This Is One of the Caribbean's Smallest Islands-With 200 Shipwrecks, Ancient Volcanoes, and No Crowds

"In the 1700s, Sint Eustatius was the biggest, busiest harbor in the Western Hemisphere. Today, the island, now better known as Statia, is one of the least known in the Caribbean, free of touristy kitsch and crowds. Divers come for its pristine coral reefs, 200 or so shipwrecks, and wildly diverse marine life-a new ecosystem with every 10-minute boat ride."

"Historians and archaeologists come because this is the "Pompeii of the New World," four centuries visible at once. Nature lovers come to explore the island's vast protected parkland, teeming with tropical flowers and gentle wildlife. Hikers scale The Quill, a dormant volcano of extraordinary beauty, and Boven, a group of extinct volcanoes at the island's other end. Those volcanoes saved Statia from mass tourism, leaving narrow strips of silvery gray or taupe sand edged in rock, rather than flat, white-sand beaches begging for umbrella drinks."

Sint Eustatius was the busiest harbor in the Western Hemisphere in the 1700s and now is known as Statia, a deliberately underdeveloped Caribbean island with minimal tourism. The island's waters host pristine coral reefs, about 200 shipwrecks, and highly diverse marine ecosystems favored by divers. Four centuries of colonial activity remain visible, attracting historians and archaeologists who call it the "Pompeii of the New World." The island contains vast protected parkland, tropical flora, gentle wildlife, and hiking on The Quill and Boven volcanoes. Local residents prioritize conservation and community character over mass-tourism development.

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