SABA
Saba is 28 miles south of St. Maarten which, together with Saba and Statia, form the Windward Islands of the Dutch Caribbean. All travel to Saba connects in St. Maarten, either by air or ferry service to Fort Bay. Saba is a free port: there are no customs. You'll need a valid passport, birth certificate or voter's registration to enter as well as a return or ongoing ticket.
If you choose not to walk or hike the tiny island, taxi drivers in modern vans can guide your trip, or you can rent a car and explore on your own. Daytime temperatures on Saba average 80°F. Easterly trade winds and the mountain create ever changing cloud movements. The Dutch guilder is the official currency, but the U.S. dollar is accepted everywhere on the island.
Each of the island's four villages has several small and unique restaurants. Most of them offer outdoor dining as well as a friendly bar. Cuisine is international, and includes American, European, Chinese, Italian, and a delicious blend of Indonesian and West Indian Creole. Each restaurant is a gathering place for the well-traveled and well-educated locals, where conversations are easy and interesting. On weekends everyone's invited to the island-wide party that often includes music, steel band drums and a barbeque under the stars.
Saba's second-largest village is Windwardside. Perched at 1,968 ft, it commands stunning views of the Caribbean. Amid the town's oleander bushes you'll find rambling lanes winding through the hills, with clusters of tiny, neat houses and shops. At the village's northern end is the Church of St. Paul's Conversion, a colonial building with a red-and-white steeple. Just down the road is the Saba Tourist Office.
Signs mark the way to the Saba Museum, a 150-year-old house surrounded by lemongrass and clover. The museum is a replica of a sea captain's home, with period pieces and documents. The stroll to the museum down the stone-walled Park Lane is one of the prettiest walks in the Caribbean.
Saba's history of farming, fishing and seamanship account for the islanders' careful protection of their natural resources. The lush tropical vegetation ranges from dry scrub to dry evergreen forest, from secondary rain forest to cloud forest. Early visitors referred to the latter forests as "the Elfin Forest" because of their high altitude mist and mossy appearance. The ever-resourceful Sabans have since designated a special woodland area as the Elfin Forest Reserve.
Cashew, coconut, banana and mango trees, giant elephant ears, and a colorful array of hibiscus, oleander, orchids and bougainvillea are among the spectacular plants that carpet this island paradise. Not to be missed is a climb to the top of aptly-named Mt. Scenery. About a 90 minute hike from Windwardside, the climb takes you through a tropical rain forest up to the summit, where you'll find a spectacular view of Saba and the nearby bird sanctuary, Green Island.
The Tourist Office, the Saba Conservation Foundation and many local supporters have marked and maintain trails for easy trekking. The hikes take in Saba's rain forest, tidepools, historic ruins and rich natural resources. Even a walk along Saba's hand-hewn winding road will lead you to a magical views.
Below the ocean's surface, a wonderland awaits. Saba's brilliantly colorful and pristine coral life make it one of the most sublime places to scuba dive in the world. In 1987, when few divers visited the island, Saba established a Marine Park with permanent moorings, regulations of use and a strong conservation ethic. The park is situated around the entire island and includes the waters and seabed from the highwater mark down to a depth of 200 feet, as well as offshore seamounts. This careful foresight has resulted in a controlled diver impact and an undamaged reef life, a pristine environment valued by locals and divers alike.
All dive operations abide by the rules of the park and give weekly slide shows to entertain and inform divers of Saba's special marine life. The Park has received several honors and remains the only park of its kind to be completely self-sufficient in its operation. The island boasts more than two dozen different, unspoiled diving locations, all patrolled and protected by the Saba Marine Park.
