It's ironic that most visitors come to Saba, a soaring volcano peak in the Windward chain that reaches high into the clouds, just to go the opposite direction – diving hundreds of feet down into the depths of Saba's marine park.
The capital, The Bottom, actually sits 820 feet above sea level – far from the base of the island as its name would suggest. Still, it is one of the lowest villages on this steeply pitched island. A rain forest thrives in the crater of Mount Scenery, an extinct volcano in the center of the island that reaches 2,900 up from sea level.
DIVING
More than 30 sites encircle Saba, many of which are pinnacles or vertical walls that extend into limitless underwater canyons. Don't pack a beach bag if you're going to Saba, because there aren't any beaches on this little Dutch isle.
ECO-ADVENTURE
Hikers access this lush jungle - the place where the original Tarzan movie was filmed -- by climbing the 1,064 steps to the top. If you peer into one of the green-shuttered windows of the boxy white houses on Saba, you just might catch the lady of the house brewing a batch of rum liqueur called Saba Spice or sewing the island's treasured lace. There is no nightlife to speak of, save for divers sharing their tales of the day's adventures and watching the sun set.
HISTORY
Saba was the site of an English shipweck in 1632. The first settlers, however, were Dutch. Beginning in the late 1600s, possession of the island alternated between Britain and France. It was returned to the Dutch in the early 1800s.
DON'T MISS
– Diving the pinnacles of the Saba Marine Park
– Drinking Saba Spice, the local spiced rum concoction
– Bringing home Saba lace, hand-stitched by the island women
