Trinidad / Special Interests

Trinidad is a fast paced country receptive to all manner of innovation, diversionary interests and creative impulse, a dynamism best exemplified in its world famous Carnival. There are a myriad other festivals to partake in and more national holidays than anywhere else in the region and visitors are never short of distraction or something to engage them. There are two areas of botanical interest, the La Vega Estate near Gran Couva in central Trinidad and the Botanical Gardens themselves on the northern edge of Queen’s Park Savannah in Port Of Spain, as well as a burgeoning horticultural industry; rich soils and the climate have in turn fostered a wide variety of herbs which coupled with a multitude of cooking styles have produced a wonderful food culture, a gourmand’s delight in effect.

For anyone with a vaguely musical ear the birthplace of the steel band, limbo and calypso is absolute nirvana - every type of West Indian music, and not forgetting East Indian, is virtually impossible to ignore and you’re quite likely to be regaled with some form of band and musical instruments on arrival at the airport, certainly in the Carnival season. It sort of sets the tone for what’s to come.

Unlike its sybaritic sister-island Tobago, there is nothing sedentary about life in Trinidad, it’s a far more active, get up and go type of destination and for the nature lover the biodiversity is second to none in the Caribbean, with complex habitats like Nariva Swamp, the Northern Range rainforests and savannah lands. Sport is extremely high profile, especially the main spectating pastimes like cricket and football, with the two main international venues Queen’s Park Oval and the National Stadium both impressive arenas in anyone’s language. Golf is more a niche activity and watersports are not as well catered for as in other islands although Chaguaramas, on the western peninsular outside the capital, is a thriving sailing and cruising centre with a couple of small scuba diving operations. Trinidad is not one of the preferred destinations for weddings and honeymoons in the region, though there are some splendid locations for both types of celebration; solo travellers and children can also be accommodated while spas and yoga and holistic activities are gaining a rapidly more mainstream profile, both in the larger hotels and in numerous private salons.

For more detailed information and recommendations for individual areas of interest please select a Special Interest category below or from the menu bar.