Trinidad & Tobago - Geodyssey

More documents

Recommendations

Info

Tobago TOURING AND WILDLIFE • MID-RANGE HOTELS AND LODGES • SELFDRIVE Tobago Selfdrive A nicely paced trip, staying at 4 diff erent locati ons around the island, with the fl exibility to do as you please: explore, get off the beaten track, or just unwind. Tobago Day 1 You are met at the airport and transferred to Enchanted Waters near Mount Irvine Bay–your hotel for the next 4 nights. Exploring southern Tobago Day 2 B Your hire car is delivered to your hotel this morning. You might set off to explore straightaway, for example the Bon Accord road leads to shallow bays in an area that inspired the setting for Daniel Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe. Day 3 B Today we suggest you visit Pigeon Point from where you can take a boat ride to Buccoo Reef, the closest thing to a commercial tourist attraction on Tobago. Here you can bathe in the Nylon Pool, a beautiful stretch of shallow, warm, turquoise water with deep ocean on one side and palmfringed beaches on the other. Lunch might be at one of the beach kiosks, with crab curries, roti and bakes on off er. Day 4 B Perhaps take a short drive over to the windward coast to visit Tobago’s largest town, Scarborough. With a lively market, botanical gardens and a British-built fort, there is plenty to see. Exploring central Tobago Day 5 BLD Today you drive into the interior of the island to stay for the next 3 nights at Cuffi e River, a delightful ecolodge in the forests of the remote Runnemede Valley. Day 6 BLD You might take a guided nature walk with Desmond, the lodge’s award winning guide. He will treat you to fresh coconut water, cocoa from the pod, fresh sugar cane and a variety of citrus crops. He will also share with you traditional knowledge of the healing uses to which various leaves, herbs, grasses and roots can be put, as well as the social and cultural history of this part of the island. Day 7 BLD Today you might drive over to the beach at Castara Bay or simply relax and enjoy the nature trails, hummingbirds and swimming pool amid the forest at Cuffi e River. Exploring the east coast Day 8 B Continue on to Roxborough on the windward side of the island, exploring coastal villages on your way. For the next 3 nights your base will be Richmond Great House 18 near Belle Garden. This fi ne old wooden plantation house is a fascinating place to stay, full of historic artifacts from the owner’s travels around the world. Day 9 B Take a trip to Argyll Waterfalls, the island’s tallest waterfall, tumbling out of the greenery into a deep pool, which you can swim in. It is easy to hire a guide at the entrance and they will help you to identify the birds and fl owers and fi nd the way to less easily accessible cascades. Day 10 B Free day to explore the coast further or relax on the lawn beneath a spreading cashew tree or by the hotel’s pool. Exploring Northern Tobago Day 11 B Drive up to the village of Speyside on the island’s northeast coast to stay at Speyside Inn for 4 nights. There is a small road passing in front of the hotel separating it from the narrow local beach, an alternative is to upgrade to nearby Blue Waters Inn which is directly on a quiet beach. Day 12 B Free day based at Speyside. Perhaps take a glassbottomed boat from the village jetty over Tyrell’s Bay past Little Goat Island (where Ian Fleming once lived) to Little Tobago (p16), home of one of the largest sea bird colonies in the Caribbean. Here you can see red-billed tropicbirds, brown boobies, bridled and sooty terns, laughing gulls and magnifi cent frigatebirds. For ‘The Trials of Life’ David Attenborough fi lmed the frigatebirds robbing the tropicbirds in mid-air here. The boat passes over a coral reef with giant brain coral and populated with brightly coloured tropical fi sh. You might like to take lunch at Jemma’s Tree House, a local institution. Day 13 B Today you might explore the area around the fi shing village of Charlotteville, one of the most picturesque villages on the island. Day 14 B Free day on the north coast. Perhaps walk or make a short drive over the local headland down to relax on the nice sands at Batteaux Bay. Day 15 B Drive back down to the south of the island to drop off you car at the airport in time to catch your international fl ight home. HONEYMOON S AND CHILL-OUTS • UPPER AND TOP RANGE HOTELS Tobago Chill-out An eclecti c combinati on of zen calm, solid old school hospitality, and uber ‘metrosophisti cati on’. Great for a honeymoon too. Kariwak Village Day 1 You will be met at the airport and transferred to Kariwak Village at Crown Point, your base for the next 4 nights. Day 2 B This is a good place to decompress and chill-out. The lodge’s carefully planted small garden, thatched-roofed cabañas and general sense of peace give a real feeling of retreat (no kidding: the Dalai Lama has stayed here). Day 3 B Spend the day at Store Bay, the nearest beach–a 10min walk away, or simply relax by the pool. Day 4 B Relax or take the hotel’s shuttle to Pigeon Point and Buccoo Reef, a short drive away–probably the most photographed places on the island. Arnos Vale Day 5 B Transfer up the leeward side of the island to Arnos Vale hotel, briefl y made famous in the 60s as the place where Princess Margaret spent part of her honeymoon and the Beatles once stayed. The bay has a small sandy beach and boasts some of the best snorkelling in Tobago. Day 6 B Relax and enjoy the hotel’s facilities. You can take afternoon tea on the terrace when many colourful tropical birds can be seen. Day 7 B Take the opportunity to snorkel from the bay to the reef where you will fi nd much to see after about 100m. Day 8 B Swim , snorkel or relax. Optional diving. Day 9 B Last day here to enjoy the resort and watch the spectacular sunset. Bacolet Bay Day 10 B Transfer to Bacolet Bay on the windward side of the island for 5 nights at Half Moon Blue, a ‘metro-sophisticated’ hotel with a décor designed to set the mood for serene and lazy days and romantic exotic nights. Top range alternatives include Bacolet Beach Club and Blue Haven. Day 11-14 B Free time at Half Moon Blue. Relax by the pool or on the sandy crescent beach a 2min walk away. Day 15 B Transfer to the airport in time to catch your international fl ight home. GEODYSSEY | TOBAGO www.geodyssey.co.uk/tobago 020 7281 7788
Where to stay on Tobago GEODYSSEY | TOBAGO www.geodyssey.co.uk/tobago 020 7281 7788 Tobago Tobago has a very good range of pleasant accommodation in most parts of the island. The examples we have chosen here include small resorts, boutique hotels and guesthouses each with a special character, a great location, or especially welcoming owners. Tobago’s smattering of all-inclusive resorts is concentrated in the southwest of the island around the airport and can easily be avoided. Manta Lodge UPPER RANGE Speyside Inn UPPER RANGE Blue Waters Inn UPPER RANGE Speyside Speyside Speyside The top hotel for divers, across a small road from Tyrell’s Bay beach. Built in a Situated on the edge of Speyside village this property is now a 21-room, A resort style property a mile from Speyside in the semi-private and boxy ‘colonial’ style with the needs of divers in mind, it is owned and run by 3-storey, seafront hotel. It is run by a dive company who have a dive shop on stunning Batteaux Bay which is fairly isolated. It is a great base for water a very experienced divemaster/instructor. All 22 bedrooms have tiled fl oors, site. A road runs in front of the hotel separating it from Tyrell’s Bay. There are sports with a dive shop, free use of kayaks and wind surfers. There are 38 sea views and private bathrooms. ‘Standard’ rooms have ceiling fans, either 10 standard rooms all with twin or queen bed, private WC and shower. These spacious standard rooms with rattan furniture, fans, patio windows and sea twin or a double bed, a private balcony overlooking the pool and beyond are simply furnished with light paint-work, have high ceilings with fans, views, 2 one- and two-bedroom self-catering effi ciency apartments, and over the lane out to sea. ‘Superior’ rooms are more spacious and have a/c. fridge, safe box and ocean views. Louvred shutters take advantage of sea 3 bungalows with full kitchens. The beach is narrow with soft yellow sand There are two ‘Loft’ rooms with private sundecks between the pitched roofs. breezes. There are 8 tower rooms which have a/c. Behind the main building and natural shade under sea-grape trees, with glorious views across the ‘Attic’ rooms have a/c and sea views but no balcony or sun deck. There is a on a wooded slope overlooking the swimming pool are 3 rustic bungalows bay. There are a nature trails in the grounds, fl oodlit tennis courts, a spacious pool-side dining room and a pleasant shady communal verandah. each with fan and large balcony, two with kitchenettes. dining room and a very pleasant bar. Kariwak Village UPPER RANGE Arnos Vale TOP RANGE Crown Point Arnos Vale In this individualistic hotel, Allan and Cynthia Clovis set out to create a holistic A small 29 room resort-style hotel with every convenience, but retaining environment for guests’ mind, body and spirit. Clearly their clients feel the an old-world character and in lush natural surroundings. Set on a hillside benefi t as many return year after year. Even the Dalai Lama stayed here. There in a former sugar plantation, the old plantation house has the lounge, are 24 tasteful ground level bedrooms with a/c, private bathroom, queen and main dining room, bar and a lovely terrace serving traditional high tea. The single beds. Set in the compact well-tended grounds are a small swimming rooms are in bungalows in the sloping garden or at a pool-side block on the pool, freshwater ponds, thatched dinning room, Jacuzzi and waterfall, secluded Arnos Vale Bay. All have a/c, private bathrooms, and verandahs. amid tropical fl owers, shrubs and trees. Set menus emphasise wholesome There is a beach restaurant, pool with a swim-up bar, tennis courts, and a Caribbean cooking without additives. The nearest beach is an 8 minute walk, nature trail. Every afternoon at 5pm tropical songbirds fl y down to be fed by or a shuttle bus can take you to Pigeon Point for the day. hand. The bay is good for snorkelling with coral and fi sh within 100m. Cuffi e River Nature Retreat UPPER RANGE Runnemede Valley A superb locally-owned lodge for those who enjoy walking and natural history. Located on the edge of the oldest protected rainforest in the western hemisphere with well-stocked fruit tables and nectar feeders to attract the birds. There are 10 very spacious, high-ceilinged guest rooms, each with two queen-size beds, private bathrooms and balconies looking onto the lush vegetation, plus a nice swimming pool. Whatever ingredients she can’t grow herself the owner, Regina, buys from surrounding villages. Desmond, their award-winning guide, can escort you on 5 trails; 3 are good birding trails, others are for admiring the scenery including a splendid 50ft waterfall. Half Moon Blue UPPER RANGE Bacolet Bay A characterful small hotel high above Bacolet Bay. Two sets of ten rooms are separated by a horizon swimming pool. The décor is charmingly eclectic. Rooms are spacious and furnished with four-poster king-size beds draped with netting. Jalousied windows and doors bring cool breezes, though the rooms also have a/c and overhead fans. It’s a 2min walk to the beach on the sandy crescent bay. Next door is ‘La Belle Creole’ restaurant set in a palm garden. Owner and former fashion model Gloria Jones-Knapp has succeeded in combining Caribbean warmth with her own brand of European fl air. A lovely place for a honeymoon or just to relax. Richmond Guest House MID RANGE Belle Garden Near the village of Belle Garden, Richmond Great House is like a fascinating eclectic museum, crammed with intricately carved chairs, great wooden chests and all manner of historic artefacts refl ecting the passion of its owner Professor Lynch, an aff able emeritus professor of African History at Columbia University in New York. He has restored the 1776 plantation house and fi lled it with his personal collection from his travels around the world. Natasia his housekeeper enjoys having visitors to cook for. It’s a charming, quirky, idiosyncratic place to stay where things will all happen but all in their own time. There is a swimming pool with sun-loungers and a tennis court. Worth a mention Sea Horse Inn UPPER RANGE A two storey restaurant and cocktail bar set around a courtyard garden on Stone Haven Bay with just 4 stylish guest bedrooms. Man O’War Bay Cottages MID RANGE Set in the gardens of a 1000 acre cocoa plantation are utilitarian 1, 2, 3 and 4 bedroom self-catering beachfront bungalows with 1950s furniture. Enchanted Waters MID RANGE 10 rooms with private balconies overlooking a pool and walled courtyard on a roadside location. Coco Reef TOP RANGE A luxurious, rather fancy, 135 room hotel bordering Store Bay with its own private stretch of imported white sand behind a breakwater. Mount Irvine Bay TOP RANGE A well-established 4* resort-style hotel with an 18 hole par 72 championship golf course and 53 superior rooms. Blue Haven TOP RANGE From its heyday in the 40s, this now-restored hotel is surrounded by the sea on three sides. It has 55 superior and deluxe rooms, including 10 suites. 19
Page 1 and 2: Trinidad & Tobago GEODYSSEY
Page 3 and 4: Welcome This brochure on Trinidad &
Page 5 and 6: Trinidad An island bursting with li
Page 7 and 8: North Coast Along this rugged coast
Page 9 and 10: Southern Trinidad Ask anyone from P
Page 11 and 12: TOURING AND WILDLIFE • MID UPPER
Page 13 and 14: Where to stay on Trinidad Luxury ac
Page 15 and 16: Tobago Relax, relax, relax. Trinida
Page 17: the forest you will see vivid red h
Page 21 and 22: Planning your trip Guyana combines
Page 23 and 24: mangrove specialities: Grey Pottoo,

Trinidad & Tobago - Geodyssey

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?