Antigua & Barbuda

Population: 81,799 (est.)

Language(s): English

Capital: Saint John’s

Interesting Facts:

• The East Caribbean dollar is the official currency of Antigua & Barbuda.
• Christianity is followed by nearly all of the islands’ population with Protestantism being the most popular.
• Tourism continues to dominate Antigua and Barbuda’s economy, accounting for nearly 60% of GDP and 40% of investment.
• The dual-island nation’s agricultural production is focused on the domestic market and constrained by a limited water supply and a labor shortage stemming from the lure of higher wages in tourism and construction.
• Antigua and Barbuda are best visited during the cool and dry winter months of mid-December to mid-April, which is the peak tourist season. In January and February, the coolest months, the average daily high temperature is 27°C (81°F ).
• There were many slaves brought to the island during colonial rule to work on the sugar and tobacco plantations.
• The British monarch is the Head of State of Antigua and Barbuda and is represented by a Governor General.
• Antigua and Barbuda gained full independence in the year 1981.

Antigua and Barbuda (Spanish for “ancient” and “bearded”) is a twin-island nation lying between the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. It consists of two major inhabited islands, Antigua and Barbuda, and a number of smaller islands (including Great Bird, Green, Guinea, Long, Maiden and York Islands and further south, the island of Redonda). The permanent population numbers approximately 81,800 (at the 2011 Census) and the capital and largest port and city is St. John’s, on Antigua.

Separated by a few nautical miles, Antigua and Barbuda are in the middle of the Leeward Islands, part of the Lesser Antilles, roughly at 17 degrees north of the Equator. The country is nicknamed “Land of 365 Beaches” due to the many beaches surrounding the islands. Its governance, language, and culture have all been strongly influenced by the British Empire, of which the country was formerly a part.

Source: Wikipedia

Related:

Caribbean Saint Kitts and Nevis British Virgin Islands The Bahamas Cayman Islands United States Virgin Islands Aruba Guadeloupe