t The fully restored Fort Oranje on St. Eustatius island
t The fully restored Fort Oranje on St. Eustatius island
Experience Saba and St. Eustatius
Until recently part of the Netherlands, Antilles, Saba and St. Eustatius now have the status of special municipalities in the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Some 17 miles (27 km) apart, the islands lie to the south of another Dutch outpost, Sint Maarten. They are tiny places, with rugged coastlines and dramatic interiors rising to volcanic peaks. St. Eustatius – usually referred to as Statia – covers an area of just under 12 sq miles (31 sq km) and has a population of of around 3,200. Saba, dubbed “The Unspoiled Queen”, is a mere five square miles, has just one main road called The Road, and some 1,900 inhabitants.
Saba was first colonized by the Dutch in 1640 but due to its inaccessibility and vertiginous terrain, wasn’t cultivated like other Caribbean islands. Instead, it became a haven for pirates. Statia, claimed by the Dutch in the 1630s but frequently changing hands between European countries, was, by contrast, prosperous. In its heyday in the 1700s, the regional capital Oranjestad was a major trading hub in the eastern Caribbean for slaves, sugar, and cotton. The island showed its support for the North American colonies during the American Revolution, and in retribution was ransacked by the British. Ties between Statia and the United States remain close.