Getting to, from and around St. Kitts is easy, inexpensive and fun
Just a few years ago, it could take a whole day of island-hopping to reach St. Kitts, but thanks to increased service you can get here directly from several U.S. cities, London and Puerto Rico. If you’re coming by yacht or on a cruise ship, your port of call is centrally located in the heart of downtown Basseterre (Bass-TEAR).
Once you are here, getting around the island is easy since circumnavigating the whole country takes only a couple of hours. A guided taxi-tour is a great way to get started. Once you get the lay of the land, there are plenty of rental options to get you around the island.
If you’ve just landed, you’re at Robert Bradshaw International Airport, and if you’ve arrived via cruise ship, you’re at Port Zante in the capital city of Basseterre. In either case, you’re just 10 minutes away from most hotels. Taxis, with their signature yellow license plates are waiting nearby. (Green license plates indicate local buses. Residents have black license plates and red is reserved for rentals.) Note that tipping taxi drivers is not customary, and there is a 50 percent surcharge between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m.
Don’t worry if you’ve arrived and you don’t have local currency. American cash is accepted everywhere. If you’re staying for more than a few days, getting some Eastern Caribbean dollars (XCD) may make your life a little easier. Banks in town have 24-hour ATMs that dispense local currency and ATMs at the Marriott Casino dispense American dollars. You can withdraw from, or check the balance of, the primary checking and savings accounts linked to your bankcard, via the PLUS/Electron or Cirrus/Maestro networks.
People drive on the left-hand side of the road. For visitors not accustomed to driving this way, the first few hours on the road are the hardest, especially if the steering wheel is also on the left hand side of the car. Luckily, driving quickly becomes easier. Note that speed limits are posted in miles per hour, but your speedometer may not be.
Locals customarily stop mid-traffic, on either side of the street, to chat or get out and run an errand, so give the car ahead of you plenty of room to avoid fender benders. When you’re not navigating around other cars, be advised that you’re bound to come across cattle, goats, chickens, monkeys, cats and dogs, so drive carefully.
Although there is not even a single traffic light on the island, there are several traffic circles. Just remember to stay left and yield to traffic already in the circle.
The narrow streets of Basseterre can clog quickly during peak travel times, so if you’re driving around lunchtime or right after businesses close around 5:00 p.m., pad your schedule accordingly. Parking is only an issue when you’re in town so keep in mind that yellow curbs indicate "no parking," or use the parking lot in Port Zante for a stress free alternative.
Driving outside of Basseterre is a breeze. One main road goes around the island, while another goes to the end of the peninsula and back. Vans and mini buses make frequent stops to pick up and drop off passengers, and when they’re not stopping they’re often the fastest vehicles on the road so give them plenty of room.
