Seniors Enjoy Caribbean’s Thrilling Side

Senior travelers, the awards for the Best Caribbean Destinations are in. Saba ranked in the top ten. The Reader’s Choice Awards (10 Best.com) selected the Dominican Republic as #1, but Saba made the list. A panel of experts and a public vote awarded the top choices to ten islands.

Saba, a Caribbean island in the Lesser Antilles chain, is a special municipality of the Netherlands. Measuring just 13 square kilometers, it consists essentially of the top of the dormant Mount Scenery volcano. Its surrounding Saba Marine Park, a renowned dive site, is home to coral formations, dolphins, sharks and turtles.

There are also offshore seamounts, or underwater mountains created by volcanic activity. The Chicago Tribune noted that Saba is “Unspoiled, Underdeveloped and Undeniably Beautiful.”  The WSJ highlights its “Stunning Scenery.” The island is called an “Unspoiled Queen” and a “Tropical Kingdom.”

Seniors Love Underwater Beauty

Senior travelers will find Saba in the northeastern Caribbean Sea, 28 miles southwest of its international hub, the island of St. Maarten. Historically, Saba’s birth was traumatic. Around 500,000 BC the island was formed as the top of a volcano that became active during the middle of the late Pleistocene era. Now a dormant volcano, she has not erupted for about 5,000 years, so no trouble today.

TripAdvisor suggests attractions and things to do that include snorkeling and scuba diving. Lonely Planet adds that dense forest drapes its peaks and valleys, making it look like Ireland, while the traditional red-roofed houses with their green shutters and white gingerbread trim seem plucked from a Brothers’ Grimm fairy tale. Below the waterline, senior divers and snorkelers will discover a colorful kingdom of coral teeming with sharks, turtles and luminous tropical fish.

Seniors Find Garden of Eden

There is no crime, little traffic and a close-knit local community that’s genuinely happy where they are. And happy to see you in their earthly ‘Garden of Eden’. Let’s tour Saba and find out for ourselves the diverse and vibrant ecosystem and the unique diving experience (pinnacle diving, scuba diving, wall diving, etc…).

The population of Saba is 1,991 people spread into four major villages and includes the 200-300 medical students attending the Saba University of Medicine. The medical school houses a hyperbaric chamber, which coincides nicely with Sabas extensive diving draw.

Sugar and rum were Saba’s chief exports through the 18th century, and fishing, particularly lobster fishing, later. Once trade routes became more open, Saban Lace, a derivative of Spanish Lace, became very popular. By 1928 the women of Saba were exporting $15,000 (USD) worth of lace yearly.

Senior visitors will find the people on Saba very friendly. Taxi drivers have been known to pick up hitchers, not charging them for the ride if that’s the direction they’re going anyway. So, put Saba on your travel bucket list and enjoy a unique experience. -jeb