St. Kitts & Nevis
By Dale
Leatherman,
Staff Writer
Photos by Donnelle Oxley
These two tiny islands, both dominated by spectacular dormant volcanoes,
have much to offer the discerning traveler, including a Four Seasons resort
with a top-notch Robert
Trent Jones, Jr. golf course.
Centuries ago, St. Kitts (originally named St. Columbus, for its discoverer)
and Nevis were the jewels of the British Caribbean,
known throughout Europe.
Nevis' sugar fields generated enormous wealth and there was a vibrant
social life among the great plantations. To guard these rich islands,
St. Kitts
had the "Gibraltar of the West
Indies," the seemingly impregnable fortress of Brimstone Hill.
But sugar fortunes waned, the plantations were deserted and the islands
returned in large part to their natural, tropical state. The two-island
nation became insignificant specks in the Caribbean
between St. Croix and Antigua.
Four
Seasons literally put Nevis back on the map in 1991 with Four Seasons
Nevis. The five-star resort on beautiful Pinney's Beach became a magnet
for the cognoscenti, especially golfers who relished the challenge of
the resort's Robert Trent Jones, Jr. course. Conde Nast Traveler
readers continue to name it one of their favorite resorts worldwide.
The increase in tourist traffic has been good for St. Kitts, too. Nevis
visitors fly into St. Kitts and sometimes spend enough time there to realize
how charming it is. In Basseterre, the small capital city, French and
English structures reflect the islands' past, when the country was split
between the two nations. France and England fought each other and the
Carib Indians for possession of the islands. The natives finally got the
worst of it. West of town is Bloody Point, where 2,000 Indians were massacred.
The Kittitians (as St. Kitts residents are called) are cautious about
overdevelopment, so there are many restored inns and plantation houses
but few large resorts. The soft opening of the new 680-room Marriott in
February 2003 was a momentous occasion. The resort and its golf course
will be fully open later in 2003.
The Royal
St. Kitts Golf Course occupies a peninsula near Frigate Bay, with
views of the Atlantic on one side, the Caribbean on the other, and a dormant
volcano inland . Designed by five-time British Open winner Peter Thompson,
the route is well spiced with water hazards and swept by sea winds from
all directions. The course has been recently renovated.
Four Seasons guests relax in a comfortable dockside lounge on St. Kitts
before boarding a sleek private launch, rum punches in hand, for the ride
to Nevis. From that moment on, the service is unflagging.
Large, well-appointed rooms overlook a vista of golden beach to the
west, and to the east is the island centerpiece, Mt. Nevis, a 3,200-foot
volcano clothed in rain forest and crowned with clouds. Columbus must
have been into the grog when he named this tropical island "Nuestra
Senora de las Nieves" -- Our Lady of the Snows -- though the billowy
clouds make the volcano look as if it could be capped with snow -- sort
of.
 In
deference to Columbus' vision, what looks suspiciously like a ski slope
snakes down the mountain's side. It is, of course, the fairway of the
fifteenth hole, a downhill, 663-yard (gold tees) par-5 that is the signature
of the resort's Robert Trent Jones II golf course. Like a black diamond
ski run, the hole's whimsical black tee (the only black tee on the course)
attracts experts and fools. From the tee, perched 450 feet above sea level,
a densely jungled chasm stretches 240 yards to the fairway. Played from
the closer tees, the long dogleg plays shorter than its yardage due to
its downhill fairway and favoring wind. The cart ride through the gorge
from tee to fairway is great fun.
Fifteen is just one of the natural highs on the Four Season's par-71
layout, which offers four tee selections between 6,766 and 5,153 yards.
The course has views rivaling any in the Caribbean. Almost every hole
has a backdrop of Mt. Nevis or a view of blue ocean and emerald islands
as the course dips and twists through the foothills. Palm trees and flowers
line the fairways. Families of multi-colored goats browse among the bunkers,
and wild moneys kibitz from mango trees.
The course is swept by sea winds, but the price you pay for this natural
air-conditioning is tricky club selection, varying two to three clubs
on some holes. Factor in constant changes in elevation and you have a
real test of tactics. Let's see, add two for the wind, subtract one for
downhill . . . .
The fifteenth hole tops the card in intimidation, but is second fiddle
in difficulty to the eighth, a 511-yard par-5. From tee to green the fairway
climbs relentlessly, with one cluster of bunkers placed on the right side
of the landing area, another on the left to spoil your second shot. It
culminates in a stingy, elevated green that sheds balls with impunity.
The course fits the island setting rather than violating it, as does
the resort. Seen from the deck of the catamaran which provides daily snorkeling
excursions, the 196 luxurious rooms, housed in a dozen two-story "cottages,"
melt into tropical foliage.
Pinney's Beach is delightful, but there are too many diversions to sit
still -- sailing, snorkeling, windsurfing, waterskiing, scuba diving among
the island's pristine reefs, or playing tennis on the resort's championship
quality clay courts. Mt. Nevis has safe but relentless trails to its peak,
while less energetic explorers can spend an entertaining afternoon strolling
old sugar plantations and shopping for locally-made pottery and baskets.
The resort's three restaurants, all with ocean views, feature Mediterranean,
Continental and West Indian cuisine.
When You Go
American Eagle has daily connecting flights from San Juan to St. Kitts.
Four Seasons Resort Nevis, (869) 469-1111, www.fourseasons.com/nevis.
Royal St. Kitts Golf Club, (869) 465-8339, www.stkittsnevis.net
Marriott St. Kitts, Phone: (869) 466-1200, www.marriott.com Agree
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