It is the largest and most mountainous of the Windward Islands in the chain of the Lesser Antilles in the Caribbean. Dominica lies between Martinique (to the south) and Guadeloupe (to the north), in the French West Indies. It is 29 miles long and 16 miles at its widest. The formal name is Commonwealth of Dominica, do not confuse it with the Dominican Republic. Dominica is the largest island of the group. It is a vulcaneous island, the geology gives the island mountain ranges, deep valleys which are fertile green and dense with a abundance of plants and life, and water streaming everywhere from rivers that plunge down as waterfalls or run quietly like a creek. It's humid and hot and full of sounds and it rains a lot. Every afternoon the island is showered.

On Dominica, there are several peaks of over 3,000', the tallest of which are Morne Diablotin (4,747') and Morne Trois Pitons (4,600'). One of the less nice things is that they are almost always clouded. They say that on a fine day, the view is magnificient. I wouldn't know, because there wasn't a clear day.

There are other very interesting places on the island. One can find sulphur springs, patches of boiling mud, fumeroles around the island (including at least one underwater) crater lakes, underwater hot springs and the Boiling Lake deep inside the Morne Trois Pitons National Park, a Unesco world heritage site. The Boiling Lake, the world's second largest boiling lake (New Zealand has the largest), its steamy water tells about that this is an alive volcanic cauldron in the middle of Dominica's magnificient rainforest. Once, it was emptied, 2004. It took a year almost before it was filled up again. The temperature can vary too.

Dominica is also acknowledged to be both one of the best dive sites and a prime whale watching location in the region.

The beaches are black or silver, (thanks to lava from volcanoes of the island), and there are no big hotels and not so many tourists. Those who comes with cruising ships, stay and look at the Emerald pool at Trois Pitons. Dominica is for those who "are a nature buff, like to hike, climb, kayak, snorkel or SCUBA dive". I read that as a description of the island somewhere, and it's true. A pretty unspoiled Caribbean island.

"English is the official language but a French-based Creole (kwéyòl) is widely spoken, especially in the outlying villages. This reflects an often turbulent history in which the island would be assigned to Britain by a treaty with the French, who would promptly break it and try to regain control of Dominica. Throughout and to the present day the original inhabitants, the Caribs, tried to coexist. In 1903 they were assigned a 3,700 acre Territory in the north-east where around 3,000 live today. "

The Northern Forest Reserve is a nature reserve, with oceanic rainforest. The park is the home of Dominica's national bird, the Sisserou Parrot. The Imperial parrot is the largest Amazon parrot in the world, and the more common red-necked Jaco Parrots is also there to see . Best times for parrot watching is dawn or dusk. You will both see and hear them from a distance and you will also be able to distinguish them. Bring binoculars, for a better look. The Sisserou Parrot, the larger bird, has a modulated call that rises and falls, while the Jaco has a high-pitched squawk. The sounds of the rainforest...

And the parrots are right beside Mount Diablotin. Very nice to do at the same day... parrotwatching and climbing.

Getting there

We flew with a small local plane from Anguilla, via St Martin, to Dominica's main airport is Melville Hall (DOM) in the north-east (38 miles from Roseau), at the town Marigot. Short flight, beautiful scenery. There is also a smaller airport , Canefield, in the south-west, 3 miles north from Roseau.

From Europe British Airways flies into Antigua, St. Lucia and Barbados and
Air France connects via Martinique, Guadeloupe and St Martin.

From the US, American Airlines and American Eagle (the same company?) flies to Melville Hall. See map over their destinations.
Coming from other parts of the world, there is no direct flights.

The both regional Caribbean airlines LIAT and Caribbean Star have flights to Melville Hall from Antigua, Barbados and St. Lucia, the latter also from St Martin.

(In order to get the best view of the island from your flight as you fly in - when going north to Melville Hall Airport (from for example, from St. Lucia), sit on the left side of the aircraft. When flying southward (from Antigua), sit on the right side.
Sit on the opposite side if flying into Canefield Airport. )

There are a number of inter-island high-speed catamaran ferry services connectng Dominica to both the neighbouring French islands and St. Lucia. L'Express Des Iles.
There are three main sea ports. Woodbridge Bay, north of Roseau. Both the Roseau Ferry Terminal and the Cruise Ship Berth is in Roseau itself. (Cruise ships sometimes stop at the Cabrits near Portsmouth.)
Taxi fares from the airport are set by the Government and displayed at the airport. Melville Hall to Roseau is for example EC$45. Expect to pay more if your final destination is a village beyond Roseau. As you exit the immigration/customs area you will be greeted by an official who will direct you to an appropriate taxi. Taxi drivers should be uniformed. License plates of taxi vehicles should contain the letters “HA” or “H.” Sample fares per person from the airports to the major cities of Roseau and Portsmouth are as follows:
Melville Hall Airport to Roseau: $16(USD)
Melville Hall Airport to Portsmouth: $12(USD)
Canefield Airport to Roseau: $8(USD)
If you are a number of passengers going to the same destination, negotiate! Note, that taxis can be difficult to find after around 6:00 p.m., which means that you have to arrange transportation for a set time beforehand.
The public minivan buses are typically more affordable than taxi fares!

If you rent a car, it's left hand traffic, very narrow roads, and you need to have a strong heart and calm nerves. We did that... after awhile I refused to drive, but sitting on the passenger's side, when the wheels are hanging out over an abyss in order to meet another car, is no mercy on your nerves, either.

Rules:
You will need a valid passport (of course). Onward/return ticket are required for stays of up to 21 days.

NEW: Effective January 1, 2006: the United States has instituted a new passport regulation that will require US citizens visiting the Caribbean to be in possession of a valid US passport to re-enter the US.
Americans better check that up - it seems as that is concerning the entire Caribbean.

Canadian citizens may use proof of citizenship with photo. French nationals may use a Carte identite for stays up to two weeks.

Camping and other lodging

Camping is allowed at one place.
Generally forbidden on the island.

There are plenty of lodgings. On this page they are all listed I believe, with links to their webpages etc. Most cottages and guest houses on the islands maintains a basic standard, they are not luxurious. They are adapted to the nature and one is perfectly comfortable.

Of course it may have changed since I was there, (three years ago) but then it wasn't all that easy to find the Internet café. it's very anonymous. It's easy to find though, if one knows what to look for. Follow the main road south, out from town, and there it is.

When to climb

One can climb all year around, but it is generally a drier season between January and June, with the wettest months being August to October. We were there in February, it was a good month to be there. It rains EVERY day, though. Every.
Annual rainfall in Dominica in the interior, (over the mountains) is over 300 inches. It can be 50 inches along the coast. The peak of hurricane season is late August/early September.
Mean Air Temperatures
Maximum 29.6 Celcius
Minimum 24.2 Celcius

Mountain Conditions

The weather on Dominica

How it is to climb Morne Diablotin:
It is straight up. Easy in the beginning. Lovely surroundings. Muddy, some boulders (slippery, be careful) on the way. Closer to the top, difficulties with the vegetation. One has to crawl over roots and under and through branches and trees. But, on the way up, one can have some awesome views.
The dangers on the trek is twisting an ankle by slipping. Getting injured or exhausted (even for an experienced hikers) is imminent, so do be a bit careful, please.

Miscellaneous info

The local currency is the Eastern Caribbean Dollar (EC$). if you exchange to it - change back before you leave the island. It is almost impossible to exchange it anywhere else, nobody wants it.
The currency converter

Hikes and other interesting nature places on the island. Divided by difficulty. (They classify the Morne Diablotin trek as hard - everything is relative, but of course there are easier and middle easy treks to chose too.)
Another very good page on the same website about things to do.
We went whale watching twice. Lovely boat, no whales, plenty of playful dolphins and lots of birds.

Images