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Trinidad & Tobago travel guide:
Tobago
Relax, relax, relax. Trinidad’s little sister is the place to do it. Palm-fringed beaches, sleepy fishing villages, ancient rainforest, coral reefs and pirate coves provide the backdrop.
Most visitors to the islands stay on Tobago, attracted by good beaches and a small number of resort-type hotels around its southern tip. December to March are the most popular months.
A much sleepier option than Trinidad, Tobago is an ideal place to flop after a cultural or wildlife tour of Trinidad – or indeed just to flop altogether.
Tobago is also much smaller than Trinidad: a fish-shaped island just 26 miles long and 6 miles wide. It lies 20 miles away–a short 20 minute flight. It is mostly a verdant landscape of winding coastal roads that skirt craggy headlands and bays, unspoilt natural beaches, tiny hamlets, exuberant tropical vegetation, and dazzlingly colourful songbirds. The capital city, Scarborough, is little more than a small town. Most families make at least a part, if not all, of their living from farming or fishing–a blast on a conch shell still calls men to pull the fishing nets ashore. The island’s key celebrations remain the fishermen’s fetes and the year-round harvest festivals held when the whole local community works collectively together to bring in a crop. Even the annual Easter goat and crab races at Buccoo and the traditional folkloric Heritage Festival, which tours the island from mid-July to early August, are genuine local events–not just laid on for visitors.
With coral reefs all around the island, it is a superb spot for divers and snorkellers. There is also plenty of scope for windsurfing, sailing, surfing and kayaking too. At Mount Irvine there is an 18-hole championship golf course, reputed to be one of the Caribbean’s best. The cannon at Fort King George and place names such as Englishman’s Bay, Bloody Bay, Man O’War Bay, King’s Bay, and Pirates Bay hint at the island’s tumultuous history of capture and recapture between the Spanish, French and British.
It’s easy to explore Tobago by road. All the sights are reachable from anywhere on the island in the course of a day’s drive. We can arrange a hire car for you, but for something special you really should take one of our very personable local guides. You will find everyone on Tobago knows them, calling as the car passes, exchanging a few words and a drawled “Aaaaall-right!”–the universal greeting on Tobago.
Leeward or Windward?
Tradewinds blow, mostly gently, from the Atlantic on to Tobago’s long southeastern flank – the windward coast. The windward side of the island provides a wonderful drive past constantly stunning coastal scenery. Cliff-hugging roads take you through small villages, past empty beaches and around forested hills. Some beaches are lovely but some are subject to dangerous Atlantic currents.
Tobago’s leeward coast, facing the Caribbean, has some of the most spectacular views and unspoilt beaches. Beyond the southern end of the island, this coast is the more isolated, with just a handful of small fishing villages perched above perfect Caribbean bays. Accommodation and restaurants are few and far between; most visitors who explore this part of the island do so on day trips.
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Travel guide to Tobago
Around Tobago:
› Crown Point and Tobago's lowland south
Trinidad:
Travel information for Trinidad & Tobago:
› When to go to Trinidad & Tobago
› Basics
› Money
› Health
Trinidad & Tobago Travel Factfile:
› Carnival
› Cultures
› Music
› Wildlife
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