Saba is the cone on the south-western horizon that you see from Cupecoy and Maho at sunset: a single volcano five square miles in area, rising straight out of deep water to the summit of Mount Scenery, 887 metres above the sea. That summit is the highest point in the entire Kingdom of the Netherlands. Saba is a special municipality of the Netherlands, has around 2,000 inhabitants, uses the US dollar and calls itself the Unspoiled Queen.
It is the opposite of Sint Maarten in almost every way. There are no real beaches, no resorts, no casinos and no traffic lights. There are four tidy villages of white cottages with red roofs and green shutters, one road — called simply The Road, and built by hand by islanders after engineers declared it impossible — and some of the best hiking and diving in the Caribbean.
Top things to do: Saba
Climb Mount Scenery
A stairway of 1,064 stone steps climbs from Windwardside through rainforest and, near the top, cloud forest dripping with moss, tree ferns and orchids. Allow about three hours for the round trip. The summit is often in cloud; when it clears, the view takes in half the Leeward Islands. The steps are slippery — wear shoes with grip.
Stroll Windwardside
The prettiest village sits on a saddle 400 metres up, with gingerbread cottages, a small museum in a sea captain’s house, cafés, dive shops and the trail office where you can ask about conditions. Look for Saba lace, a needlework tradition going back to the 19th century, and the locally made spiced rum.
Ride The Road
The taxi ride from the harbour or the airport to Windwardside is an excursion in itself, switchbacking through The Bottom — the tiny capital, which is in fact in a high valley — with drops to the sea at every bend. Drivers double as guides and will arrange an island tour.
Dive the pinnacles
The Saba Marine Park surrounds the whole island. Its signature dives are offshore pinnacles — volcanic spires rising from great depth to within 25–30 metres of the surface — with sharks, turtles and big schools of fish. This is for certified divers and realistically needs an overnight stay.
Walk a shorter trail
If Mount Scenery is too much for a day trip, shorter marked trails lead to viewpoints, old farmland and tide pools. The trail office in Windwardside sells an inexpensive nature fee tag and gives advice.
How to get to Saba
- By ferry: passenger ferries link Sint Maarten and Saba on several days a week, with departures from Philipsburg and from Simpson Bay depending on the operator. The crossing takes about an hour and a half. Day-trip schedules — out in the morning, back in the afternoon — run only on certain days, so plan around them.
- By air: Winair flies from Princess Juliana (SXM) several times a day. The flight takes about 12–15 minutes and lands on a runway only 400 metres long, on a ledge above the sea — often described as the shortest commercial runway in the world.
- On Saba: there is no public transport. Taxis meet ferries and flights; hitchhiking is normal and safe. Arrange your return ride when you arrive.
- Tours: we found no Saba day trip from Sint Maarten on GetYourGuide at the time of writing. Book the ferry or flight directly and a taxi tour on arrival.
Insider tips
- The sea between the islands is frequently rough. Flying one or both ways is quicker and far gentler on the stomach, and the landing is an experience.
- Take your passport: Saba is part of the Caribbean Netherlands, a separate jurisdiction from the country of Sint Maarten.
- Bring a light jacket for Mount Scenery — it is noticeably cooler and often wet at the top.
- A day trip gives you roughly five to six hours ashore: enough for either the mountain or a village-and-road tour with lunch, not both at a relaxed pace.
- Cruise passengers should not attempt Saba: timetables are too thin to guarantee getting back.
