Tobago

Tobago

Tobago is a lush and tranquil island close to South America and sharing its birdlife. It is 26 miles long and about 7 and a half miles at its widest. It has a central ridge of hills running down from the north with long, deep and fertile valleys leading to the sea. The island flattens out towards the south. Tobago is distinctive in many ways, including a generally higher standard of cooking available to tourists than many of its Caribbean neighbours. Don't miss Gemma's at Speyside where you have a simple choice of delicious local food looking out over the blue seas and the bird sanctuary of Little Tobago. Tobago has some superb beaches and characterful towns with British colonial names such as Scarborough, Plymouth and Charlotteville.

Tobago has a developed but relatively discrete tourist industry. There is an extensive range of hotels and guest houses. Its mountainous interior, extensive rain forest, beautiful beaches and friendly people offer a wide range of activities. There are both direct flights and flights via Trinidad (depending on your location). A day trip to Trinidad - and even Venezuela - is comparatively straightforward and a worthwhile experience. How many people can claim they've had a day trip to South America?!

In the 1931 edition to The Pocket Guide to the West Indies (Abebooks.com) written by the quaintly-named Sir Algernon Aspinall describes Tobago's weather thus:

"The climate of Tobago is delightful. The mean temperature is 80 degrees Fahr., but owing to the extensive seaboard, the heat is nearly always tempered by a cool sea breeze. This is particularly the case in the dry season, from December to June. In the wet season, especially during the months of August and September, the heat is sometimes oppressive owing to the stillness of the moisture-laden atmosphere. The rainfall varies very much in different parts of the island. (...) The island is outside the hurricane zone."

• History of Tobago
• Robinson Crusoe and Tobago

More about the Caribbean islands