Facets of Tobago History

In 4 centuries the island changed hands over 30 times becoming the playing field of European powers. Legend has it that the island was first discovered around 1498, by Columbus, who claimed it in the name of the Spanish crown. In 1642 Dutch settlers under the patronage of the Duke of Courland located themselves on what is now known as Fort Milford. The British occupied Tobago in 1765, surveyed the land and repaired its fortifications and mills. The army established a post at Fort Milford. In 1777 in the wake of the war of independence, the Americans joined forces with the French and began harassing British sugar plantations on the island. In 1781 the French invaded and occupied Tobago. The British recaptured the island in 1793 permanently ousting the French. Fort Castries, built earlier by the French, was renamed Fort King George after the ruling British king. By the turn of the century Tobago and Trinidad were amalgamated, a situation that endures today. The Union Jack was lowered in 1962 bringing to an end nearly 170 years of British rule.

An idyllic retreat

The Bacolet Beach Club is Tobago’s finest beach hotel. This boutique hotel is an idyllic retreat, wedged between a private beach and a hillside, secluded from the bustle of life, yet only minutes from Scarborough the capital. Rooms and apartments at the Bacolet Beach Club are lavishly furnished with a 32” flat-screen TV and other amenities consistent with star hotels. For more of its facilities, please click on www.bacoletbeachclub.com.

Tobago’s Ecological Disaster

At around 7.00 pm of a warm evening on July 19, 1979, two loaded Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs) carrying between them nearly 500,000 tonnes of crude oil, collided off the coast of Tobago. Both flew the Greek flag. Twenty six sailors were killed in the accident. The less badly damaged ‘Aegean Captain’ managed to bring the fire under control and was towed away the next day. The crippled ‘Atlantic Empress’, on fire, was towed to sea. In its wake it left an oil slick alight in places. The stricken tanker was surrounded by vessels desperately hosing the fire. Despite all efforts it continued to burn, often wracked by explosions. On the night of July 29, an explosion, worse than any before, sounded its death knell. The following morning only a burning oil slick remained to mark the watery grave of the ‘Atlantic Empress’. She was the biggest vessel in maritime history ever to have sunk.

In all, 280,000 tonnes of crude leaked into the sea, a world record for any oil tanker incident. Miraculously neither Tobago nor any nearby island recorded much shore pollution.

Bacolet Bay

Tobago’s finest beach resort, the Bacolet Beach Club is located minutes from Scarborough on Bacolet Bay. Visitors frolicking on the white sands of this boutique hotel’s private beach would scarcely credit the island with such an escape from a disaster which occurred scarcely 10 miles away at sea. The Bacolet Beach Club has beautifully appointed rooms with all modern conveniences yet retaining a rustic charm. Its restaurant the Café Havana excels in fine dining. Booking is necessary most times of the year. For information on Tobago’s best beach hotel and to make a reservation at Café Havana, please click on www.bacoletbeachclub.com.

Tobago: The Galapagos of the Caribbean

With its abundance of wildlife Tobago is often called the ‘Galapagos of the Caribbean’. While that might be a trifle exaggerated, it is true to say that Tobago has some unusual specimens of birds, reptiles and aquatic life. Little Tobago, a tiny island off the coast has been a nature sanctuary since 1926. The Greater Bird of Paradise was brought here from New Guinea in 1919 to save it from extinction by poaching. It thrived till 1963 when Hurricane Flora devastated the island and wiped out the bird population. Since then the sanctuary has been restored and is home to 45 native species of birds. The real attractions are breeding colonies of seabirds such as Terns, Boobies, Magnificent Frigate Birds and the magnificent Red-billed Tropic birds … birds of unmatched grace and beauty.

The island is accessed after a 20 minute boat ride from Speyside village on the mainland. Little Tobago’s seasonal deciduous forest is unspoiled and has been preserved for millennia.

The Best Place to Stay

Little Tobago attracts thousands of naturalists, ornithologists and wildlife enthusiasts throughout the year. Many reside at the Bacolet Beach Club, Tobago’s finest boutique hotel. This is a beach resort with a difference. Its fine dining restaurant, the Café Havana, offers legendary cocktails and exotic fusion food. The Bacolet Beach Club believes in pampering its guests in well appointed rooms furnished in contemporary style with all the amenities. For more on this beach hotel and the Café Havana, click on www.bacoletbeachclub.com.

The Tobagonians

Whatever happens in the world outside, the Tobagonians will never lose their zest for life. In a mechanical world gone cold the Tobagonian still preserves old-fashioned values – raising children to respect elders, be nice to one another, and go to church on Sundays. The Tobagonians are a warm, hospitable people who welcome strangers into their way of life. The Tobagonian loves good simple food – mostly fresh seafood – washed down with generous measures of local rum. Life is never complete without music. Trinidad and Tobago are the islands where so many contemporary sounds were born … Calypso, Soca, Rapso and Chutney music.

There is no finer place on Planet Earth to get away from it all than Tobago. This tropical paradise has everything compressed in its tiny area – tropical rainforest, verdant hills and white, sandy, secluded beaches unspoiled by the madding crowd.

Tobago’s finest Beach Resort

The island’s finest beach resort is the Bacolet Beach Club on Bacolet Bay, far from it all yet minutes from the city. This boutique hotel is a creation of Gloria Jones-Knapp, famed fashion model of yesteryear.  The resort’s restaurants, notably the celebrated Café Havana, serve some of the best cocktails and the most delectable fusion food in the Caribbean. The Bacolet Beach Club has well appointed accommodation. Every room or apartment is fully equipped with a 32” flat screen TV and a balcony that overlooks the sea. For a touch of decadent colonial charm, the bedroom is furnished with a grand four-poster bed. To know more of Tobago’s best beach hotel, please visit http://www.bacoletbeachclub.com/

Why Tobago

In a world that seems to have lost its bearings, I seek sanity. I cannot face the news any further – Afghanistan, Iraq, global warming and forebodings of renewed recession. I want to get away from it all to a little part of planet earth where sanity still prevails. Tobago calls me, a beacon of light that I cannot resist. I return year after year for her gentle healing.

Within hours I’m renewed. Thoughts of heightened security and mid-air bomb threats are banished to the dark recesses of my mind. I walk the quiet beaches, the tropical sun warming my shoulders, away from the icy pavements and freezing winds of home. A soothing Caribbean breeze ruffles my hair as its warm waters wash away the golden sands from my feet. I hear a sound – it’s just a bunch of lively sun-burned kids on the beach. In the distance, a fishing boat casts its nets to the surging tide. I am alone, away from it all. A week later I’m revived; a new person ready to face the insane world outside that I cannot escape. Until next year … when I hear Tobago calling: ‘Come back sun child … come to mama.’

Tobago’s Finest

The Bacolet Beach Club, one of Tobago’s finest beach resorts is located minutes from Scarborough the capital. It offers all the amenities of a top-of-the-line hotel and more and yet the staff understands their guests’ need for seclusion at times. This boutique hotel retains a rustic flavor reminiscent of the island. It is beautifully located between the slope of a tropical rainforest and its own private beach – the ideal setting for rejuvenation and to commune with nature. For more that this fabulous beach hotel has to offer, please visit www.bacoletbeachclub.com.

‘The Rainbow Country’

Archbishop Tutu couldn’t have described the islands of Trinidad and Tobago better than when he coined the colorful phrase ‘The Rainbow Country’. He was of course referring to the many different races and traditions that go in the making of the character and society of the islands. The Tobagonians are an intriguing mixture of European, African and Asian who live in absolute harmony, respecting each other’s cultures and embracing their festivals. Caribbean Carnival however is a festival that belongs to the islands. History has it that Carnival originated in Trinidad and Tobago from where it moved further afield across the Caribbean.

Trinidad and Tobago is also the birthplace of Soca, and Calypso and the steel band. Hundreds of songs are composed every year on these islands and thousands of amateur musicians make music on instruments conceived by them, and crafted in their own backyards. The music industry of the islands has left its indelible mark on the world.

Visit Tobago

Come to Tobago to experience for yourself this vibrant, happy, multi-ethnic culture. It’s a unique culture that is a pulsating illustration of racial harmony, fusion music and food. Stay at the Bacolet Beach Club, Tobago’s finest beach resort and boutique hotel. From the moment you step into this beautifully designed hotel you’ll be overwhelmed by its multi-cultural ambience. The beach hotel boasts all the luxuries of the world’s finest hotels, ensconced in its own rustic environment. To see more, please visit its website www.bacoletbeachclub.com.

Scarborough

Tobago has had a chequered history. The original settlers were the Amreindians whose civilization is reputed to date back to 2500 BC. The first colonial power was the British who claimed the island for James I. The island has changed hands 22 times between the British, Dutch. French and Courlanders – mainly people of Latvian and German origin. Since 1814 till independence in 1962 the island was a British Crown Colony.

Scarborough has been the capital for two and a half centuries. Its population of over 20,000 is just under half the total population of the island. This bustling little town is dominated by Fort St. George, an old British fort. The Tobago Historical Museum, housed in one of the historical buildings within the fort, is the repository of relics of the island’s history. Lower Scarborough is home to a lively street market and well worth a visit.

The Bacolet Beach Club

The Bacolet Beach Club, one of the islands finest beach resorts, and a boutique hotel is located minutes from Scarborough. The hotel is built in a picturesque setting wedged between a hillside and its own private beach. The rooms are well appointed, tastefully decorated and equipped with all amenities to make a guest comfortable. These include a 32” flat screen TV and a four poster bed for a nostalgic sense of the island’s history. The Bacolet Beach Club’s bar and restaurant, the Café Havana is famed for exotic cocktails and gourmet fusion food. Click on www.cafehavana.org to know more of the café’s attractions including its menu. Visit www.bacoletbeachclub.com and study the facilities offered by Tobago’s finest beach hotel.

Carnival Origins in Tobago

There is reason to believe that the French introduced Carnival to Tobago. This is not historically clear, but what is recorded is that the English and French both celebrated Carnival in the period between Christmas and Lent … depending on which country ruled the colony at the time. Regardless, it was a period of great merrymaking and feasting, punctuated by elaborate balls, fetes and house visiting. But the celebrations were restricted to only the ruling classes. It was the start of the masquerade balls where the revelers costumed themselves as field negroes or ‘negre jardin’.

The African residents brought a new dimension to Carnival after emancipation in 1838. They engaged in dancing, masking, stick fighting and mocking whites while reenacting scenes of past enslavement. The also introduced their own dance forms and musical instruments, the forerunners of Carnival celebrations today.

The Bacolet Beach Club

Tobago’s Bacolet Beach Club is one of the most popular boutique hotels during Carnival. It is in close proximity to Scarborough, the capital, where the biggest parades and entertainment takes place. Yet the Bacolet Beach Club is secluded with its private beach. Every room is well appointed with all the amenities that make a visitor comfortable. A four poster bed in each room gives a visitor the feel of colonial grandeur, now confined to history. A stay at the Bacolet Beach Club during Carnival is a never to be forgotten experience. Click on www.bacoletbeachclub.com to see more of its attractions.

Carnival 2010

Carnival will be celebrated on February 15 and 16, 2010 in Trinidad and Tobago. In the islands, carnival is a multicultural blend of music and unfettered dancing. The dancers wearing flamboyant costumes ablaze with sequins and feathers and dance in gay abandon to the throbbing beat of a steel band. Tourists as well as local non-participants are welcomed to join. Each band is headed by a King and Queen who wear even more elaborate, out-sized costumes. These masqueraders vie for the King and Queen of the Carnival award. The winners are announced on Carnival Sunday. Another prize goes to the Band of the Year.

Carnival is the biggest and most anticipated celebration on the islands for which preparations begin months in advance. Carnival in Tobago is a must-watch, attended by tourists from North America and Europe.

The Bacolet Beach Club

The Bacolet Beach Club is one of Tobago’s exclusive beach hotels which is exceptionally crowded during Carnival. The Bacolet Beach Club offers the ultimate in comfort and luxury in beach resorts. The well appointed rooms are tastefully decorated with every one offering a view of the sea. All rooms have a 32” flat screen TV. View some of the fantastic photographs of this superb vacation hotel on this island paradise by visiting www.bacoletbeachclub.com. The Bacolet Beach Club is only minutes from the capital, Scarborough, where the best of Carnival events takes place.

Tobago this winter

Many Americans and Europeans find it too cold at home and prefer a warmer winter. Few places compare with the Caribbean island of Tobago where warm temperatures can be expected year-round. The sister islands of Trinidad and Tobago are the southern-most islands in the West Indies and the closest of any Caribbean islands to the equator. They both enjoy a tropical climate throughout the year. Tobago is slightly cooler than Trinidad since it is more exposed to the breeze of the trade winds. In general, temperatures range within a high of 90° and a low of 70°F. December is the fag end of the wet season but shouldn’t be a deterrent to tourists because rains in Tobago come in short, sharp bursts interspersed with blazing sunshine. Trinidad and Tobago are located south of the hurricane belt so there are no fears of being stricken during the hurricane season.

Bacolet Beach Club; the ideal choice

The Bacolet Beach Club is Tobago’s finest beach resort hotel. It is located on its private beach south-east of the island, minutes from Scarborough, the capital of the island. The Bacolet offers a rustic ambience blended with modern amenities. The rooms are well-appointed with 32” flat-screen TVs and an unhindered view of the ocean. See some of the spectacular photographs of this splendid vacation hotel on this island paradise by visiting http://www.bacoletbeachclub.com/