myTobago – your questions, review and comment about Tobago

This is a wonderful site and I am hoping that someone out there (I am sure there will be quite a few) will be able to offer me advice on where the best place to go is in Tobago for me, my husband and 17 year old daughter. Our wants are as follows:-

A small family run complex with a pool offering family cooked food OR good restaurants near by
On the coast with warm calm seas as we are not into surfing
Easy access to snorkling and scuba diving.

We have never been to the caribbean but have heard lots of good reports about Tobago being the perfect island to visit.

We would prefer not to go all inclusive as we would like to sample the local food. However we have been advised to go A/I as the cost of food and drink is expensive but this was advised by a travel agent who may have vested interested in All inclusive holidays http://www.mytobago.info/forum/posting. ... e=post&f=7#


We are happy to consider a DIY holiday where we book our own flights and arrange accommodation separately. We want to go over Christmas ideally travelling either on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day for 7 nights. Having looked at the cost of flights so far they seem to be in the £720 each range.. does that sound right? we were hoping for something a bit cheaper.

So basically what is the best place to go on the island given our list of needs?

All advice gratefully received.

Sue

Hi there,
I am sure that you are going to get plenty of relpies to the questions you have asked. Christmas is a great time to be in Tobago, it certainly beats all the hussle and bustle back here.
I have booked flights for me and the folks leaving xmas eve, we got these with BA and for 620.00. I went through Newmont Travel based in London a fantastic firm and I always used them to book my flights out to Tobago. Their web add http://www.newmont.co.uk
In relation to ur Travel Agents advice re the cost of food and drink... Well... It really does depend on what and where you are eating, but generally it is extremely cheap. Bottle of beer is usually 10tt (bar price) to 15tt(hotel price)which is about 1.20. Spirits with mixers again cheap, no more than 2.00. You can in most of the local bars and restaurants get a fantastic local lunch for around a fiver. Then you can also go to some of the rated restaurants and pay a lot more for a lovely evening meal. But the nice thing about NOT going AI, is that you dont get into the way of thinking that you have paid for the meals in the cost of the holiday so you are more likely to go and try other places. Trust me, I have seen it happen. I have friends who have been to the same hotel 4 times and only on their last visit did they venture down to one of the most popular beaches!!!! Whats that all about. In their words. WELL, we were AI, so got into the AI rutt.
There are loads of places to stay that are close to the main bars and restaurants. The main area for me would be Crown Point, Bon Accord. Here, you have a good choice of beaches in close proximity with bars and local shopping. And then if you want to venture further afield there are plenty of car hire companies. Sheppy rules in my opinion.
I am lucky in that Tobago is now really called home for me. Albeit I am still stuck in the UK for the time being.
I have stayed at the Toucan Inn, where you can go Room Only or AI. My parents went for the first time this year and we had New Year there. Absolutely the best they have had. Great staff and guests (a lot of re-visitors, so you have to get booked up early)
The Bananaquit is a good place too. These are appts. Situated on the The Store Bay Local Road. Elaine
the owner is great. She is exremely helpful, The rooms are basic with kitchen, bedroom area and balcony. Excellent for a budget spend on Acc.
Douglas Appts are lovely too. These have recently been re-furbished and a newer part of the building was finished late 2007. They now have a lovely swimming pool overlooked by the balconies.
There a loads of things to do.
Diving - Some great diving on the island for beginnners and the advanced. There are plenty of companies that offer some good deals too. I know that R & Sea Divers get a good discount at the Toucan Inn for accomodation when you dive with them. They are a fantastic company and I will dive with them always. Check on their website if ur interested and e ail Wendy, she gets back to you pronto. Other diver operators offer similar deals too.
Sunday school ( Dont think too much into the wording of that) Every Sunday in Buccoo , a local lime with local food and drink Starts early in the evening and finishing in the early hours of the morning. Captains Sand Bar, owned and run by Kelos certainly gets you started. His drinks are larger than life!
Shade. The local Nightclub. Recently re-built and I have to say they have done a grand job. An outdoor nightclub which attracts locals and tourists from all over. They have some great nights over the xmas period.
Cocomotion - What a blast. Owned and run by Marlon and Rachel with Seb learning the wheel ( well not quite yet, but i bet he will be doing it before he starts to walk!!!) This is a speedboat with style, fun and pure speed. They run coastal tours incorporating snorkelling, if your lucky you get to do some swimming with the dolphins... they also do a lovely sunset tour of the island and Rachels carrot cake is to die for.
A Team tours - WOW. I recommended Keith and his beach BQQ to some friends who were going out to Tobago. At first they said NOOOO, its not really their thing they just wanted to go and chill. Guess what. They came back and couldn't rate him high enough. They met him while lounging around their pool. A true gentle giant with an infectous laugh. They said as soon as he started talking they knew they had to try it. They went on the trip and have vowed to go again when they re-visit later this year. Keith is the man who will ensure that you go home with a smile on ur face. He does Beach BQQS and island Tours.
Well. There are just a few things. I am sure that there will be others who will give you a few more ideas on where to stay and what to do. My family like me,, have become addicted to the place. We arrived home and the first thing they told me to do was to get on the net and book the flights.

Hi Tiff

I really appreciate the time you have spent writing this message, thank you.

If we can get the funds together then we will definitely go DIY to Tobago and you have convinced us that AI is not for us. The next step for us is to find out which side and end of the island is best to avoid the 'surfing seas'. If we go it will definitely be at Christmas. We have read that some areas are suitable for surfing but we are looking for calmer seas.. I am assuming that the Atlantic coast will have the rougher coast.

I see that Crown Point is on the South West Tip which is the Caribbean side so I am assuming (please tell me if I am wrong) that the seas will be calmer and warmer then the other side of the island.

Once we have sorted that part out then we can look at accommodation.

Many thanks again for your help and advice

Sue

Sue,the Crown Point area is "tourist" country,for the quieter more "Tobogonian" feel you have to go up the north(leeward-Caribean)side of the Island.As I said in a previous post Castara.It is a small (pop 500) active fishing village that can cater for maybe 120 visitors.Two beautiful unspoilt beaches,a couple of bars and rum shops and maybe half a dozen local restaurants.Also afew small shops for getting the basics-fresh fruit and veg etc.Fish bought straight from the boat as it were,which right now I would die for!!!!!!
Look up Castara in accommodation above and also have a quick look at my site for pics of Castara.
Christmas/Old Year in Castara is fabulous!!1
David(see you at Christmas)

david is right about castara being a great location...snorkelling is excellent, just that we have no dive shop located here. but we already had guests who got picked up by carib stu and also tobago dive experience. since you are planning to only stay a week the question is how many dives you plan. we are not divers ourselves but know that you have to keep your head on top for the last two days before the flight back... so plan it well
in the accommodtion list you can punch in the location and then find a full list of places there... was there something about a pool? there is one property in castara with a pool, that would be "angel-apartments" and one with a plunge pool, that would be "hidden cottage".
hope that helps
steph

But the best "pool"is the Caribbean at your doorstep,at first light and then a bake breakfast at D'Boathouse.MMMMMMMM
David(in wet and again very windy Kernow)

Hi Sue,

See, I told you that you would get lots of help on this site. It really is very informative to everyone. Castara is absolutely beautiful, very calm waters with beautiful beaches. The local food is really to die for. The only reservation for me personally is that it is a little too quiet, to spend all of my holiday time up there. I read in your first post that you have a 17 year old daughter. I am sure she would love it up there but for a whole week, she may become a little bored after doing the beach and possibly the Rain forest. After the sun goes down it can get rather still... Brilliant for the romantics I have to say. I do love going up there to get away from it all once in a while.
Crown Point and Pigeon Point are in the more tourist areas yes. With some great beaches too. Pigeon Point, Store Bay, great for snorkelling, we dive there too. Mount Irvine just up the road and not forgetting Canoe Bay.
If it were me and I do say that it is a personal choice. I would be tempted to lodge around the South of the Island and hire a car to go up to the beautiful sights in the North, especially as you will only be there for a week. It will give you a little more variety. remember it only takes a short drive of about 1hr to get up there.(traffic and road conditions may alter that though)
Good luck and if you need any further assistance please feel free to e mail me [email protected]
If not, maybe see you on the beach over the xmas period.

Hi Sue

The Caribbean side (west side) is much calmer compared with the Atlantic side, and as they say, there´s many beaches to choose between. If you shoose to be at Crown Point in the beginning, you have these choises nearby:
- Store Bay Beach, alwasy some 4-5 life guards on duty, the water is clear anf get quite deep quickly, it´s not protected by a reef so the water is always fresch. Beach bars, smaller huts with local food, shop for souveniers.
- Pidgeon Point, you have to pay a small fee to get in, 1 or 2 life guards walking on the beach, protected by a reef so the water is much warmer but also bot so clear, a good breeze on the side against Bucco, bars, huts with ice creams, over all less busy compared with Store bay, dive shops just outside the gate
- Mt Irvine Beach, the local one with a more traditional beach bar and an other one closer to Mt Irvine Hotel, the water is clear and nice, nice sand at Mt Irvine Hotel side, sand and smaller stones on the local one wich also have a life guard
- Canoe Beach, a very quite and green beach, private so you have to pay a small fee, VERY shallow water, but the ares is really nice, you need a car to get there

Other nice places to see is in the south is Black Rock Beach, Arnos Vale Beach and Arnos Vale Waterwheel, but you need a car for that. On the Atlantic side, north Roxborough, you have a small nice beach, King George Beach.

On the Atlantic side you have bacolet Beach not far from Scarborough, a small beachbar/restaurant on the beach, it belongs to Blue Heaven Hotel so the price is hotel-prices, dark nearly black sand, and watch up for, sometimes very strong, currents outside the beach

You also have a big number of restaurants in the Crown Point Area, I like this places (in no particular order):
- Bonkers, small nice place, sometimes entertainments
- La Iguana, very nice place, somtimes life music, the only place where they don´t play "tourist-music", you can also buy real art here, paintings made by local artists
- Pelican Inn, they also have life entertainments soem days a week
- Latitude 11, small and sometimes busy so make reservations
- Cafe Coco, a restaurant on the backside street of Hotel Coco Reef, cvery nice place and good food, some believe it´s expensive but fact is, some of their meny is scheaper compared with other restaurants
- Bamboo Mile, very nice food, I really like their fish, they offer mosquito protecktion for those who have problems with them

About the local nightclub Shade in Bon Accord, they don´t play much of real W.I.-music, mostly European disco with some mixed version of W.I., many from UK use to visit this place, all kind of peoples are to be found there, not only visitors and "normally locals", also criminals, drug dealers and of course male and females who are looking for visitors to pay their living.
Sorry to say, but this place doesn´t have a very good reputation. As a family or group you wouldn´t have problem, but don´t buy every "Welcome to Tobago, nice to see you". Myself, if I go alone I will mostl liklely be offered a "nice little girl".

Maybe this sounds bad for you, but neverless it´s a fact. I´ve been in Trinidad & Tobago since 1988, first time in Tobago 1992. I have many local friends, some are connected to Cadet Force, Police or Security.

The only real local dancing places visited by visitors is Golden Star and Sunday School in Bucco. Nearby the airport there´s also a place where they play pool, they also have real W.I.music.

So, you have a choise to see the south for a few days and be in the north until you go.
Good Luck
Ronald

Hi there,

I am off to Tobago on Sat 15th March (2 days to go!) and can't wait. This will be my second time visiting Tobago - my first was in January this year - I loved it so much I booked up another week as soon as I got back!

Tobago is a fantastic island - admittedly, I've never been anywhere else in the Caribbean but I imagine Tobago must be one of the top islands (if not THE top!).

When I first visited in January me and my friend (both 19 yr old females) stayed in Crown Point Beach Hotel - great place...five minutes from airport, right on top of store bay & pigeon point beach, couldnt really ask for anything more! Crown Point is a great area to stay in, lots of restaurants and bars, everything is within walking distance.

Will anyone else on here be in Tobago 15th-22nd March? This time I am going back and staying in Belleviste Apartments - I can't wait to get there in the sunshine and just needed to share my excitement with people that arent sick of hearing me go on about it!

Emma,I know what you mean!People here just don't believe what a fantastic place and wonderful people exist on this Earth,and they do indeed get up of hearing one say"When I was in Tobago................."
Enjoy,but get up into the country.
David (on the point of starting to count)

David Watkins wrote: (on the point of starting to count)

David,
Please don't!

oh yes noe, he will....

Last time i was there we did hire a car and drove all around the island....there are so many beautiful places too see, one of my favourites was definitely Castara - will hopefully return this time.

Only a mater of hours to go - this time tomorrow ill almost be there!