Tobago Boat Trip

Tobago is not your average Caribbean Island

Tobago. It’s not as commercial as most of the other islands in the area and that’s why we love it!

We wanted to get a different perspective of the island and it just so happens that there is a boat leaving from Buccoo (right in front of Miller’s Guest House), every day which offers coastal tours to see the remote beaches, waterfalls, fishing villages and so on.

We have only arrived on the Island for a couple of days now, so we weren’t familiar with what there is to do/see in Tobago. But like everywhere you go, you meet people who tell you what there is to see/do and you get familiarised really soon with everything. It happens everywhere we go: the ones that got there before us, became island experts (so to say). We learned from them, they left, we then took their place and so on. It’s a cycle that allows us to connect with other travellers and share thoughts and advices.
So here we were one day, sitting on the porch of our room, when these two girls, also guests at Miller’s Guest House, asked us if we wanted to join them on an island boat tour. It sounded great, so we quickly jumped in our swimwear and hopped on the boat. The tour that we took was with Frankie Tours and Rentals. We were surprised to see that people from all over the island, from the big resorts and hotels had to come all the way to Buccoo for this tour. And it is quite popular. The ticket was fairly priced for what it had to offer and we also got it cheaper, after negotiating. The boat takes you from one end of the island to the other, with stops at some of the most beautiful bays in Tobago, it then heads to No Man’s Land, for the most delicious BBQ you’ll ever feast on. And last, but not least, the boat will take you to this amazing natural pool, called Nylon Pool.

Prepare to be at sea from early morning to sunset. Food and drinks are provided so you just have to make the most of this trip. We loved every minute of it!

Coastline

As we were sailing along Tobago’s coastline, we passed by Turtle Beach in Courland Bay, which is one of the three main leatherback nesting beaches in the area. We missed the nesting season, but at least we found out where we should go if we’ll ever be in Tobago during the nesting season.
Next, we headed to Castara Bay. As soon as we reached the bay, we started seeing several black spots in the water and they were moving! Instantly, one of the crew members pointed out that the moving spots are actually stingrays. They were moving so gently, and yet so fast. Cezar asked the crew members if it’s ok to dive in and take a swim with the stingrays, but they all said we can’t, and it’s actually not part of the tour. This stop was just to see the village of Castara with its beach, which by the way, it is something out of the Robinson Crusoe novels, really! The picturesque village is astonishingly beautiful, with its huts and houses scattered around the tan coloured sand, under the tall palm trees, overlooking the calm, crystal clear water.
Now back to swimming with the stingrays 🙂 Other people from the boat also started asking the crew to let us go in and swim with the stingrays and they finally accepted. However, we have been instructed that we should keep our calm and try not to splash or make any other moves that might make the stingrays feel threatened. They hadn’t yet finished giving instructions and everyone was already in the water. So we kept our calm and got to swim with them. That was such a great feeling we got to experience.

Then on the boat again for more fun along Tobago’s coastline. Next stop: a deserted beach with black sand. We entered the bay and to our surprise, the coast guards were there, on their boat, having a beer and chilling in the sun. That has to be the best job in the world! 🙂 The crew anchored the boat and we went for a swim and to check out the beach. Once again, the views of the beach and from the beach, left us speechless – a truly beautiful, secluded location. Oh, and this is where we ate, for the first time in our lives, conch. Freshly caught for the waters where we were swimming in and sliced in front of us. We didn’t know what it was, not until it was already in our stomach. It was weird to know that we just ate a raw sea snail, but it actually tasted good.

Once the coastline tour was over we headed to the coral-sand beach known as ‘No Man’s Land’ to feast on a BBQ made by Frankie’s crew. So while the fish and chicken were cooking on the grill, we explored the beach and took a swim in Bon Accord Lagoon. The lagoon is surrounded by mangroves and the water is pretty warm, compared to the outside of the lagoon. We found this rather interesting, even though it’s only logical for it to be that way.
The food was now ready and we all gathered around the buffet area, filled our plates, grabbed a drink and then set on the beach and enjoyed the delicious food. And till this day, we still say that this was the best BBQ we ever had.

 

With our bellies full, we still had one last stop before heading back to Buccoo. The sun was slowly, slowly setting down and we were yet to discover another great spot in Tobago – The Nylon Pool. It was named like this by Princess Margaret in 1962 and it is actually an in-sea shallow pool with white coral base.
So here we were, in this natural pool, in the Caribbean sea, with punch rum in our hands, listening and swim-dancing on the soca and calypso music that was playing on every boat at Nylon Pool. Wonderful times! As the sun reached the horizon, we started sailing towards Buccoo.

We had an amazing time and based on our experience we highly recommend it.

Know Before you go
– If you pay with TT$ you end up paying less (compared to paying with US$)
– always negotiate prices
– No Man’s Land and Nylon Pool are accessible only by boat
– There are three species of turtles nesting in Tobago: leatherback, hawksbills and green turtles. Best time to see them – mid-March to July.
– Frankie Tours and Rentals website -> frankietours.com