Trinidad and Tobago Tour

Trinidad and Tobago Tour

For former British colonies mostly you fly in from London – if you’re flying from Europe. Then to local hub Barbados. The luggage was said to go directly to Tobago. But after leaving the plane, border control and all we spot our luggage in the hall. With a little help from a nice luggage lady we are brought to the Trinidad and Tobago check-in desk. Formalities again. Just in time we board the plane. After only forty minutes we land on the island Tobago.

Driver Andy takes us to our resort. It’s a nice little place, on top of the beach. Called Blue Waters Inn. A beautiful spot for birders. After a rum punch we call it a day.

As soon as I wake up I go out to explore, walk around a little. I see a deep blue bird close by. Back to grab my camera but it’s too late. Each day I try my best but I never succeed in spotting this beautiful bird again. Lesson 1 : always carry your camera with you!

We walk a long trail. Spot a lot of water birds, some Kingfishers and a Little Blue Heron. After lunch, just when we enter our temporarily house a tropical rain shower starts. Well, you can expect this here. A beautiful green scene needs a lot of water. We end the day with dinner at ‘Ship wreck’ bar over here. Good food.

Next day we walk to a place called Speyside. Nice little town. Decent people here. On the garbage bins it says ‘No lobster shells’. On our way back we spot a nice Caribbean lizard.

A boat trip to ‘Little Tobago’, small island close to the resort. It’s a birds paradise. No people living here. Lots of birds flying in and out of the rocks. We see the many red-billed tropic birds. They are very hard to catch on camera though.

Afternoon is snorkeling time. Snorkeling is great on Tobago. Many colored fishes! Among them the Clown Fishes and the French Angle Fish.

When breakfast is finished we expect driver Andy to take us to the airport. He doesn’t show up so the captain of the boat that took us to Little Tobago takes care of the drive. Flying to Trinidad only takes 15 minutes. Here we stay in the Hyatt, Port of Spain.

Today we visit Asa Wright Nature Centre. Birds are fed here. A more or less touristic photo opportunity. A sign in the hall marks the visit of Prince Charles some years ago. The place is beautiful. All kinds of vegetation of the island combined to see here. We make a long hike to explore.

Our guide André talks a lot. He is keen on not forgetting history. For instance: did we know that during the second World War American soldiers were trained in the hills and the swamps of Trinidad to prepare them for the battle in Birma? No we didn’t. But it’s very interesting. Personally I like these small titbits of history.

In the seaside restaurant of the hotel for dinner we try the catch of the day. It turns out to be a great choice.

Port of Spain, capital of Trinidad and Tobago. Highlight here is the impressive Holy Trinity Cathedral. Port of Spain is a real Caribbean city. Lots of people, less tourists. Sitting on a bench on Woolford Square we watch the people pass by.

We talk to a Canadian guy who works here. He is surprised. ‘You are the first Western tourists I meet here!’

We visit some of the buildings of the ‘Magnificent Seven’. These were public or private houses, landmarks in their glory days. Nowadays it’s still worthwhile to see them but the adjective magnificent may be skipped.

In the afternoon guide André takes us to Caroni Swamp. This is the second largest mangrove wetland area in Trinidad. Among others you find the scarlet Ibises here.

We will take the boat trip. When we arrive all the other guests seem to have been waiting for us. Taking the initiative I sit us down on the front seats. Always being nice to other people, my wife dislikes this a bit. But soon everyone is on board and nicely chatting to each other.

First thing we see is a pair of big snakes tangled and wandering in the trees. Some people are very anxious . We are glad they didn’t fall on the boat! Rev up the engine please! Another interesting view: the four eyed fishes. It looks like fishes with two big eyes but actually they can see above and below the water surface at the same time. 

This is essentially a bird sanctuary. We see lots of different birds. Highlight is the Scarlet Ibis. We spot thousands of them as they settle down for the night. For protection reasons we don’t go too close, making it difficult to make pictures.

All good things come to an end. Our stay is over and we have to leave. I won’t go into detail about the border controls and checks at the airport.

One thing though. At the check-in counter, the lady who checks us in is wearing eye shadow in the colors of the airline. What a splendid way to show your company loyalty!

This trip was made in 2011.

If you have any thoughts or questions feel free to leave a comment!

 america caribbean culture nature tobago trinidad