While Roseau (pronounced 'rose-oh') is one of the region's poorer capitals, it's not the grimmest. Shopkeepers wash down the sidewalks every morning, the streets are lined with old stone-and-wood buildings, and mountains form a verdant backdrop. The city has rebuilt its waterfront, which was severely damaged by Hurricane David, and it now boasts a new cruise ship dock and promenade. There are a growing number of modern cement structures too, since this is a functional market town, but for the most part walking Roseau's quieter back streets feels like stepping back a hundred years in time.

You can get a reminder of the more inhumane aspects of Dominica's colonial past in the cobblestone plaza of the Old Market, the site of a former slave market, where a wrought iron Victorian-style memorial marks the old block where slave auctions took place. There are interesting displays on the slave trade, Creole and Amerindian culture at the Dominica Museum. At the public market you can find fresh fruit, vegetables and herbs; the blowing of a conch shell signals fresh fish for sale. Other worthwhile sights include the old stone Catholic cathedral, the botanical gardens, the Anglican Church, and the public library, built in 1905 with funds from US philanthropist Andrew Carnegie.

Cabrits National Park

Located on a scenic peninsula just north of Portsmouth, this park is best known as the site of Fort Shirley, a large 18th-century British garrison that once housed 600 soldiers. Some of the fort's stone ruins have been partially reconstructed; others are half-hidden in the jungle and are fun to explore. There are fine views of Prince Rupert Bay from the ruins of the Officer's Quarters. The park encompasses the peninsula, the surrounding coast and coral reefs, and the island's largest swamp.

Carib Territory

The 3700-acre (1497-hectare) Carib Territory is home to most of Dominica's 3000 Carib Indians. After exposure to European-borne diseases in the 17th century, the Carib population here fell to just a few hundred, but that was fortunate compared to the decimation Caribs suffered on other Caribbean islands. The remaining few were removed to a small 'reserve' in the mid-18th century - the nucleus of the present-day Territory. Although their numbers have increased since then, their culture has been eroded by Roman Catholicism and the English and French Creole languages.

The Territory is a predominantly rural area with banana and breadfruit trees and wild heliconia growing along the roadside. Many of the houses are traditional Carib-style wooden structures on log stilts, but the poorer areas consist of shanties made of corrugated tin and tarpaper. Salybia is the main settlement, while the L'Escalier Tête Chien at Sineka is the most popular attraction. This unique stairway-like lava outcrop appears to climb out of the turbulent ocean and was thought by the Caribs to be the embodiment of a boa constrictor; it holds a significant place in many Carib legends.

Layou River Area

The Layou River, Dominica's longest empties into the sea just south of St Joseph, at the center of the west coast. The river basin is a peaceful rural area, with bamboo leaning over the riverbanks and banana and coconut trees at the side of the road. When it's not running strong, the river is a popular place for freshwater swimming.

St Joseph, a simple fishing village of 2600 people, rises up the slope from a small black-sand beach, but the area's best beach is farther north at the Castaways Beach Hotel in Mero. There's good swimming in front of Castaways and fair snorkeling along the rock formations at the southern end of its beach -- with a little luck you might even spot a stingray or octopus.

Portsmouth

Portsmouth, Dominica's second-largest town sits on the banks of Prince Rupert Bay. Columbus entered the bay during his fourth voyage to the New World in 1504.

Although Portsmouth center doesn't have any sights per se, there are a couple of oddities you might want to take a look at: the small but colorful monument at the bus stop dedicated to Lord Cathcart 'who died of the bloody flux off Dominica in 1741' and the nearby line of shipwrecks piled up in the shallow waters at the back of the police station.

Activities

Coast to coast, from top to bottom, there is adventure in every direction. Traveling the mountainous roads of Dominica is a rewarding journey to discovery. Every Curve along the way unfolds a new experience, another thing to see and do. !

Dominica has excellent hiking and much of the island's rainforests, rivers and waterfalls are within easy reach of the larger towns. In the Northern Forest Reserve, there's an easy hike through a parrot reserve and a rugged trail to the top of the island's highest mountain. The Morne Trois Pitons National Park offers treks into the wilderness that range from jaunts through verdant jungles to an all-day trek across a steaming volcanic valley that ends at a boiling lake. If you're tired of walking, you can rent a mountain bike in Soufrière and explore old estate trails and the nearby sulfur springs.

Dominica doesn't have the picture-postcard beaches usually associated with the Caribbean, since most of the island's sand is black. The best beaches are in the Portsmouth area in the northwest. The eastern coast is largely rugged with high surf, but there are a few pockets of golden sand just south of Calibishie where the water is sometimes calm enough for swimming and snorkeling.

Dominica has superb diving. The island's rugged scenery continues underwater, where it forms sheer drop-offs, volcanic arches, pinnacles and caves. Many of Dominica's top dive sites are in the Soufrière Bay area, off the island's southwestern coast, where the walls and caves are rife with stingray, snapper, barracuda, parrotfish, huge tube sponge and soft coral. There are also a number of good dive sites off the northern coast, notably at Castaways Reef, Grande Savane, Rodney's Rock, Toucari Bay and the wrecks of a barge and tug off Canefield. Calm waters suitable for swimmers, snorkelers and inexperienced divers can be found around Champagne, a sub-aquatic hot spring off Pointe Guignard where crystal bubbles rise from underwater vents.

The island's deep surrounding waters offer excellent whale and dolphin watching. Sperm whales are most commonly sighted between October and March. You can also spot orca, pygmy sperm whales, pygmy killer whales, false killer whales and pilot whales. Paddling a kayak around Soufrière Bay or along the western coast to snorkeling sites that can't be reached by land is a great way to experience the marine environment.

  Water Adventure

Below the surface is another world equally exciting. The turquoise of the Caribbean Sea or the ever-changing Atlantic Ocean

Just as Dominica towers majestically upwards into the tropical sky, so the coastline drops swiftly into the Caribbean Sea. Characterized by steep drop-offs, pinnacles, pristine reefs, clear waters and an abundance of marine life, Dominica is rightly categorized among the best diving locations in the Caribbean. Dominica's diving though is still relatively undiscovered. This leads to uncrowded dive sites and dive boats and a far more personal experience.

Dominica's marine world is an underwater photographer's dream: sponges, seahorses, frogfish, crinoids..the list is a varied as the underwater scenery is impressive. And all a stones throw from shore!  

Hiking Adventure

For the Adventurer there are more attractions than points on a compass. Every day is an excursion to new heights of enjoyment.

Tours And Attractions

Dominica justifiably known as  the "Nature Island of the Caribbean". With and extensive unspoiled rainforest, 365 rivers and waterfalls.