SeaLofts offering nearly new condominium complex that features three levels of living space. Sealoft offers a wide range of standard features that many resorts charge as additional costs. Sealofts is located in the Caribbean Island of St. Kitts West Indies in the Frigate Bay community. http://www.caribbeanmag.com/search/hotels/St_Kitts/sealoft/hotel/1763/26/ en-us Copyright 1998 e-TravelMedia.com/CaribbeanMag.com Wed, 25 Nov 2009 06:15:17 EST The SeaLofts complex is located on 3 acres of tropical gardens with a freshwater swimming pool, tennis courts, outdoor barbeque, and easy access to the Royal St. Kitts Golf Club nearby. St. Kitts and Nevis, like no other islands in the Caribbean, seem to embody a kind of lush tropical paradise usually associated with the South Pacific. The atmosphere here is an intoxicating blend of sunlight, sea air and fantastically abundant vegetation. At the center of St. Kitts stands the spectacular, cloud-fringed peak of Mount Liamuiga (pronounced Lee-a-mweega), a dormant volcano covered by dense tropical forest. And on Nevis, too, the ground rises upward into a cloud forest filled with elusive green vervet monkeys and brilliant tropical flowers. For ecotourists, or simply anyone who enjoys stunning natural beauty, St. Kitts and Nevis will far exceed your expectations. And yet nature is only a minute part of the wonder of these small, relatively undiscovered destinations. Long ago, St. Kitts and Nevis were the pearls of the British Caribbean, rich and enormously important islands that were celebrated throughout Europe. Nevis, the "Queen of the Caribbees," possessed unimaginable wealth from its super-productive sugar industry, while on St. Kitts the impregnable fortress of Brimstone Hill stood as the Gibraltar of the West Indies. In this venerable history is plenty of romance as well, for it was on Nevis that the dashing young Horatio Nelson met, courted, and wed Fanny Nisbet, all the while attending to the whirling social life of the island's prosperous plantation estates. Size: St. Kitts is 23 miles long and 5 miles across at its widest, encompassing an area of 68 square miles. The island's point of highest elevation is Mt. Liamuiga, at 3,792 feet. Nevis, the smaller island, lies to the south and is approximately 7 miles in diameter, covering a total of 36 square miles. Climate: Yearly average temperature is 79 degrees; annual rainfall averages 55 inches; humidity is low, and constant northeast trade winds keep the islands cool. Still largely undiscovered, despite their extraordinary beauty, their remarkable history, and their unmatched charm, St. Kitts and Nevis offer a rare opportunity to visit the "Secret Caribbean." AMENITIES: Sealofts is a condominium community of 25 buildings on a three-acre site running from the ocean to the edge of the Royal St. Kitts Golf Club's 18th hole championship golf course. Our well maintained houses were build between 1989 and 1995. Ocean view units are located 200 feet or less from the beach. The Pool/Garden Units are just a short walk from the beach with wonderful views of the mountains, gardens and the fresh water swimming pool. Each unit is unique. They all have ceiling fans in every room and some have central air-conditioning. The ground floor or "pedestal level" is made of concrete and contains a shower and bathroom in most houses, and a washer and drier in every house. Each two-bedroom unit has sundecks on the second and third levels, many with expanded decks. As shown in the floor plans, a spiral staircase takes you to the "main floor" which consists of a fully equipped kitchen, living and dining areas (with cable television), a private deck, a bedroom with double or twin beds and a full bathroom. Another spiral staircase takes you to the "loft level" master bedroom with its own deck high above the property and a view for miles. Our Sealofts are privately owned vacation homes we use for our own vacation time. From the subtle decorating touches to the soft pillows to the full complement of kitchen utensils, you'll find these are personalized homes, not just "vanilla" rental units. ACTIVITIES: St. Kitts comes alive at night! Under starry skies, the music of the Caribbean can be heard swaying through the coconut palms. with folklore shows, calypso and steel bands, and nightly parties, no matter how late it gets, the sun never really sets on St. Kitts. The Ocean Terrace Inn's restaurant, Fisherman's Wharf, has a live band every Friday from 8 to 10 pm on. The Monkey Bar on Frigate Bay is the friendliest beach bar on the island, and comes really alive on Friday evenings, with music starting at 9 pm and going into the wee hours. The Turtle Beach Bar and Grill has a live steel band for their popular Sunday afternoon seafood buffet, while on Saturday it's beach disco time. On Friday and Saturday night, locals often head for J's Place, across from Brimstone Hill - the place is often jumping until the early hours. Bayembi Cultural Entertainment Bar and Cafe, just off the Circus in Basseterre, is a hot and happening place - every Thursday is oldies night and every Friday is reggae night. Its daily happy hours pack 'em in at sunset. And a fairly new addition to the night scene is the Old Anchorage in Frigate Bay - a combination restaurant/beach bar with a disco on some evenings. Visitors going to St. Kitts can now enjoy the excitement of the largest Las Vegas-style casino in the Caribbean. The 40,000 square foot Royal Resort Casino is part of the recently opened St. Kitts Marriott Royal Beach Resort. Stocked with 100 gaming tables and 450 slot machines, the Casino boasts a hand painted ceiling enhanced by fiber-optic technology. The casino is open 17 hours a day, and includes a lounge area complete with four large-screen televisions for viewing sporting events. ST. KITTS SPORTS SEALOFTS - also offers free green fees at the local Golf course. Horse riding, mountain climbing, tennis and golf are available. On St Kitts there is Trinity Stables, and Royal Stables at West Farm, on Nevis at the Hermitage Plantation, where they also have horse-drawn carriage tours. Royal St Kitts Golf Course is an 18-hole international championship golf course at Frigate Bay and there is a nine-hole golf course at Golden Rock, St Kitts, where a fun day is held on the last Sunday of the month. On Nevis, the Four Seasons has an 18-hole golf course. The St Kitts Triathlon is held on the second Sunday in May. Professional triathletes compete to gain official points to qualify for the Olympic games; this is preceded by an amateur race. The grandstand is at Timothy Beach Hotel. On Nevis horse racing is the second most popular sport after cricket. The Nevis Turf and Jockey Club meets six times a year to race island thoroughbreds: New Year's Day, Tourism Week (February), Easter, August during Culturama, Independence Day and Boxing Day. Facilities past Market Shop and down Hanley's Road include a new grandstand seating 200, washrooms, a parimutual booth, good food and dancing well into the night. There is a minimum of five races and horses sometimes come from neighbouring islands. Contact Richard Lupinacci at the Hermitage Inn for details. Also look out for the more amusing donkey races. ST. KITTS ATTRACTIONS Horse riding, mountain climbing, cycling, tennis, Rain Forest and golf are available. ST. KITTS SHOPPING The shopper has plenty of choice and is not swamped by US or British merchandise. Shops are well stocked. Local Sea Island cotton wear and cane and basketwork are attractive and reasonable. Shop opening hours 0800-1600, Monday-Saturday. Early closing on Thursday and also Saturday for some shops. Walls Deluxe Record and Bookshop on Fort Street has a good selection of music and Caribbean books, open Monday-Thursday 0800-1700, Friday 0800-1800, Saturday 0800-1630. The Island Hopper Boutique at the Circus, underneath the Ballahoo restaurant, stocks the Caribelle Batik range of cotton fashions and also carries clothes from Trinidad, St Lucia, Barbados and Haiti; open 0800-1600 Monday-Friday, 0800-1300 Saturday; also at The Arcade, Charlestown, Nevis. The Stonewall Boutique on Princes Street sells quality local crafts and imports. The Plantation Picture House, at Rawlins Plantation is Kate Spencer's studio and gallery of portraits, still life and landscapes in oils and watercolours, her designs are also on silk, open 1100-1700. She also has a shop in Basseterre, on Bank Street, just off the Circus, called Kate, with paintings, prints, silk sarongs, hats by Dale Isaac, and another shop in Main Street, Charlestown. The public markets in Basseterre and Charleston are busiest Saturday morning, good for fruit and vegetables, also fish stalls and butchers. Supermarkets in Basseterre include B and K Superfood on the south side of Independence Square and George Street, Horsfords Valumart on Wellington Road, and Rams on Bay Road and at Bird Rock. On Nevis, there are well-stocked supermarkets: Nisbets in Newcastle and Superfood, Parkville Plaza, Charlestown. There are several local craft shops in Charlestown. Next to the Tourist Office is Nevis Handicraft Co-operative. On the road to the Four Seasons Hotel is an industrial estate with shops selling crafts and a toy shop. In Newcastle there is a pottery with red clay artefacts including bowls and candleholders. You can watch potters at work. The kilns are fired by burning coconut husks. There are philatelic bureaux on both St Kitts and Nevis which are famous (the latter more so) for their first day covers of the islands' fauna and flora, undersea life, history and carnival. The St Kitts bureau is in Pelican Shopping Mall, open Monday-Wednesday, Friday-Saturday 0800-1200, 1300-1500, Thursday, 0800-1100. The Nevis bureau is open Monday-Friday, 0800-1600. ST. KITTS DIVING There is very good snorkelling and scuba diving. Most dive sites are on the Caribbean side of the islands, where the reef starts in shallow water and falls off to 100 feet or more. Between the two islands there is a shelf in only 25 feet of water which attracts lots of fish, including angelfish, to the corals, sea fans and sponges. There is black coral off the southeast peninsula, coral caves, reefs and wrecks with abundant fish and other sea creatures of all sizes and colours. Off St Kitts good reefs to dive include Turtle Reef (off Shitten Bay) which is good for beginners and snorkelling, Coconut Reef in Basseterre Bay and Pump Bay by Sandy Point. Much of the diving is suitable for novices and few of the major sites are deeper than 70 feet. Several wrecks and some other sites are actually shallow enough for very rewarding snorkelling although the very best snorkelling around St Kitts is only accessible by boat. Snorkelling off Oualie Beach, Nevis, is excellent and also good at Nisbett Beach and Tamarind Bay. Scuba Safaris, run by Ellis Chaderton, is based at Oualie Beach. DINING/RESTARUANTS: Type: Condo No. of Rooms: 100 Beach Location: Beach Front (Directly on Beach/Water Front) http://www.caribbeanmag.com/search/hotels/St_Kitts/sealoft/hotel/1763/26/ Wed, 25 Nov 2009 06:15:17 EST