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Trinidad & Tobago Travel Info and Hotel Discounts Trinidad & Tobago Travel Info and Hotel Discounts

 

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Trinidad & Tobago Travel Info and Hotel Discounts

 
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Coco Reef Resort And Spa
Tobago is an island of unique beauty with breathtaking rain forests complete with waterfalls, historical sights and unrivaled beaches. It is here, in Tobago, that one of the Caribbean's most spectacular resorts are located. The Coco Reef is set at the end of a palm lined driveway in beautifully manicured tropical gardens, overlooking the crystal clear waters of the Caribbean Sea. On arrival in Tobago, all Coco Reef guests can be personally met at the airport and
 transported to the hotel and a world of
 understated elegance.

Coco Reef Resort And Spa

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  Trinidad  The Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is a nation in the southern Caribbean Sea, situated 11 km (7 miles) off the coast of Venezuela. It is an archipelagic state[1] consisting of two main islands, Trinidad and Tobago, and 21 smaller islands. The larger and more populated island is Trinidad, while Tobago is smaller (303 square kilometres; about 6% of the total area) and less populous (50,000 people; 4% of the total population). Citizens are officially called Trinidadians or Tobagonians or Citizens of Trinidad and Tobago, but are informally referred to as Trinis or Trinbagonians.

Unlike most of the English-speaking Caribbean, Trinidad and Tobago is a primarily industrialised country whose economy is based on petroleum and petrochemicals. People of Indian and African descent make up almost 80% of the population, while the remainder are mostly mixed race with small European, Chinese and Syrian-Lebanese minorities. Trinidad and Tobago is famous for its pre-Lenten Carnival and as the birthplace of steelpan and limbo.

The capital city Port-of-Spain is currently a leading candidate to serve as the headquarters of the Permanent Secretariat of the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA-ALCA).

History
Main articles: History of Trinidad and Tobago,
Both Trinidad and Tobago were originally settled by Amerindians of South American origin. Trinidad was first settled by pre-agricultural Archaic people at least 7000 years, making it the earliest-settled part of the Caribbean. Ceramic-using agriculturalists settled Trinidad around 250 BCE and then moved up the Lesser Antillean chain. At the time of European contact Trinidad was occupied by various Arawakan- and Cariban-speaking tribes including the Nepoya, Suppoya and Yao, while Tobago was occupied by the Island Caribs and Galibi. The aboriginal name for Trinidad was Kairi or Iere which is usually translated as The Land of the Hummingbird, although others have reported that it simply meant island. Christopher Columbus encountered the island of Trinidad on July 31, 1498 and named it after the Holy Trinity. Columbus reported seeing Tobago, which he named Bella Forma, but did not land on the island. The name Tobago is probably derived from tobacco.

The Spanish established a presence on Trinidad, while Tobago changed hands between British, French, Dutch and Courlanders. Britain consolidated its hold on both islands during the Napoleonic Wars, and they were combined into the colony of Trinidad and Tobago in 1889. As a result of these colonial struggles Amerindian, Spanish, and French and English place names are all common in the country. African slaves and Indian, Chinese, Portuguese and free African indentured labourers were imported to supply labour in the nineteenth and early twentieth century. Immigration from Barbados and the Lesser Antilles, Venezuela and Syria and Lebanon also impacted on the ethnic make-up of the country.

Although originally a sugar colony, cacao dominated the economy in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. After the collapse of the cacao crop (due to disease and the Great Depression) petroleum increasingly came to dominate the economy. The Depression and the rise of the oil economy led to changes in the social structure.

The presence of American military bases in Chaguaramas and Cumuto in Trinidad during World War II profoundly changed the character of society. In the post-war period, the wave of decolonisation that swept the British Empire led to the formation of the West Indies Federation in 1958 as a vehicle for independence. Chaguaramas was the proposed site for the federal capital. The Federation dissolved after the withdrawal of Jamaica, and Trinidad and Tobago elected for independence in 1962.

In 1976 the country severed its links with the British monarchy and became a republic within the Commonwealth.

Petroleum, petrochemicals and natural gas continue to be the backbone of the economy. Tourism is the mainstay of the economy of Tobago, although it has declined in the environment after the September 11, 2001 attacks. Trinidad and Tobago is one of the most prosperous nations in the Caribbean, although less so than it was during the "oil boom" between 1973 and 1983.

Geography

Map of Trinidad and Tobago - Click to enlargeMain article: Geography of Trinidad and Tobago

The country consists of two main islands, Trinidad and Tobago, and 21 smaller islands, the most important being Chacachacare, Monos, Huevos, Gaspar Grande (or Gasparee), Little Tobago and St. Giles Is. The terrain of the islands is a mixture of mountains and plains. The highest point in the country is found on the Northern Range at El Cerro del Aripo which is situated at 940 m above sea level. The climate is tropical. There are two seasons annually: the dry season for the first six months of the year, and the wet season in the second half of the year. Winds are predominantlly from the northeast and are dominated by the Northeast Trade winds. Unlike most of the other Caribbean islands, Trinidad and Tobago have frequently escaped the wrath of major devastating hurricanes including Hurricane Ivan, the most powerful storm to pass close to the islands in recent history in September 2004.

As the majority of the population live in Trinidad, this is the location of most major towns and cities. There are three major municipalities in Trinidad: Port-of-Spain, the capital, San Fernando, and Chaguanas. Of these three, Chaguanas is the fastest growing. The largest town in Tobago is Scarborough.

Trinidad is made up of a variety of soil types, the majority being fine sands and heavy clays. The alluvial valleys of the Northern Range and the soils of the East-West Corridor being the most fertile.

The Northern Range consists mainly of Upper Jurassic and Cretaceous rocks, mostly andesites and schists. The Northern Lowlands (East-West Corridor and Caroni Plains) consist of Pleistocene or younger soft sands and clays with superficial gravel terraces and river and swamp alluvia. South of this, the Central Range is a folded anticlinal uplift consisting of Cretaceous and Eocene rocks, with Miocene formations along the southern and eastern flanks. The Naparima Plains and the Nariva Swamp form the southern shoulder of this uplift. The Southern Lowlands consist of Miocene and Pliocene sands, clays, and gravels. These overlie oil and natural gas deposits, especially north of the Los Bajos Fault. The Southern Range forms the third anticlinal uplift. It consists of several chains of hills, most famous being the Trinity Hills. The rocks consist of sandstones, shales and siltstones and clays formed in the Miocene and uplifted in the Pleistocene. Oil sands and mud volcanoes are especially common in this area.

Although it is located just off-shore from South America, Trinidad and Tobago is often considered to be part of the North American continent by virtue of its being a Caribbean country. See Bicontinental countries.

Culture

The Chaconia (Warszewiczia coccinea) flower is the national flower of Trinidad and Tobago.Main article: Culture of Trinidad and Tobago

Trinidad and Tobago is famous for its pre-Lenten Carnival. It is also the birthplace of calypso music and the steelpan, which is widely claimed to be the only acoustic musical instrument invented during the 20th century. The diverse cultural and religious background allows for many festivities and ceremonies throughout the year. Other indigenous art forms include soca (a derivate of calypso), Parang (Venezuelan-influenced Christmas music), chutney, and pichakaree (musical forms which blend the music of the Caribbean and India) and the famous Limbo dance.

The artistic scene is vibrant. Trinidad and Tobago claims two Noble Prize-winning author, V. S. Naipaul and St. Lucian-born Derek Walcott. Mas' designer Peter Minshall is renowned not only for his carnival costumes, but also for his role in opening ceremonies of the Barcelona Olympics, the 1994 Football World Cup, the 1996 Summer Olympics and the 2002 Winter Olympics, for which he won an Emmy Award.

Background:
The islands came under British control in the 19th century; independence was granted in 1962. The country is one of the most prosperous in the Caribbean thanks largely to petroleum and natural gas production and processing. Tourism, mostly in Tobago, is targeted for expansion and is growing.
Location:
Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Venezuela
Geographic coordinates:
11 00 N, 61 00 W
Map references:
Central America and the Caribbean
Area:
total: 5,128 sq km
land: 5,128 sq km
water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than Delaware
Climate:
tropical; rainy season (June to December)
Terrain:
ostly plains with some hills and low mountains
Nationality:
noun: Trinidadian(s), Tobagonian(s)
adjective: Trinidadian, Tobagonian
Ethnic groups:
black 39.5%, East Indian (a local term - primarily immigrants from northern India) 40.3%, mixed 18.4%, white 0.6%, Chinese and other 1.2%
Religions:
Roman Catholic 29.4%, Hindu 23.8%, Anglican 10.9%, Muslim 5.8%, Presbyterian 3.4%, other 26.7%
Languages:
English (official), Hindi, French, Spanish, Chinese
Currency:
Trinidad and Tobago dollar (TTD)
Currency code:
TTD
Exchange rates:
Trinidad and Tobago dollars per US dollar - 6.2466 (January 2002), 6.2332 (2001), 6.2998 (2000), 6.2989 (1999), 6.2983 (1998), 6.2517 (1997)

 

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