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West Indies, Tobago - Rainforest and golf on Tobago
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FACTS ON TOBAGO
General: Tobago is one of the West Indies’ last outposts against Venezuela in South America. The island is 40 kilometres long and ten kilometres wide and is crossed by a volcanic mountain chain that is partially covered by tropical rain forest rich with bird life. Fifty thousand inhabitants mainly of African origin who were brought here to work on sugar plantations. English is spoken and the town of Scarborough (population 20,000) counts as the capital. The actual capital is Port of Spain and located in Trinidad. The nation of Trinidad and Tobago has been an independent state since 1962 after having been a British colony. Nowadays, the country is a member of the British Commonwealth.
Climate: The rainy season falls between June and December and the dry season between January and May. It’s usually between 25 and 35 degrees in the air, but because there is always a moderate breeze blowing, the heat never becomes intrusive. The Caribbean Sea usually keeps around 26-27 degrees year round, slightly colder on the Atlantic side.
Currency: TT Dollar. U.S. dollars and the most common credit card work and there are also ATMs.
Golf: Two golf courses, Mount Irvine Bay Golf Club and Plantations Golf and Country Club. Clubs can be rented, however not for the left-handed player.
Tips for things to do: Boat excursions, half-or full day to go ashore for swimming, lunch in a cove, opportunities for snorkeling. There are also opportunities for deep sea fishing and if you're lucky you can get a Blue Marlin on the hook. Trips to the rainforest to look, for example, at the rich bird life. You start early in the morning and come back at lunchtime.
Accommodation: There is everything from cheap to expensive hotels (EUR 63 to 156 per room and night) to villas. Best is to live in the southern part of the island if you want to be close to the golf and several of the best beaches.
Restaurant tips: Dillon's Seafood, Coco Cafe, Iguana, and Latitude 11, all in Crown Point.
Travel: From Heathrow including British Airways and Virgin Atlantic via London, Lufthansa/Condor from Frankfurt. Prices may vary according to season EUR 834-1250.
More information: Trinidad Tobago Tourist Office, Copenhagen, e-mail: trinbago@spirit-company.dk, www.gototrinidadtobago.com
The big English jumbo jet from Virgin Atlantic thunders forward, just above my head. The runway seems short for the giant plane, but no problem. It slows down calmly and well before the runway transforms into a mangrove swamp.
Of course we stay at a hotel located next to the airport which may seem a bit annoying when it's busy. Although you get used to it, and it may be a bit exciting to see the row of planes that glide in for landing over the blue-green Caribbean Sea. And the stream of tourists is dense in Tobago which is known for its fine beaches, a rainforest with lots of different species of birds, snorkeling and deep sea fishing.
The Swedish couple, Anneli and John, is staying at the same hotel near the airport. They are in their eighties and have been here 16 times. At one point they had exchanged Tobago for Thailand but they both feel that it wasn’t a good idea. Nowadays, it’s Tobago that matters again.
“It is difficult to explain the feeling, "says John. “But it’s more that you take the day as it comes here. To be sure you can be irritated that the service is bad but you have to get to know the people, understand them. Then you will have friends for life if they see that you are really interested in their lives.”
John tells us about the hotel's chauffeur who now lives in New York. He drove the tourists to and from the biggest beach, Pigeon Point, and occasionally on excursions to the rainforest in the middle of the island.
“We were at his place at one point, "says John. He lived in a dilapidated little house with his wife and children. He said he earned just less than 2000 per month and it was not enough to support his family. He would seek his fortune in the U.S. and he would soon move.”
I’m thinking about what John said the next morning when we are sitting and waiting to order breakfast. It takes time but we’re not in a hurry. Admittedly, it's time for the first round of golf, but I’ve understood that there is no rush and that there is plenty of time.
The taxi that will take us to the golf course is waiting but there is no initial extra charge and the driver takes a nap while waiting for his passengers.
Tobago has two courses, Mount Irvine Bay Golf Club and Tobago Plantations Golf and Country Club.
Mount Irvine is the oldest and our first destination. It was opened in 1968 and designed by John Harris. The course is built on the Caribbean Sea and is relatively hilly where the end, a long par four hole, is spectacular. You stand high up and have Grange Bay below, one of many beautiful bays with white, soft sandy beaches which are found on this side of Tobago.
A few days later we see this bay from the sea when we do something that must be done here - take a full day excursion with one of the many small boat companies that are constantly running about on the beaches to try to pick up customers.
The second course is on the other side of the island, facing the Atlantic next to the luxury Hilton hotel. It opened in 2000, which is evident in design with wide fairways, undulating greens and the good area. Three of the holes run along the coast where it is always windy. Many of the other holes have been built in among the mangrove trees where they dug and cleared out and got a lot of really good holes.
You cannot go to Tobago without visiting the rain forest which is on the north side of the island. There are approximately 220 species of birds there, as well as waterfalls, flowers ... yes, everything that should be there. The authorities are investing in eco-tourism which also includes all the coral reefs. The island is small and the tourists many so you have to take care of the environment.
The day before returning home to I refill your rental car that we have had to take us around the island's winding roads. I order a full tank and start to pick among my 100-dollar bills. Sixty litres doesn’t cost very much. The country has rich oil deposits, which is the main income, and therefore doesn’t need to charge a lot of tax on the petrol price.
Perhaps the reason that tourism isn’t so important? At least not for its own population.
Text and photo Anders Örnevall