(WIPO Code: KN) (latest review March 2024)

by GRANT, POWELL & CO., Basseterre

General Information

Area

Saint Kitts 168 sq. km.; Nevis 93 sq. km.

Population

54,817 (2023).

Capital

Basseterre.

Language

English (official language).

Currency

Eastern Caribbean Dollar; U.S. currency is widely accepted.

General Remarks

On his Second Voyage in 1493 Christopher Columbus landed on the larger of the two islands and named it Saint Christopher after his patron Saint. Columbus also discovered Nevis, reportedly calling it Nevis because of its resemblance to a snow capped mountain, “nuestra senora de las nieves” or Our Lady of the Snows.

The Federation of Saint Christopher and Nevis, also known in the country’s constitution as Saint Kitts & Nevis, achieved its independence from Great Britain in 1983 and forms part of the group of islands known as the Lesser Antilles, located some 2,000 km to the southeast of Miami.

Saint Kitts & Nevis embody a kind of lush tropical paradise usually associated with the South Pacific. The atmosphere here is a blend of sunlight, sea air and abundant vegetation. At the center of Saint Kitts stands the spectacular, cloud-fringed peak of Mount Liamuiga (pronounced Lie-a-meega), a dormant volcano covered by dense tropical forest.

Tourism plays a large role in the economy of the twin island Federation economy, which offers very fine beaches and an outstandingly attractive mountainous landscape. The climate is tropical and close to perfect. Differences in altitude and corresponding differences in soil types make it a paradise for tropical plants. Saint Kitts has a very well-designed championship golf course laid out between the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean, with a second golf course presently being constructed in Sandy Point some twelve miles from Basseterre, the capital. There is also a championship golf course on Nevis. The truly appropriate motto of the Tourism Authority is: Two islands – One Paradise.