Caribbean and Central America Travel

Trinidad and its sister island Tobago, is the perfect example of contrasts. While Tobago is a sleepy small town, Trinidad is just bursting with life. Known largely for its annual Carnival, Trinidad and Tobago can be deserted during the off season.

The carnival, which takes its roots from West African festivals, is celebrated a week before Ash Wednesday. The pre-lenten festival has been adapted in accordance to the Roman Catholic teaching of carne vale – farewell to the flesh. Carnival celebrates life, and Trinidadians & Tobagonians do so with music, extravagant costumes and dancing in the streets.

Calypso is one of the mainstays of the Carnival. This musical genre that originated in Trinidad was the African slaves’ way of communicating with each other, as speaking among slaves are prohibited. Over the years, it evolved as a means of spreading news around the island. It became the people’s medium for expressing their thoughts on island life, current events, and even politics. In recent years however, it was Soca, or soul calypso that has been taking precedent in the carnival. Originating from the calypso, Soca mixes the island beat of the steel pan and electronic percussion which blends into a rich dance music that’s perfect for the festivities of carnival.

Like most islands in the Caribbean, Trinidad and Tobago’s economy is boosted by tourism. However, unlike the other Caribbean islands, the other pillar of their economy is petroleum, not agriculture.

Saint Barts is known by many names: Saint-Barthélemy, Saint Barths, or Saint Barth. This French collective is composed of the island of Saint-Barthélemy proper and several offshore isles. The Collectivity of Saint-Barthélemy (Collectivité de Saint-Barthélemy), was established just last February 22, 2007.

Named after Christopher Columbus’ brother Bartolomeo, the first European settlers of the island were the French colonist who came in from the nearby St. Kitts. The settlement didn’t last, however. The island was sold off to the Knights of Malta. They too, never stayed long in the islands. The fierce Carib Indians wrecked havoc in the colony, and killed off all the settlers.

A hundred years pass before the island was inhabited once more by European settlers. It was the French mariners from Normandy and Brittany who were able to successfully establish a colony. The community and economy of the small island began to flourish. Though unlike their Caribbean neighbors, St. Barts was too small an island, too rocky and dry; they were never part of the sugar economy.
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Saint Vincent and the Grenadines has its history tied with England, being one of the British colonies in the Caribbean. Today, however, they are now an independent nation and a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. Located in the Lesser Antilles, it is composed of the island of Saint Vincent, and two-thirds of the Grenadine group of islands.

Among the 600 islands, these are the Grenadine islands under Saint Vincent:

• Bequia
• Petite Nevis
• Quatre
• Bettowia
• Baliceaux
• Mustique
• Petite Mustique
• Savan
• Petite Canouan
• Canouan
• Mayreau
• The Tobago Cays
• Union Island
• Petit Saint Vincent
• Palm Island

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Are you scheduled to fly into Haiti anytime soon? If you are one of the many who couldn’t fly into the small Caribbean country because of the devastation the January 12 earthquake caused, you might want to check with your airline about rebooking your flight.

American Airlines have already cancelled all their flights to Haiti following the Haiti government’s request not to allow commercial flights into the country. Travelers who have booking with AA can change their bookings without any fees nor penalty until February 14.

Spirit Airlines still fly to Haiti, but only to carry supplies and medical aid teams. Its commercial service has already been suspended until Sunday. Passengers who are set to travel to or from Haiti between now and January 20 may rebook their tickets without penalty, as long as the new departure date is on or before Feburary 28, 2010. Those who wish to rebook their flights to March 1 onwards, can do so without penalty, but will have to pay the difference in the fare.
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Flying to Haiti anytime soon? Before you pack your bags, double check with your airline first, as the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has stopped all civilian flights from the United States to Haiti, at the request of the Haitian government. The 7.0 magnitude earthquake last January 12 did a lot of damage in the small Caribbean country, including the international airport in the capital city of Port-au-Prince. Due to this, there are no room for planes landing and as jet fuel runs low, there may not be enough for planes to refuel for the flight back. It is no news yet when the Haiti airspace will once again be clear for commercial flights.

However, there is still a way for you to go to Haiti: The Royal Caribbean cruise ship Independence of the Seas will be docking at Haiti’s northern coast three times next week as scheduled. Labadee, an island on the northern coast of Haiti, is far from the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince and the epicenter of the earthquake. It is a privately owned island, where the cruiseliner dock. Labadee island offers cruisers pristine white beaches, all kinds of watersports, flee markets and a zip-line.

The next two weeks will see more than 10,000 vacationers who are on board Royal Caribbean’s Independence of the Seas, Navigator of the Seas, Liberty of the Seas and Celebrity Cruises’ Celebrity Solstice. Aside from holiday makers, the cruiseliners will also be carrying much needed relief for the victims of the Haiti earthquake.