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Opening hours, holidays and festivals
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As a general rule,
opening hours
are Monday through Friday 8am-noon and 1-4.30pm, with some banks closing around 3pm earlier in the week. Shops and services tend to stay open later when there's a cruise ship in town, but essentially close up altogether on Sunday, when the only places operating are hotel restaurants.
The main public holidays celebrated throughout the Caribbean, during which virtually all shops and offices close, are: January 1 New Year's Day Good Friday Easter Monday May 1 Labour Day Whit Monday Dec 25 Christmas Day Dec 26 Boxing Day St Kitts and Nevis also observe the Queen's Birthday on the second Saturday in June, August Monday on the first Monday in August, and Independence Day on September 19.
In addition to closures on holidays, businesses on St Kitts often shut down during festivals, the biggest of these being
Carnival
, which runs from December 24 to January 3, with calypso performances and costumed street dancing. June brings the four-day
Music Festival
, a showcase of headlining calypso, soca, reggae, salsa and gospel acts. Nevis' main festival, the weeklong
Culturama
takes place in early August, with music performances and beauty pageants; the end of the month is
Carifiesta
time, a ten-day affair attracting artists from around the Caribbean. Other useful information
for tourists (each section contains more specific sub-sections): |
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Saint Kitts And Nevis |