The Potential of Whale Watching in the Caribbean: 1999+

1998; Jeanillia Rose Valerie De Smet (Dominica Association of Industry & Commerce),
Carole Carlson (IFAW), Swanson and Garrett 1998, CTO 1997.
18. Martinique (France)
Population: 391,000.
Land area: 1,060 sq km.
Tourist arrivals by air: 513,230 (+7.6% on prev. yr.)
Tourist arrivals by cruise ship: 386,835 (-10.2% on prev. yr.)
Total Tourist Expenditures: $397.0 million USD.
Tourism Budget: $7.5 million USD.
GDP at factor cost: $4,875.7 million USD.
1994 figures on whale watching: 100+ and minimal total revenues.
1998 figures on whale watching: Minimal.
Whale-watching ports (current or potential): Carbet, St.-Pierre, Fort-de-France, Le
Prêcheur.
Land-based viewing sites: West coast, high vantage points.
Whale-watching potential: Outstanding.
(Figures above are latest figures for 1997, except as noted.)
Martinique, with its stylish croissant and café culture, is probably the most
cosmopolitan society in the Eastern Caribbean. It has a much larger population than
Dominica or any of its island neighbors to the south. In the Eastern Caribbean, only
Guadeloupe (which includes the islands of St.-Martin and St.-Barths) slightly exceeds
Martinique's numbers with a much larger land base. Still, despite its 391,000 people living
in high density especially in and around Fort-de-France (with 100,000+ residents),
Martinique offers considerable non-urban wonders including a sizeable rain forest, quiet
fishing villages, farms full of tropical produce, clear waters, and wonderful treks around
the volcanoes.
Martinique is an overseas department of France, with elected representation in the
French Parliament. The local economy depends on the French government which is
responsible for more than half of the island's GNP. Agriculture, including sugar cane for
rum, is the main industry but tourism is a huge contributor and has been the main growth
sector for the past decade. The tourists, 80% of which are from France, spend considerably
more per person in Martinique than they do in Guadeloupe, St.-Martin and St.-Barths.
Although Guadeloupe and islands collectively receive 25% more tourists, they spend less
money in total than for Martinique alone.
Twenty-two miles wide and 50 miles long, Martinique is volcanic in origin and has
a rugged mountainous feel to it. The indented coastline is dotted with numerous coves and
bays, and even the rugged open Atlantic east coast has some sheltered spots around the
towns of La Trinité and Le Robert. The known whale watching opportunities, however, are
on the Caribbean lee side of the island.
The diving opportunities off Martinique are varied all along the west coast. There
is some criticism (e.g. Swanson and Garrett 1998) that some reefs are overfished and the
coral is damaged, but the more than 12 diving companies on Martinique have no trouble
finding good spots. The challenge now is to protect them all carefully, and awareness of
the need to do this is high in Martinique.
One diving centre is Saint-Pierre in the north, where the extraordinary volcanic
eruption of Mt. Pelée in 1902 buried not only the entire town of 30,000 (there was only 1
survivor, a prisoner in solitary confinement in the local jail), but sunk and destroyed
numerous sail boats that had been in the harbour that day. Of course, divers come for the
wrecks here, but it also provides good access to see the sperm whales and spinner and
pantropical spotted dolphins often within a mile or two of shore.
Since the mid-1990s, from the north end of the island, from the coastal village of
Le Prêcheur, fishermen sometimes take tourists to see the big herds of spinner and other
dolphins that are there year-round and visit almost daily. Sometimes, sperm, pilot and
humpback whales are seen as well. The best months are November to May with a peak in
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