As I ask with any such (U.S. & Caribbean) dive destination that seems to get a lot less attention (e.g.: discussion threads, trip reports) than others (I think Dominica gets more 'love' on the forum than Tobago; I see Dominican Republic mentioned much more often, and neither of those gets anywhere near the attention of Cozumel, Bonaire, Belize, etc...), what is keeping Tobago off most U.S. divers' radar? Why is it 'lesser known,' not used more often?
It's way south of here; what about round trip airfare?
What I'm asking is, while there may be substantial upsides to a Tobago trip, are there downsides?
Richard.
Hello,
I visited Tobago a couple of summers ago and was able to do some fantastic diving. Friends of my wife are from Tobago but live in the U.S. now. I feel like we got a very local experience due to the fact that we were with locals much of the trip.
Let me start off by telling you this. Tobago is not "Americanized" thus things are different. Depending on how much you like different will determine if you like Tobago. If you are looking for plush 5 star accommodations then this is probably not the island for you.Unless, you are really interested in spending big money. Less money will get you much nicer, more "Americanized" accommodations in other Caribbean countries.If you are Caucasian you will stand out, less than 1% of the population is Caucasian. I am Caucasian and I enjoyed the Tobago culture and the people but I also went to the island to experience their culture not complain or change it.
The people that vacation in Tobago are usually European, Indians and/or people from Trinidad. To me, Tobago was just more authentic, than other places. For example, the nature was less bothered, we found fresh mangos on our hotel property and were encouraged to eat them. The staff collected some and put them at the bar. On the beach, we had a few cows wonder by one morning. The cows did not bother anyone but it was my first time seeing cows on a beach. I feel like some travelers would see the cows as unsanitary but I did not see a glaring issue and thought it was funny. We had one vendor selling hand made sandals. He was not pushy and very nice older gentleman. My wife ended up with at least one pair. At times you can hear the curiko(sp) birds, they are loud but again, in a different country.
Every Sunday brings what locals call "church" which is really just a festival with live music, dancing, food and drink. Lots of fun, especially if you enjoy live music.
Most of the people we encountered were nice and genuine. They were helpful and did not seem bothered by tourists. Those that were not as welcoming did no harm, just wanted to keep to themselves.
In short, Tobago is safer than Jamaica, not as Americanized as Aruba.
Anybody have a different experience?