When a press trip invite arrives in your inbox touting a “Summer Camp for Adults” experience on St. Kitts, it’s kind of a no-brainer. If you can, you go. The St. Kitts Marriott Resort sponsored a small group of travel writers and journalists to visit the island and property and dig into some outdoor adventure activities.
Measuring just 98 square miles, St. Kitts is a small island that packs a whole lot of natural beauty inside its shores. Perhaps my favorite landscape of all involves beautiful beaches flanked by dramatic mountains, and St. Kitts seriously delivered on both counts.
Where to Get Your Outdoors Fix
It turns out that the lush rainforest that blankets large swaths of the island makes for a pretty ideal playground for active travelers. I overcame my fear of heights on Sky Safari Tours zipline excursion, which involved 5 different ziplines strung from a mountain peak to its base. I flew over the rainforest canopy like some sort of Wizard of Oz monkey, screaming my head off the entire time.
Speaking of monkeys, there’s a surplus on the island — more monkeys than people, in fact. If you dig our primate relatives, you can probably find some local with a diaper-wearing monkey who’ll let you snap photos with the creature for $5. While this might be an adventure of some sort, I hate hate hate the critters, so no, I didn’t indulge. Anyhoo, I digress.
It’s possible to organize an island tour with a local guide, like the aptly named Captain Sunshine, who took us on a rainforest hike that involved my swinging from a vine, Tarzan-style — bonus. Captain, my Captain, also taught us about local plants, edible nuts and fruits native to the island and a fair dose of St. Kitts history, including a side trip to the Brimstone Hill Fortress.
The island attracts a mix of visitors and a whole lot of crowded cruise ships. If you do decide to book any excursions, plan to do so in the early morning before the crowds from the ships arrive and choke up the attractions.
Staying in St. Kitts
The beachfront Marriott is one of the main accommodations in St. Kitts, and the property’s central location means it’s only a 15-minute drive from the airport, and a short cab ride from the main town of Bassaterre. The resort beach is large and beautiful, with plenty of shaded palapas where you can sip cold drinks and catch some rays. After dark, you might try your luck at the hotel’s casino, or sit on your balcony and enjoy the warm island breeze.
