If you love ivory sands and glass clear waters but run scared from all-inclusive, honeymoon-style resorts, then Tobago could be just the destination for you. One of the southern-most islands of the Caribbean. Tobago is dotted with palm-fringed bays and charming fishing villages – all largely unaffected by tourism.
With year-round average temperatures of 29, and a pace of life that’s chilled out at its busiest, where better to while away a couple of weeks in a hammock with your favourite paperback and a rum punch?
DESERT ISLAND
If local rumours are to be believed, Tobago was the inspiration behind Daniel Defoe’s classic novel Robinson Crusoe. And it’s no surprise when you discover the glorious beaches that edge this castaway paradise.
Tobago’s north coast is home to pristine half-moon bays such as Englishman’s Bay. Parlatuvier and Castara. Most are often deserted, so you can stroll across the sand with only a couple of fishermen for company. To the west, 20 minutes from the island’s capital Scarborough, is Stonehaven Bay, a glorious one-mile stretch of sand overlooked by the Grafton Beach Resort (£599 for seven nights plus flights per person).
And in the water you’ll find idyllic snorkelling spots, with coral reefs within slashing distance of the shore. In fact Jacques Cousteau rated the reefs here as some of the most spectacular in the world.
NATURAL WORLD
Tobago is only seven miles wide, so you can explore much of the island in one visit. From Charlotteville, the island’s most easterly point, the land rises to form a misty, tropical rainforest, The Tobago Forest Reserve, at its heart. Home to several species of exotic birds and wild flowers, treks can be organised to take you through the lush terrain.
For incredible marine life, head to Spey side and take a glass-bottomed boat across Angel Reef to Little Tobago Island or visit Buccoo Reef (from Scarborough) to see an underwater world of coral, tropical fish. Turtles and manta rays.
FOODIE HEAVEN
“get up with the sun, go to bed with the sun”, is a popular Tobagonian saying so food, rather than nightlife, is a fusion of African, Indian, Chinese and European dishes – all washed down with refreshing rum punch.
Be sure to try curry crab and dumplings sold from beachfront huts in Store Bay. Roti is another favourite – an Indian pancake filled with potato and curried goat. For the best open-air restaurants, head to Scarborough, where you can dine on fresh seafood to the beat of a steel pan band.