Barbuda is a quiet, Single-village Island that has less than 2% of the nation's population and gets very few independent visitors, mainly ardent bird watchers and a few yachters enjoying its clear waters and tranquil beaches. Antigua is a touch more happening, but the pace is still deliciously slows.

Barbuda is one of those very few islands in the Caribbean that remains--and probably will remain for some time--so undeveloped as to seem positively deserted at times. With the exception of the guests of the island's small number of accommodations, the population seems largely to consist of the graceful Fregata magnificence, or frigate bird. As the birds possess a marked preference for the northwest lagoon, Barbuda's seemingly endless white and pink sand beaches are left to the peaceful wanderings of those lucky enough to sojourn here.

Barbuda, Antigua's "sister island" as they together form the state of Antigua and Barbuda, lies about 45 km to the North of Antigua and has about 1,500 inhabitants on an area of about 140 sq km. Most of them live in the village of Codrington and do not really feel "part of Antigua and Barbuda".

Barbuda is practically a wildlife resort because the population density is so low. There are only a few hotels/resorts (the late Princess of Wales is said to have spent some time there). The long, sandy beaches are protected by reefs, which are littered by "a few centuries' worth of shipwrecks".