Hillside Cottage: A Quiet Perch on the Unspoiled Queen
A pocket-sized Saban hideaway where the Caribbean unfolds beneath your feet.
Why Go
Saba is barely five square miles of volcanic rock rising straight out of the sea, and Hillside Cottage understands the assignment: sit high, stay small, and let the view do the heavy lifting. This is the kind of place where you unlock the door, drop your bag, walk to the railing, and forget what you were going to say next. There are no cruise ships, no traffic lights, no chain hotels ΓÇö just a red-roofed white cottage tucked into the greenery with the whole Caribbean laid out below.
The Experience
Stepping inside feels like being handed a private slice of the island. Expect the classic Saban look: crisp white walls, green shutters, a gingerbread trim on the eaves, and windows sized specifically for the panorama outside them. Days start slowly on the porch with coffee and the sound of tropical birds and the distant hush of the trade winds. By afternoon the light shifts across the flanks of Mount Scenery; by evening you're watching the sun sink past St. Eustatius, St. Kitts, and Nevis on the horizon. Nights are famously dark ΓÇö Saba has some of the least light pollution in the Caribbean ΓÇö so bring your head back for the stars.
What to Try
Lace up and hike the Mount Scenery trail from the cottage's doorstep ΓÇö 1,064 steps up to the highest point in the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Book a two-tank dive with Sea Saba or Saba Divers to explore the pinnacles of the Saba Marine Park. Wander down into Windwardside for a rum punch at Swinging Doors or dinner at Brigadoon. And do the drive to The Road That Couldn't Be Built at least once ΓÇö engineers insisted it was impossible, and a local named Josephus Lambert Hassell built it anyway.
Insider Tip
Saba's weather changes in ten-minute increments and the cottage sits high enough to catch cloud. Keep a light rain shell by the door ΓÇö you'll want to grab it and go the moment the sky clears, because the view of the neighboring islands after a squall is the shot everyone else misses.
The Practical Stuff
Getting here means either the 12-minute Winair flight from St. Maarten (landing on the world's shortest commercial runway) or the ferry from Simpson Bay. Cars can be rented at the airport, but taxis are easy and the island is small. Bring cash in USD (the local currency) for smaller shops, and pack layers ΓÇö evenings at elevation get cool by Caribbean standards. Book well ahead: Saba has fewer than 100 rooms island-wide and cottages go fast in dive season.
Pair It With
- Mount Scenery Trail — The island's signature hike starts a short walk from most Windwardside-area cottages and delivers cloud forest, wild orchids, and a summit view of the entire Caribbean chain.
- Saba National Marine Park Guide — Encircles the whole island with protected reefs and pinnacles ΓÇö the diving is the real reason most people fall for Saba, and a day on the water pairs perfectly with a cottage evening.
- Big Rock Supermarket Guide — Your one-stop for cottage groceries, cold Caribs, and the small-island ritual of chatting with whoever's at the counter.
- Amonhana — A nearby local kitchen for an easy dinner when you'd rather not drive the switchbacks after dark.
- Windwardside Village — The gingerbread-trimmed heart of Saba ΓÇö galleries, the Harry L. Johnson Museum, and the best rum-punch sunsets, all within a walkable loop.