This Little Caribbean Island Is Charming, Historic, and Home to Some of the Region’s Best Hiking

Statia is the kind of Caribbean island that makes you slow down without asking. It’s small enough that nothing feels far away, and quiet enough that you notice details — the texture of volcanic rock underfoot, the way old stone walls catch the light late in the afternoon, the sound of the sea when there’s nothing else competing with it. There are no crowds to manage, no schedules to race, no sense that you’re missing something if you stop moving.

Officially known as Sint Eustatius, Statia sits in the northeastern Caribbean and feels like a place that stepped off the main road a long time ago and never felt the need to rejoin it. Today, it’s one of the least visited islands in the region, but historically, it was one of the most important.

That’s what makes it so unique.

Visiting Statia
The physical reason people come to Statia is The Quill. The dormant volcano rises steeply from the center of the island and defines both the skyline and the experience. Hiking it is not casual, but it’s deeply satisfying. Trails climb through thick greenery to the crater rim, where the island suddenly opens up around you — sea in every direction, wind cutting the heat, and the sense that you’ve earned the view rather than stumbled into it.

For those who want to go further, paths descend into the crater itself, a shaded, almost enclosed world with cooler air and dense vegetation. It feels removed from the rest of the island, a reminder that Statia’s scale doesn’t limit its variety.

Then there’s the water. Statia’s surrounding sea is protected, and the difference is immediately apparent. Diving and snorkeling here are quiet, uncrowded, and deliberately managed. This isn’t a place built for volume; it’s built for longevity. The result is a marine environment that feels intact — something increasingly rare in the Caribbean.

But Statia’s real distinction comes from how nature and history sit side by side. You can hike a volcano in the morning, swim in the afternoon, and spend the evening walking through streets that once mattered enormously to the world beyond this island.

Statia and the USA
In 1776, Statia played a role that few islands of its size can claim. When the American brig Andrew Doria sailed into Statia’s harbor carrying the new flag of the United States, the island’s Dutch fort returned a salute. That exchange is widely recognized as the first international acknowledgment of American independence.

At the time, Statia was a major trading hub, earning the nickname “The Golden Rock.” Its harbor was stacked with warehouses, and its merchants supplied arms and goods that quietly fueled the American Revolutionary effort. This was not a symbolic gesture — it was material support that mattered.

The consequences were immediate. Britain, furious over the island’s role, eventually attacked and captured Statia, stripping it of much of its wealth. The island never fully regained its former prominence. What remains today are the ruins: forts overlooking the sea, stone foundations, warehouses collapsing slowly back into the landscape.

Walking through Oranjestad, you don’t need plaques to understand the weight of it. The scale of the ruins tells the story on its own.

Alexander Hamilton’s Statia
Statia’s influence reaches even further through its connection to Alexander Hamilton. Hamilton spent part of his youth on the island.

That chapter of his life is not presented theatrically on Statia. It’s simply part of the island’s fabric, another layer in a place that quietly shaped events far beyond its shores.

What makes this history resonate is its scale. Statia didn’t host grand ceremonies or monumental declarations. It operated in the margins — trading, supplying, acknowledging — and those actions rippled outward. Visiting today, you feel how a small place can carry outsized importance without needing to announce it.

Where to Stay
The Old Gin House is the natural anchor for a stay on Statia, especially if you want to feel connected to the island rather than insulated from it. Set in a historic waterfront building tied to Statia’s trading past, the hotel balances comfort with context. Rooms open toward the sea or into tropical gardens, and the property’s layout encourages unforced routines: coffee by the water, a swim after a hike, dinner as the sky darkens over the harbor.

There’s a small a pool framed by palms, and an on-site restaurant that makes evenings easy without feeling staged. After a day on The Quill or exploring ruins, it’s exactly where you want to end up — close enough to everything, and far enough from noise.

The Old Gin House doesn’t try to reinterpret history or polish it into a theme. It simply sits within it, which feels appropriate for Statia.

What to Do
What to do when you’re there
A Statia trip works best when it’s not overplanned. Give yourself one full day for The Quill, starting early enough that you can move at your own pace and still have time afterward to rest, swim, and absorb the experience. Another day belongs to the charming historic brick-lined streets of Oranjestad.

Spend time along the shoreline, where black volcanic rock meets clear water, and the absence of development becomes part of the appeal. If you dive or snorkel, approach it the Statia way: unhurried, respectful, focused on what’s there rather than what’s missing.

And leave space in your schedule. This is not an island that fills time for you. It asks you to notice how you’re using it.

Getting to Statia
Winair flies daily from St Maarten, and you can also take a ferry from SXM, too.