Old Road Town

The road that hugs the coast of Saint Kitts is known as the Circle-Island Road. It runs around the entire island and next to the road are narrow gauge train tracks that are used to haul freshly cut sugar cane from the fields to the sugar mills. The seaside village of Old Road Town is one of the best places along the Circle-Island Road to stop. It was the place where the first British settlers landed in 1623, but archaeological evidence in the form of Carib petroglyphs shows that it had been inhabited before.

Just north of Old Road Town, on the grounds of the Wingfield Estate, is the Caribelle Batik factory, where you can learn more about the process of dyeing cloth using wax, known as batik. The Wingfield Estate used to be a sugar plantation in the 17th century. The remains of the old sugar mill and manor house that once stood here can still be seen.

Accommodation is available in Old Road Town, but most people prefer to stay in Basseterre, which is only 8 km to the east.