With its natural beauty and attractions, Trinidad & Tobago offers the ultimate Caribbean experience

Gunda Harewood was ahead of her time.

With Trinidad & Tobago enjoying a second oil boom at the start of the 21st century because of price increase, diversifying the economy was not a priority.

Soon after the German touched down in the twin-islands republic in 1982 to join her ‘Trini’ husband on the north coast, she realized there was more to the country than just oil and Carnival.

With an interest in nature and ecotourism, Harewood started Island Experiences – a boutique tour operator and destination management company -- 25 years ago.

Tano Harewood finalizing the day’s itinerary for his visitors. Wendy Lake of Tourism Trinidad Limited is next to him (Photo by Ron Fanfair)

For the last decade, her son – Tano Harewood – has taken on the bulk of the administrative duties.

He resided in the United States and Germany before returning to his birth country to settle in 2006.

While working as an Information Technology specialist in the Energy sector was rewarding, Harewood found his calling in tourism.

“It has a little bit more flair and I liked that,” the married father of two young children said. “People kept telling me to do something I like and not something that help you make money. I did that, went into tourism full-time and created tours. At one point, we were the only Expedia providers for quite a while.”

Having an engaging personality and vast knowledge of the products help.

Tourists quickly get used to Harewood’s favourite line, ‘Life is Good’, as he takes them on the 56 different local tours.

Island Experiences also team up with other tour operators to offer packages outside of Trinidad & Tobago.

Tours start from as low as US$45.

“Depending on your budget, we put together a tour for you,” Harewood said. “It is more important for a client to walk away happy and have something good to say about the country than us trying to squeeze them out of as much money as possible.”

Tano Harewood (l) with tour guide Jenelle Guy and videographer/photographer Marcel Montrichard (Photo by Ron Fanfair)

The local tours comprise three categories – half and full days and boat charters.

On the four-hour Sunset Boat Tour to the Caroni Bird Sanctuary, tourists ride in an open flat-bottom boat through the 12,000-acre Caroni Swamp, an estuarine system comprising 5,611 hectares of mangrove forest and herbaceous marsh interrupted by many channels and brackish and saline lagoons with extensive intertidal mudflats on the seaward side.

Tourists on the open flat bottom boat (Photo by Ron Fanfair)

Allister (Lester) Nanan, the grandson of Simon Nanan who successfully petitioned for the creation of the bird sanctuary in 1948, is passionate about preserving the eco-system.

Allister Nanan (Photo by Ron Fanfair)

Simon Nanan died in 1968 of injuries sustained while trying to protect the swamp from poachers.

Shortly after his death in 2015, the Caroni Swamp was renamed the Winston Nanan Caroni Bird Sanctuary to honour the legacy of Allister Nanan’s father who was an eco-tourism pioneer and environmentalist.

“This swamp is very close to our family and I take extreme pride in doing whatever I can to preserve it,” said Allister Nanan.

The red Scarlet Ibis and Egrets at sunset (Photo by Ron Fanfair)

There are over 180 species of birds in the swamp, including the Scarlet Ibis which is Trinidad & Tobago’s National Bird, and the pink flamingo.

The pink flamingo at sunset (Photo by Ron Fanfair)

Since 2021, Nanan has enhanced the bird sanctuary tour with Sunrise Breakfast and Sunset Dinner packages.

Allister Nanan and his company offers a sumptuous Sunset Dinner package (Photo by Ron Fanfair)

Before embarking on the relaxing late afternoon tour through the swamp, tourists can start the day with a trip to Central Trinidad to visit The Market Place where vendors are busy hawking their products ,and then proceed to the octagonal shape Temple in the Sea, a Hindu Mandir in Waterloo, that indentured labourer Sewdass Sadhu designed.

A fish vendor in The Market Place (Photo by Ron Fanfair)

It opened in 1995 to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the first arrival of indentured labourers in the Caribbean.

The Temple in the Sea (Photo by Ron Fanfair)

Sadhu, who used his bicycle to transport sand and cement to the site and served time in prison for defying orders to demolish the building, succumbed to a heart attack in 1970 while on his last pilgrimage to India.

The statue of Sewdass Sadhu outside the entrance of the Temple in the Sea (Photo by Ron Fanfair)

A brief stop for roti & curry at Hi-Way Roti Shop is taken before heading to the Pitch Lake, the world’s largest natural deposit of asphalt in La Brea, southwest Trinidad.

Tour Guide Amena Clarke greets guests before taking them to the popular tourist attraction that covers over 100 acres and contains about 10 million tons of asphalt.

The La Brea Pitch Lake experienced tour guide Amena Clarke (Photo by Ron Fanfair)

“Imagine you are walking on sponge,” she says while reminding visitors to walk directly behind her.

Going to the lake without an experienced tour guide can be dangerous as is evidenced by a sandal stuck in the pitch.

Never venture onto the Pitch Lake without a guide as this person who lost a sandal found out (Photo by Ron Fanfair)

The lake is 40 per cent pitch, 30 per cent colloidal clay and 30 per cent water.

Because of its Sulphur content, people sometimes swim in the pitch lake waters.

“It is good for mosquito bites and medicinal purposes,” Clarke added. “We have had people from overseas come here with various ailments to swim in the water and they have said they were healed.”

The view from atop Paramin (Photo by Ron Fanfair)

If you are seeking a scenic view of the North Coast, the Caribbean Sea, Santa Cruz and the Diego Martin Valleys, Paramin located on one of the highest points of the western area of the Northern Range is the place to be.

Paramin Lookout (Photo by Ron Fanfair)

“This is like a different country,” said tour guide Podesta Constantine who was born and raised in Paramin. “Everyone knows one another in this very tight-knit community of about 5,000.”

Paramin tour guide Podesta Constantine (Photo by Ron Fanfair)

Located nearly 1,500 feet above sea level, residents greet guests with open arms as they tour their remote village that is a farming hub known for its parang and indigenous food.

Sisters Marlene Gonzales and Marcia Pierre run the family-owned M & M Preservatives located next to their home.

Sisters Marlene Gonzales (l) & Marcia Pierre run the family-owned M & M Preservatives (Photo by Ron Fanfair)

“Everything here is locally made,” noted Gonzales. “You can get coconut fudge, kurma, toolum, green and pimento seasoning, pepper sauce, corn soup and juices, including sorrel and guava and homemade ice cream.”

As you wend your way through the village, you will pass a photo of Francis Felix who was Trinidad & Tobago’s oldest known resident before passing away in 2017 at age 111.

A photo of Francis Felix welcomes visitors to Paramin (Photo by Ron Fanfair)

Stopping at Auntie Julia for a tasty bite or cup of homemade cocoa tea is a must for every Paramin visitor.

“I absolutely love it here,” she said with a big smile. “I enjoy preparing the tea along with coconut bakes, smoke herring or choka for guests.”

Auntie Julia and her husband Andrew Lucio have been married for four decades (Photo by Ron Fanfair)

Auntie Julia and her husband, Andrew Lucio, have been married for 40 years.

On the way in or out of the village, visitors will see Our Lady of Guadalupe Church built with stones from the area.

The interior of Our Lady of Guadalupe Church (Photo by Ron Fanfair)

Relishing the water and outdoors, Harewood perks up when booked to take guests on the ‘Down the Islands’ yacht cruise that includes a stop at the 100-foot Gasparee caves that is one of the Boca Islands located in the Dragon’s Mouth between Trinidad and Venezuela.

“Comprising stalactites and stalagmites, it is all natural limestone formations,” said Chaguaramas Development Authority tour guide Leann Kirton who is a reserve firefighter. “We have had weddings in there with a maximum four people and it is the space where Machel Montano, Skinny Fabulous and Iwer George produced the music video, ‘Conch Shell’.

Island Experiences ‘Life is Good’ speedboat skippered by tour guide Jenelle Guy in the background (Photo by Ron Fanfair)

Utilizing a speedboat, ‘Life is Good’, Harewood takes visitors on a tour of the first of three sea channels in the Boca del Dragon also known as the Dragon’s Mouth that lies between Trinidad and Venezuela. Along the way, there are stops at Scotland and Sandy Beach Bays where an anhinga diving bird is spotted on a rocky island.

The Anhinga diving bird was spotted on a rocky island in Sandy Beach Bay (Photo by Ron Fanfair)

For individuals looking to relax on a beach or swim, Maracas – Trinidad’s most famous beach – offers that opportunity.

Maracas Beach (Photo by Ron Fanfair)

With an idyllic view, beach lovers and other visitors can swim and surf before enjoying several local tasty foods, including bake and shark, along with a Carib beer.

Richard’s Bake & Shark is popular with visitors to Maracas Bay Beach (Photo by Ron Fanfair)

A 10-minute drive further up the North Coast is Las Cuevas which is ideal for those seeking a quiet spot to chill and swim in calmer water.

Las Cuevas Beach (Photo by Ron Fanfair)

If you are lucky to be in Trinidad for the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) Twenty/20 cricket competition, going to the Queen’s Park Oval in Port-of-Spain or the recently built Brian Lara Academy in San Fernando is something visitors should consider.

Trinidad & Tobago Knight Riders playing the Jamaica Tallawahs at the Brian Lara Academy (Photo by Ron Fanfair)

The vibes and positive energy in the stands, particularly if you are fortunate to be in the Oval’s Trini Posse all-inclusive party stand with the Carib dancing girls, will leave you breathless.

Nigel Camacho, a dentist, and a few friends conceived the idea for the popular group in 1991.

Nigel Camacho co-founded The Trini Posse (Photo by Ron Fanfair)

For personalized eco-cultural tours of Trinidad & Tobago, interested persons can contact Island Experiences at admin@islandexperiencestt.com or 1-868-621-0407.