Tobago is a relatively undeveloped island. But the islanders are warm and friendly. It has a superb natural life, both land and marine. The island developed rather late by Caribbean tourism standards and remains quite unspoiled. There are very pretty beaches, some classic palm-backed Caribbean strands, but also remote coves forested down to the shore. There are many nice hotels, a good range of villa accommodations, both private homes and some excellent villa resorts; interesting restaurants of good value; and some of the best scuba diving in the Caribbean. Activities include: windsurfing and game fishing magnificent nature trails, bird and turtle-watching, good golf, and excellent guided hiking.

Tobago can be divided into two parts. The western end, with its stretches of coral sand beaches, feels more like the classic Caribbean. Here you will find the bulk of the tourism. As you head east, beyond the main town of Scarborough, the land crumples and rises into hills and mountains, which are covered with incredibly lush greenery. Here you will find a much wilder Caribbean, less developed. Many Tobagonians live in simple villages clustered above bays and on the hillsides.

The eastern end of the island has a magic that few places in the Caribbean can match. The hotels in this area are smaller and the restaurants are much more local. It is here that you will find the superb natural life. The flora, similar to South America, is staggeringly beautiful. Tobago is home to one of the oldest forest reserves in the world. The birdlife is plain to see, from your veranda or even your breakfast table. And, unexpectedly for the Caribbean, there is quite a bit of visible fauna, both on land and in the sea. Inland there are Caymans (a species of alligator), opossum or maniocs and armadillos, called tattoos. Turtles nest on the beaches. The scuba diving, the best of which is around Speyside and Charlotteville at the eastern end of the island, is some of the finest in the Caribbean.

Tobago doesn't have the extraordinarily mixed racial heritage of its sister Trinidad. The two were linked politically only in 1884, and before that the island's history was more similar to the Windward Islands farther north, with its sugar and cocoa plantations. There are some Trinidadian influences in the food, but the population is still overwhelmingly of African descent.

In many ways it is due to this connection with Trinidad that Tobago has developed more slowly than the other Caribbean islands. Trinidad's wealth (largely from oil and natural gas) meant that there was less drive to develop the island. In fact many Trinidadians didn't want Tobago to be developed. The result is that where the other islands pushed on and modernized, Tobago retains some of its gentle, old time Caribbean atmosphere. The island is beginning to awaken, though. It has its own budget to develop tourism and there are plans afoot. But for the moment, Tobago retains its wonderful natural air.

Accommodations in Tobago

Tobago has unexpectedly little accommodation in the typical Caribbean mould of large beachfront resort hotels. There are just a small number of nice places to stay and there is very little at the top of the range, by comparison with say Barbados or St Lucia. And quite a few of the hotels that are there have adopted an all-inclusive formula anyway. If you look, though, you will find there are some small Caribbean classics, including small properties tucked away in the island's magnificent countryside. Another option well worth considering is to stay in a villa, possibly a villa resort, of which there are plenty. Of course, for the budget-minded traveler, there are guest-houses, condos, apartments and cottages.