Over the past month, we have spent quite some time between Trinidad and Tobago. Tobago was the first location we checked in as we arrived in the Caribbean after our four month passage across the South Atlantic. These two islands make up one country, and are truly different from one another.
Trinidad is the largest of the two, has a total of 1.5 million inhabitants and has been quite a wealthy oil producing country. Tobago is a lot smaller, only has 30,000 inhabitants, and rely mostly on fishing and tourism. Trinidadians often go to Tobago for vacation, in fact. As Trinidad is located close to the South American mainland of Venezuela, it has quite murky waters due to the massive river delta of the Orinoco river. Tobago has beautiful blue waters most of the time, but even there the waters can get affected by the river.
Western Tobago
Our Tobago landing spot was on the Western side of the island, which is where most of the hotels and the airport is located. The island is quite diverse, as you move East, it becomes more hilly, and most of the Eastern part of the island is covered by rainforest.
When you arrive via sailboat, you have to check in with customs and immigration either in the East, in Charlotteville, or in the West, in the capital of Scarborough. We sailed into Scarborough harbour, which we soon regretted. Most boats go straight to nearby Store Bay and take the bus or a taxi to check in instead.
Scarborough has really no good place for any visiting boats to anchor, and after some dialogue with the coast guard, who has their base in the main harbor, we got directed to anchor right in the mooring field.
As we stepped off the boat, Caribbean vibes became obvious immediately; loud music coming out from the local bars (it was 10:00 in the morning), cars honking and cheerful shouts pass the street to friends on the other side. A busy, but tiny, downtown with a lively population, for sure. Bruse got right back into his Caribbean roots (Bruse lived seven years in the Caribbean from the age of 15 to 22), and his English quickly got a local flare to it.
As soon as we checked in, we went to Store Bay, which is a lovely anchorage, even though it is located next to the airport. With only about 6-7 planes arriving per day, it is fairly calm. The bay was a great base in terms of snorkeling and also access to local bars and restaurants. We snorkeled famous Coral Gardens, where you take your dinghy quite far from shore, but well protected behind a reef, visited No Man’s Land and Pigeon Point, both quite touristy with BBQ stands and beach bars, but beautiful white sandy beaches.
We stayed in Store Bay for a total of twelve days, mainly spending the time relaxing after the passage, and we’re just really happy to start a new chapter of our journey that now includes shorter island hops and longer stays in each location. No need to keep on rushing any longer!
Trinidad
The passage from Tobago to Trinidad can be done in a day, if you have okay winds. We decided not to go straight to Chaguaramas, which is quite an industrial harbour. We stopped right around the corner, in Scotland Bay, a lovely place where we were surrounded by the jungle and all of its animal sounds.
Scotland Bay is the place locals from Port of Spain take their boat on weekends, as well as being a popular spot for the infamous party boats. As we were there for a weekend, you have no choice but to join the party. Trinidadians love their very loud music, and it doesn’t matter if it is 8:00 Sunday morning….
We spent about one week in Chaguaramas getting some boat supplies and performing some boat works. We saw some of the island, like the famous Marconi Swamp, visited a sanctuary for hummingbirds as well as the Northern shore, where you do have a few nice beaches.
We were also fortunate to have the company of Bruse’s friend from when he lived in Jamaica when he was a teenager. Roberta was a great spirr, and visited us on the boat as well as inviting us to her home. It is so lovely when friendships can be easily picked up again forty years later!
After finalizing almost all of the boat work, we were joined by our first friends on the boat! Kyrre and Ann Iren flew in from Norway and has taken almost three weeks holiday to sail with us. They brought with them some key items, like our final paperwork for the boat registration as well as some Norwegian candy and kaviar we have been craving. Yum!!!
Carnival season was coming up in Trinidad as we were there, but after contemplating on our desires and checking the weather forecast, we ended up taking off towards Grenada the very same day our friends arrived. More on our visit to Grenada in an upcoming blog post.
Eastern Tobago
We checked in at the quaint little fishing village of Charlotteville, with only a few hundred inhabitants. In fact, the immigration staff has to drive (1.5 hrs one way) from Scarborough only for our arrival, so it is key to have filled out and shared a float plan with the authorities up front, so they know when you will arrive.
We had a lovely guided tour of the mountains and rainforest of the Eastern part of Tobago, and were all truly mesmerized by the beauty of this island, as well as its authenticity. There are few sailors here, and it is easy to find private anchorages.
Unfortunately, the current government seems not to prioritize tourism, and this is not good for Tobago. You can tell that the island has not bounced back since Covid, and that many small businesses have vanished and not reopened. There is so much potential for Tobago as a tourist destination, but it is also the reason why it feels so much more authentic than many of the other Caribbean islands.
We highly recommend it to all!!! ❤️