myTobago – your questions, review and comment about Tobago

THANK YOU for the wonderful website. I feel informed and enlightened. My partner and I are looking to go to Tobago in Feb. We are questioning which part of the island we would like to stay at. The Caribbean side seems like it would be an ideal choice, as we would like to jump in the water and take a swim from our room. It seems like the Atlantic side is not for swimming per se. The Castara area seems like a good choice, yet I worry that it is isolated. We do want to choose the road less travelled, but we also would like have some availability to restaurants and the like. Please advise as to the differences in areas, and if possible some recommendations. We are travelling from NYC and really, really need to get away from it all. Thank you again.

Hi Joana

Tobago sits in the path of the North-East Trade Winds, which obviously blow in across the cooler Atlantic Ocean. Therefore, the Atlantic side tends to benefit from these lovely cooling breezes, meaning that air-conditioning is seldom necessary anywhere along this coast. It does tend to mean that the seas – in general – are a little cooler and heavier along this coast. However, that is only a general rule. There are many protected bays along the Atlantic coast, just as there are exposed bays along the Caribbean coast.

If you want a choice of restaurants, then you should restrict your choice of places to the Crown Point - Plymouth – Scarborough triangle. (See our maps at http://www.myTobago.info/maps.php). Outside this triangle, everywhere is pretty remote. Castara is lovely, but you will have a choice of three or four ‘local’ restaurants, all serving variations of the same Creole menu, as elsewhere in places like Charlotteville and Speyside.

How long do you intend to go for? Why not move about and stay at a variety of places? I guarantee that this will not be your last visit, so use this trip to move around and decide which areas you like best.

Wherever you stay, I can promise you that you will be “getting away from it all”.

Joana,

If you are staying for more than a few days I agree with Steve about moving around on the Island. We stayed on the Caribbean side and it seemed to have the more preferred beaches for swimming. There were some rough areas along the Atlantic side. We spent a day in the Baccolet area just North of Scarborough and liked it very much and would consider staying a few days there on our return. There are a good many restaurants in the Crown Point area within walking distance from many of the hotels and inns. It is touristy only in comparison to the rest of Tobago; not compared to most other vacation spots (that I have been to at least). We did an Island tour with Yes Tourism on our second day there to get our bearings and were glad we did. Patrick Dankou was our guide and he was excellent. He recommended a number of off the beaten path destinations to explore on our own as well as many of the good local restaurants to try and we were not disappointed. Castara was my favorite village it is a very relaxing place. Hope this helps.

Cliff

Thank you very much for your replies. If we rent a car, is it necessary to stay in more than one place? Wouldn't it be easier to take day trips throughout the island?

Thanks again!!

Joana

If you rent a car, you will be able to do day trips to every corner of the island. My suggestion was largely based upon you not knowing where you might prefer - by staying in more than one location, you've more chance of hitting it right for at least part of the stay - although frankly, I'm sure you'll be delighted wherever you stay.

Doing reviews this last couple of years has changed our attitude a lot. I doubt whether we shall ever return to Tobago and stay in one place for more than a week. Day trips are great, but you only really get to know a place by staying in the area and we've found so much more enjoyment moving around.