The Truth very disappointing 2

[Franco]

Hello to everyone one on this forum.

I have thought long before starting this second topic and after all the interest show for the first one I have decide to come back . My ideas about the REX and Tobago haven't changed .....just matured , in a way that after some months now I can look back without caring the anger and delusion of this experience ( we usually go on with our personal life, as a matter we have already booked our next holiday and I am afraid it will not be Tobago ).

I wanted to came back on a couple of points that many of you all make :
1)
you must go to Sunday School >>>>>> a wonderful night , great experience , a night with the locals. Are you all sure that this night is so great? Here is what happen when I went on the famous Sunday school.
We were told to go with a local ( for safety reason and to finance the local economy employing someone ) so followed all suggestions , booked a local to stay with us ( came around £60 ) and left the hotel at around 8pm. Arrived in a little square , found a parking place and noticed about 100 tourist , from all hotels plus people from the REX and 200 locals . They were playing some dreadful band music ( see better around the world ) and there were two stalls selling rice, chicken and beans sauce plus about 1- stalls selling t-shirts, painting of Bob M and junky souvenirs. Then there was a little Disco club ( with no more than 15 people at the same time ) and this feeling that everyone , specially the tourist like us were waiting for something to happen. Something magic, special. Didn't we all wait for this night ? Didn't we all read : You can't miss Sunday School? so as we waited ( honestly I don't know for what )and had some drinks ( at 10 it became difficult to find beers ) . My GF attempted a little dance and the dance floor was 1 girl to 50 guys . Would you fee comfortable leaving here there alone and wander away .Not that I am jealous or over protective but trust me you would wander alone to the toilets as there were no lights at all and you could never know what to find next. After walking the same strip for 20 times ( yes 20 ) and played with some local vendors I decided that it was time to leave as nothing , NOTHING , would happen here. If I would have stayed in the hotel lobby I would have seen , drunk and eaten the same stuff anyway.
See if any of you can find some Pictures of Sunday night school browsing the web . I didn't . No one has posted any ? or maybe there was nothing to post.............

2)
Tobago has great beaches, friendly people and wonderful food.
Uhmmmmm..........not sure were many of you have travelled but
the beaches are not so nice ( I have seen better, like Phi-phi island, Phuket , Cancun, so if your main reason is because you love sea and sun then check out some other destinations with crystal clear water and white sand )
Food : nothing special , no fresh fish ( maybe jemma tree house but it is a 2 hour round trip with the boiled lobster as the main dish set at £20 each ), the rest of all the restaurant are either too expensive for the average food they server , at £40 pp or not worth visiting. No fresh local fruits and vegetable ( I mean it : No where to seen all the Mangos, papayas , Melons or whatever you like ...) you will see and find more of this stuff in my kitchen and the whole island. TRUE.

3) Local People : if you think that 25 sellers per day ( every day ) trying to sell a magic (?) trip, some bird watching or be your personal body guard at Sunday School while relaxing on the beach , means friendly than good luck to you and your holiday . Just think : these locals are supposed to be friendly people and you need someone with you at Sunday school? good luck with your new friends.

Last but not least .........we even struggled to purchase some souvenir as there is nothing ( NOTHING ) were you can buy anything . So ladies we aware: the most you can bring with you is vanilla tea bags and Caribbean coffee.

If you consider going to Tobago please to some research before hand. Visit some sites and make sure you know what you want from this holiday : If you are in search of beaches and fresh sea food then go to Thailand , if you want white beaches and 24 hours fun the Mexico will do ( UK charter flights can be found from as little as £200 ) but I leave the choice to you. One think is certain We will not visit Tobago again as we can back empty ( with our soul and mind ) and my GF has already forgotten about Tobago as nothing impressed here there : Would it be nice to say WOW at least once when you are in holiday?

Thanks for support received in the previous threat . This is the personal opinion of a simple traveller in search of wonderland for 7 days a year.

Franco.

[Roel le Pair]

Hi Franco,
I speak from experience of a rather small accommodation (10 apartments) and this size is therefore not representative for all Tobago visitors. Having said that I am sure of the following fact:

BEFORE FIRST VISIT
1) Most of our visitors do some research into Tobago as a destination and ofcourse into the accommodation that would fit best to their needs, wishes, expectations etcetera.
2) Their efforts in research might be more thoroughly into Tobago than they would do into other, more well known destinations.

AFTER FIRST VISIT
1) we are glad to meet many, many repeaters each year, who don't need any research anymore. They come back because of Tobago's character and its physical circumstances, and partly also because of the accommodation they had chosen.

This satisfaction score will be (more or less) the same for many other, also larger, accommodation.

I can only see your problem as a big frustration not having investigated your destination enough, one hour or so would have been enough.
If you did (investigate), then you were strongly misleaded by the information that came to you (because reality turned out to be so much different), I wonder for how long would this misleading information continue to exist or even why it still exists anyway.

I'm interested in the amount of research you did and if you did any, which sources uou used, could you explain?
I wish you many happy holidays outside Tobago.

Kind regards, Roel

[Cornelia Montgomery]

Franco,
I think your post will be useful to people who value what you do in a holiday destination.
I've winter-vacationed in Costa Rica, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, and the Bahamas. Lately, however, we keep returning to Tobago.
I don't care about buying souvenirs (which ususally end up as junk in a closet, anyway). I bring back T-shirts and spices, and that's enough for me.
You are right about the tourist restaurants -- most are priced on the high side. Some moderately priced, informal restaurants featuring local fruits and produce would be welcome. On some evenings when we don't feel like going to a restaurant for dinner, we stop at a local grocer and buy picnic fixings (sandwich makings, fruit (yes, there is fruit to be bought), pastries, wine, etc.) and dine on our balcony listening to the sea and watching the palms sway. By the way, I've never had trouble finding fresh local fish on restaurant menus.

That a beach has white sand and that the water is crystal clear isn't important to me. The island is beautiful. If you spend some time with the local people (apart from vendors), you will find most to be quite welcoming to visitors.
My husband and I very much enjoy Tobago. It doesn't appeal to everyone, however.

[Jill M]

Hi Franco,

As has been mentioned previously, different people want diferent things from their holiday and had you researched before you went, you would have realised that this island was not for you.

I fell in love with the island as soon as I stepped out of the airport. The people, the music, the atmosphere, the beaches, the clear water - I could go on .....

In fact, sorry, but I'm one of the people that enjoyed and will return to the Rex Turtle Beach - see, we are all different.

We're due to fly to Mexico next week for Christmas, but only because I couldn't get back to Tobago !

Hope you enjoy yor next holiday, wherever it may be, but do some research to get the WOW.

Jill.

[Steve Fifield]

Hi Franco,

It is a shame that this holiday experience is still upsetting you after so many months. Perhaps it is time to forget and move on?

I can empathise with your experience, as when something goes wrong with a holiday that you have looked forward to, it can rapidly spiral and decline to the point that you are no longer receptive to any pleasure, and only see bad in everything. This happened to me once when terrible weather (in Crete) distorted my view of everything. I irrationally hated the villa, the tour operator etc etc, but fortunately made a decision to drive to the other side of the island and stay where the weather was better.

You see, you have to see a way out, and RTB was winding you up well before you left UK. For just a few pounds, you could have stayed elsewhere, and you might have enjoyed yourself a little more. On reflection though, you didn't mention anything that you liked about Tobago, so perhaps it would not have helped.

Good luck with your future travels. Roel has said it already, but I too, wish you many happy holidays outside Tobago.

I guess that for various reasons, your girlfriend had an awful time too.

Steve F

[Rachel Crew]

I am sorry, but I have to take issue with the notion that fresh fish, fruits and vegetable are a rare sight in Tobago...

All I can ask is "where on earth did you eat?" ... OK, I now live in Tobago but I have travelled extensively, including other caribbean islands, and have found few other places where you can find so many small fruit and veg stalls on the side of the road or get fresh fish on a menu any day of the week!

UNLIKE european supermarkets where you will get strawberries in December the fruit crops here are seasonal - mango season is when you will see mangos, avocado season is when you see avocados, but (thankfully) fruit is still produced in the traditional way here and when it is in you splurge . HOWEVER you will always find local bananas, pineapple, melon, papaya, oranges, and grapefruit at even the smallest stall, which line the roads here. If you drove from the Rex to Crown Point you will pass no less than six fruit and veg vendors.

Fish is also on almost every menu, and again unlike Sainsburys it will not have been flown several thousand miles to get here... if you did not find Dillon's, Kariwak, Pelican Reef, Rubilou's, Indigo (and many others) - restaurants which are all widely advertised and which serve excellent seafood, then you simply weren't looking. Go to Kariwak and you can have a slap-up dinner for TT$150 with the freshest ingredients you would NEVER find in London! If you make the mistake of drinking wine or having mixed drinks here then your bill will start to escalate, but take a look at the price of these in the supermarket and you will understand that these are a real luxury here. Even the smallest takeaway restaurant will have local fish that could not be fresher. For goodness sake, this is the island famous for crab and dumpling!!

I think your shades may have been a little too dark, because it is difficult to miss local produce here. I meet a lot of visitors to the island and I don't think I've ever encountered someone who has missed so much of the local flavours.

[Roger D.]

Rachel,
I completly aggree. I'm originally from Trinidad and while still there we sometimes made it a point to go to Tobago when "mango was in season"
Actually, Toago's mangoes are some of the sweetest on earth, not to mention the variety. As for Fresh Fish - Sarborough Market? or just go the beach when they're "pulling seine" You can take 'em home still breathing or, you can even get somone in the village to cook it for you, which I have done and they are only too happy to oblige, which is just one of the special thing's about Tobago, It's people !
Now that I'm living in North America, I never buy tropical fruit, it's just not the same -
Has anyone ever been to Tobago when "crab is running?"
Roger.

[Julia C.]

I absolutely agree - plenty of fresh fruit and veg stalls - the market in Scarborough on Fridays (possibly other days as well) is awash with them as well as every 1/2 mile or so along the roads else where. We never actually ventured much to the restaurants in the south part of the Island so I couldn't comment, but every eating place we went to had a fish option.

Btw - when is mango season?

I agree that "Sunday School" wasn't quite what I expected. You certainly don't need to employ someone to "protect" you, though it is nice to go with a group.

I reckon Tobago is what you make it, but I wouldn't recommend it to someone who just wanted sea and sand and 24 hour entertainment laid on - Tobago is so much more than that on one hand and so much more laid back on the other. If you see what I mean?

[Jane H]

Like most other people on this strand, we saw plenty of fruit and veg both in our hotel (Grafton Beach) and as we were travelling around - and fish appeared regularly on the menu (and it was good and fresh - in fact we saw it coming off the beach one morning).

Sunday school - whether you enjoy it depends on what you want and/or expect from it. We went early - 8.00 pm - because we wanted to hear the steel pan bands - and they were BRILLIANT! There were a lot of local people around in both the venues - and they were all extremely friendly to the visitors who had come to experience their music. Good steel pan band and a stag or carib - what could be better!

After 10.30ish when the music changed to soca etc then the atmosphere and crowd do change a bit, and - yes- you may be offered dubious substances. But it's still not an intimidating event - certainly no worse than walking down the Bigg Market in Newcastle on a Friday night (and a good deal warmer)! Just exercise the same amount of caution and restraint that you would in the UK - and you will have no problems. Don't believe all the comments about needing "protection" - you don't; but it probably is worth organising your taxi back in advance to make life easy.

Jane (15 and a bit weeks and counting)

[Roger D.]

Julia;
Mango Season usually starts around June and normally lasts through August - I've gotten mangoes then - My favourites -
Julie Mangoes - This is the best of the bunch - I think it's supposed to be a hybrid
Long Mangoes(usually used for preserves too)
We had a long mango tree in Trinidad and it was huge, at Christmas we put lights on it -
Starch Mangoes
Rose Mangoes(reddish in colour - hence the name- sweet, on the samall side)
Calabash Mangoes - (large, kinda chalky, but sometimes sweet)
If they're half ripened - Pell them, cut them into bite sized pieces, squeeze some lime/lemmon juice, add salt, little crushed garlic, shadon bennie and hot pepper - mix it all up - delicious - well cal it Mango chow.
If they're ripe, just add a pinch of salt - um um good.
Roger.

[LynnEvans]

I have posted a personal reply to Anna and am writing this as I feel Franco really should shut up and stop going back to the my tobago website as he obviously hates the place so much. I am sorry for him as he obviously has nothing better to do with his time but moan and upset other people.
I was really worried before I went to Tobago to the rex back in October, mainly due to comments made by this man way back then.

In truth, My husband and I had a fanfastic holiday in an unspolied island paradise which had an abundance of fresh fruit and coconuts growing everywhere.
All I can say is to anyone else worried, please do loads of research, know what to expect and what you want from your holiday and go with the flow!

Lynn

[Andy D]

I have posted a personal reply to Anna and am writing this as I feel Franco really should shut up and stop going back to the my tobago website as he obviously hates the place so much. I am sorry for him as he obviously has nothing better to do with his time but moan and upset other people.
I was really worried before I went to Tobago to the rex back in October, mainly due to comments made by this man way back then.

In truth, My husband and I had a fanfastic holiday in an unspolied island paradise which had an abundance of fresh fruit and coconuts growing everywhere.
All I can say is to anyone else worried, please do loads of research, know what to expect and what you want from your holiday and go with the flow!

Lynn

I couldnt agree more,went to RTB in July 04 and had a fantastic time,everyone is different but why return for a second time if you didnt like it first time,what did he think was going to change?
I'm returning in April 05 and cant wait! Just love the island and everything that goes with it!
Dont let the comments of a few put anyone off,just go with an open mind and enjoy every moment.