Not to miss

Oranjestad

Oranjestad, the island's capital and its only town, is a pleasant place with a fine sense of history. Located along the waterfront, the Lower Town area was the location of the original port town and still has some ruins from the colonial era, as well as the island's best beach and its harbour.

Upper Town is Oranjestad's main commercial and residential area. In the town centre, Fort Oranje is an intact 17th century fort complete with cannons, triple bastions and a cobblestone courtyard. It's perched on the cliffside directly above Lower Town and offers a broad view of the waterfront below.

Zeelandia

Zeelandia, 3km (1.9mi) northeast of Oranjestad, takes its name from Statia's first Dutch settlers, who were from Zeeland province in the Netherlands. It's a nice spot for a stroll, though the dark-sand beach at Zeelandia Bay collects a fair share of flotsam and is not the best beach for swimming.

You can discover some private niches by walking south along the beach towards the cliffs. If you're up for a longer walk, a track from the main road leads north to the semi-secluded Venus Bay. There's no beach, but it makes for a nice hike, taking about 45 minutes each way.

St. Eustatius Historical Museum

This fine museum gives visitors a glimpse of upper-class colonial life on Statia. It occupies the Simon Doncker House, a restored 18th-century Dutch merchant's home that's decorated with period furnishings and holds collections of nautical artefacts, china and hand-blown bottles. The basement, formerly a wine cellar, houses the pre-Columbian collection.

Fort Oranje

In the centre of town, Fort Oranje is an intact fort complete with cannons, triple bastions and a cobblestone courtyard. It's perched on the cliffside above Lower Town and offers a broad view of the waterfront below. One of the courtyard memorials was presented by US President Roosevelt to commemorate the fort's role in America's War of Independence.

Fort de Windt

The road south from Oranjestad ends abruptly at Fort de Windt, where a couple of rusty cannons sit atop a cliffside stone wall. While there's not much else to this small 18th-century fort, you'll be rewarded with a fine view of St Kitts to the southeast. The white cliffs to the east are visible from neighbouring islands.

The fort is just southeast of Oranjestad. To get there, take the road that runs past the old Dutch Reformed Church and follow it south, through a dry terrain of cacti and stray goats, to its end 3km (2mi) away.