour Best of St Kitts through Princess and were in an air conditioned van that went all around the island. Brimstone Fortress had magnificent views. We especially loved the Batik factory. The grounds and gardens were beautiful, as were the batik art that they create. Purchased some beautiful items here at great prices. We did walk around the town after our van tour and found everyone to be very friendly. Took some great photos of the Circus (the town center circle with a beautiful green clock tower decorated for Christmas).