Trinidad & Tobago

Trinidad and Tobago have fundamentally different accommodation scenes. On Trinidad, the hotel inventory caters more to business travelers than beach tourists. The Hyatt Regency Trinidad in Port of Spain is the flagship business hotel, with harbor views and rates from around $200 a night. The Hilton Trinidad sits on a hill above the Queen's Park Savannah with colonial-era grounds and rates from $175. For Carnival, many visitors rent apartments or houses through local agencies - expect to pay three to five times normal rates during the Carnival week, and book months in advance.

Guesthouses and smaller hotels in Woodbrook and St. Ann's neighborhoods start around $60 to $90 and put you in the heart of the nightlife and dining scene. Tobago is where the resort stays happen. Magdalena Grand Beach and Golf Resort on the Atlantic coast is the largest full-service property, with rates from $200 to $350. Coco Reef Resort on the southwest coast near Crown Point is popular with couples, starting around $180. For a boutique experience, Castara Retreats on the quieter north coast offers eco-cottages set into the hillside above a fishing village from $120 a night.

Budget travelers will find Tobago far more affordable than most Caribbean islands - guesthouses in Crown Point and Buccoo start at $45 to $70. Mount Plaisir Estate Hotel in Grande Riviere, Trinidad, is the unique pick for turtle watchers, sitting directly on the nesting beach with rooms from $100.

Trinidad and Tobago has the most diverse food scene in the Caribbean, a direct result of the islands' multi-ethnic population. The street food alone justifies the trip. Doubles, the undisputed national snack, is a pocket of soft fried dough filled with curried channa (chickpeas), topped with chadon beni (culantro) chutney, tamarind sauce, cucumber, and a ladle of pepper sauce calibrated to your spice tolerance. You will find doubles vendors on nearly every street corner in Port of Spain from early morning until late at night, each with their own loyal following.

Bake and shark at Maracas Bay is the other essential - a fried shark fillet in a puffy fried bake (bread), dressed at a condiment bar with garlic sauce, chadon beni, coleslaw, pineapple chutney, and pepper. Richard's Bake and Shark at Maracas is the most famous stand, though locals debate endlessly whether Natalie's next door is better. Roti - a large, thin flatbread wrapped around curried fillings - reflects the island's large East Indian population. Hott Shoppe on Maraval Road does excellent dhalpuri roti stuffed with curried goat, chicken, or shrimp for $5 to $8. For Chinese-Trinidadian food, a unique fusion you will not find anywhere else, try any of the roadside Chinese restaurants in Chaguanas.

The fine dining scene centers on Port of Spain's Woodbrook neighborhood, where Chaud on Ariapita Avenue serves modern Caribbean cuisine with local ingredients at about $30 to $50 for a main course. Aioli on the Avenue does Italian-Caribbean fusion. On Tobago, Jemma's Seaview Kitchen in Speyside is a treehouse restaurant over the water serving Creole fish and provision plates for $12 to $18. The Sunday School beach party at Buccoo is a weekly lime with food stalls, drinks, and music that runs from afternoon into the night.

Trinidad and Tobago sit south of the hurricane belt and almost never take direct hits, which makes them a safer bet during the June-to-November Caribbean hurricane season than islands farther north. The dry season runs January through May, with Carnival typically falling in February or March - this is the peak period, and Port of Spain hotels sell out months in advance at inflated rates.

The wet season from June through December brings afternoon rain showers, typically lasting an hour before clearing, and lush, green landscapes. Hotel rates drop noticeably outside of Carnival season. For turtle watching on Trinidad, the nesting season is March through August, with peak activity in May and June.

Tobago's diving is best from January through May when visibility peaks. The Tobago Heritage Festival in late July celebrates the island's folk traditions with village-based events across two weeks.

Maxi-taxis (shared minibuses) and route taxis are the main public transport. Rental cars available on both islands. Ferries and flights connect Trinidad to Tobago.