Saba Day in 2024

When is Saba Day?

Saba Day is a public holiday in the Caribbean island of Saba on the first Friday in December.

This holiday celebrated the adoption of the flag of Saba in December 1985.

History of Saba Day

Known as the Unspoiled Queen" of the Caribbean, Saba is the smallest special municipality of the Netherlands. 

Christopher Columbus sighted the island in 1493, but decided to give it a miss as it was too rocky to land on. The difficult terrain didn't put off the French and British from trying to take control in the 17th century. The Dutch finally put an end to any territorial squabbling in 1816 and it has been part of the Netherlands ever since.

The flag of Saba was adopted on December 6th 1985. The red, white and blue of the flag are a nod to the Netherlands and the star in the middle represents Saba. According to Saba Tourism, the star is gold/yellow to represent the wealth of natural beauty to be found on Saba and optimism for its future.

This is the national day of the island in which all offices, schools and stores are closed. The island celebrates its diversity and culture through various activities and parades. 

Saba has a number of interesting claims to fame:

• Saba was used as Skull Island in the original "King Kong" movie from 1933. 
• Saba has the world's shortest commercial runway, measuring 1,300 feet in length.
• Saba is the smallest territory or sovereign state by permanent population in the Americas.
• It's Capital is called 'The Bottom'.