The road up to the Inn does not inspire confidance, with two strips of cement and herds of goats and sheep scattering, lined with rusty sugar mill machinery on which roosters perch, but the saucy gingerbread reception cottage with helpful, pleasant staff offering a sensational rum punch quickly dispelled doubts. The main building is the oldest wooden house in the Caribbean, and is perfectly decorated to be attractive and comfortable. The library has a varied collection, and the TV room is there for CNN fixes. The small bar, ably manned by friendly Shabba (who made the punch), leads to the open air dining terrace, with views past the mango tree to the different coloured, clustered gingerbread houses that are the rooms here. We stayed at Tower Up,(our friends at Blue House and Pasture House) past the pool (where daily tea is served and a slice of delicious cake) and a huge boulder which must have been disgorged from the volcano eons ago. From our covered porch with hammock we could see the sunset through the palms, and the sea in the distance. At 800 feet of altitude, the temperature is perfect. The property sits under Nevis Peak (3232') and it is pretty much jungle from the end of the gardens on up. Our mahogany four poster with mosquito netting and antique furniture were perfect for atmosphere and appeal. I have never seen so many flowers: on the pillows, towels, cushions, ashtrays, even the toilet paper. Coffee maker and little refrigerator were perfect extras, also a radio, CD and tape player. The sound of the crickets and tree frogs were music to tired ears, as was the wind rustling through the palms. The big night here (tho every night the menu is varied and excellent) is the West Indian Buffet on Wednesday with whole roasted pig, served in the dining room while a scratch band plays under the stars out by the mango tree. Dinner (and lunch) is also good down at the Hermitage's Beach Club which is next door to the Four Seasons on Pinney's Beach. There are also many other restaurants to try on Nevis, but it is hard to outdo the one right here. One needs a car to see the island, tho the cabs are wonderful. Having read about TC (Tough Cookie)in an article on Nevis in aTrip Advisor report, lo and behold, she turns up to meet our water taxi, and is just as informative and entertaining as stated! The morning highlight just after dawn is the visit of a troop of vervet monkeys who come to eat up anything they can find in the gardens, but have a wild old time doing it. This is not a luxury resort, but an intimate small hotel (I was invited to use the owners computer in their own living room), with delicious food, pretty rooms, great atmosphere, horse riding available, nature walks, massage therapist will visit if requested, great staff. We were given a discount on our rooms and food as there is a lull after Christmas and before the season gets into full swing. There is a lot of history connected with Horatio Nelson and Fanny Nisbet's courtship and marriage in 1787 in a little church which is still full on Sundays, and Alexander Hamilton's birthplace is now a Museum. There are hot springs, a botanical garden, a resident sculptor and a great Cafe des Arts, a tennis court, even golf (at a price). My one disappointment was that the water in Nevis was not as blue and clear as one expects in the Caribbean, but it had been very stormy. Did I mention the breakfasts?...It was a wonderful week.

We thoroughly enjoyed our stay at the Hermitage, a small, family-owned hotel nestled on a hill overlooking the ocean, perfectly situated for breathtaking views and to catch the gentle island breezes. The setting is idyllic, surrounded by verdant foliage and colorful tropical flowers that will be especially appreciated by those seeking a private, romantic vacation. For the more gregarious traveler, the Lupinacci family, the owners of the Hermitage, will make sure you have a wonderful time. The guests assemble in the main house for cocktails before dinner, and the Lupinaccis are always on hand to facilitate social interaction among the guests. Speaking of cocktails, I recommend the rum punch topped with freshly grated nutmeg, which is made from scratch by Shaba, the hotel’s very capable and likable bartender. Dining at the Hermitage is a sublime experience, focusing on island ingredients prepared with the care and skill of haute cuisine. The rooms, which are always flawlessly clean yet completely free of that antiseptic smell you find in many hotels, are furnished beautifully and decorated tastefully. The high, island-style four-poster beds are extremely comfortable, and each cottage is equipped with a porch with a hammock, which makes for a difficult decision at nap time. Service is attentive yet unobtrusive. We couldn’t have hoped for a more relaxing, enjoyable vacation; a more perfect, gorgeous location; or more wonderful, charming hosts.

We just returned from a wonderful week at the Hermitage. My daughter, her husband and their 3 children accompanied my husband and I on this wonderful trip. This was our second stay at the Hermitage. It was like going home. The staff is friendly and accomodating. This is definitely something to experience.

Wow, we just got back. Indescribable. But do your homework to make sure this is what you are looking for. Go out on the web and search around for all the information on Nevis and the Hermitage. Go to your local bookstore and peek at the travel books and read everything you can about staying at the Hermitage. Trust me, you haven?t even scratched the surface. Until you have heard the rain gently falling on your roof top at night, until you?ve seen the monkeys staring at you as you sip your morning coffee on your porch, until you?ve spent a night in your four poster bed, until you?ve tasted the food, oh wow the food, you haven?t a clue on what the Hermitage at Nevis is all about. This may not be for everyone. If your idea of a vacation is chasing a ball around the links or pumping the one armed bandit and cruising the gift shops at the resort, maybe the Hermitage is not for you. If your idea of nightlife is tapa hopping ?til dawn with the beautiful people, then Nevis is definitely not for you. But if you are looking as the Italians say, ?fare dolce niente? to do sweet nothing, they?re ain?t no sweeter place to do it than the Hermitage at Nevis. I also have to put in a kind word for Pam Barry owner and operator of the Golden Rock Plantation. We just popped in there one night for dinner. Pam made us feel right at home and treated us like old friends who came over for a visit. We?re a couple of hayseeds from Illinois that no one would mistake for the jet set. The Golden Rock is an old sugar plantation built by Pam?s Great-great-great-etc. grandfather in 1810; a really cool place. We ended the night deep in the bowels of the main building with her and her guest Lucille Gordon watching old 8mm home movies of Lucille?s life on Nevis in the early ?60?s. It was a hoot. And hey, if you are feeling ?real adventurous? try Lily?s cafeteria in town for lunch. I had breadfruit, mackerel and a cold Carib beer. If it is not for you, well, I told you that you had to be adventurous. My wife and I are going back next year, even if we have to take second jobs and rob liquor stores in our spare time to pay for it.