Summer or winter vacations are approaching and you still haven't planned anything. You are hesitating between several destinations but... you need to go back home with a tan to make all your colleagues jealous?
Martinique is the choice to make! AZ Martinique gives you 10 honest and, of course, objective reasons to choose Martinique.
- The sun or rather the guaranteed heat
Martinique being located in the tropics is a guarantee of sunshine all year round. Whether you want to come in January, April, July, November or for the end of year celebrations, you are likely to enjoy a bright sun during your stay. So yes, it is possible that rain is on the agenda, but the rains are often temporary and it is extremely rare that Mister Sun doesn't show his nose at some point during the day. If not, tell yourself that you are enjoying the heat because at worst it will be 25°C (77 degrees Farenheit)!
In addition, the beaches of Martinique have the rarity to have each one a different sand! It even happens that a single beach has different sands! If the southern beaches often have white or very clear sand, in the north, the sand is black or gray, the result of the flowing lava following the various eruptions of Mount Pelee.
On the Atlantic side in Tartane, Trinité and Sainte-Marie, the sand is brown but each time unique from one beach to another.
Also if you like surfing, prefer the Atlantic beaches or Anse Couleuvre for their impressive waves. Kitesurfing? head to Pointe Faula beach, for the kids opt for Pointe Faula or the softer, almost wave-free Caribbean Sea beaches.
If you want to post on Instagram then head to the Salines, Pointe Marin, the swing of Anse Caritan or the beach in perfect symmetry with the church of Anses d'Arlet.
Know that the sun produces vitamin D by interaction of the sun's rays with our skin. It reduces stress, promotes sleep, reduces the risk of anxiety and depression.
So what's the point of freezing in the freezing cold when you can have sunshine?
- A multitude of things to see and do
So basking in the sun while lying on the white sand in front of a beach with turquoise water is good but not a bit boring?
If you want to impress your colleagues and friends, it's good to come back well tanned but... are you really going to tell that you spent your whole stay at the beach when there are so many things to do in the island? It would be a real waste! Indeed, Martinique is one of the only islands in the Caribbean that can offer you beaches, rivers, mountains, rainforests, a multitude of historical places, distilleries (see below) and museums.
The fruit and vegetable markets of Fort-de-France, the monuments of the city (Schœlcher Library, Saint-Louis Cathedral, Espace Camille Darsières, Fort-Saint-Louis, Fort Desaix, Place de la Savane, etc.), the Sacré Cœur Church of Balata, the sumptuous Garden of Balata, the Pelee Mountain in Morne-Rouge, Cap 110 in Diamant, the Savane des Esclaves in Trois-Ilets and many other places... Do you really think you can come to Martinique without visiting them?
What's the point of traveling if it's not also to learn about new cultures and to marvel at the nature of the places you visit?
- A unique rum in the world
Well, without being chauvinistic, we must recognize that the rum of Martinique is unique and the best (one of the best?) in the world. If rum was born in Barbados (yes, we could not invent everything), Martinique has revisited this drink that was called guildive to make R-H-U-M.
The majority of the rums that you drink are manufactured in an industrial way containing molasses of sugar cane. The rum of Martinique is an agricultural rum elaborated with care and time following the distillation of sugar cane juice. This method makes it a unique alcohol with a fragrant taste marked by its raw material, the sugar cane. It is labeled Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée (The "appellation d'origine contrôlée" (AOC) is a label that identifies a product whose production steps are carried out in the same geographical area and according to a recognized know-how.)
Agricultural rum has thus fully integrated the local gastronomy and is used in the preparation of numerous recipes, notably the famous Ti-Punch or all kinds of punches or the shrubb, the Christmas drink, but also simply cakes. It is an essential in the suitcase of the return. Yes, you have to keep a little souvenir that will make you nostalgic.
If you are a fan of alcohol and want to know more, it is possible to do the rum tour, a circuit that will take you to visit the different distilleries of the island and you can taste the different rums of the island.
- A Creole gastronomy
Seriously, you have left your cocoon and when lunch time comes, you are served a hamburger and fries in your plate! What an idea to travel to an exotic destination if it is to eat what you already have at home!
No, when you come to Martinique it is also to discover the rich gastronomy of the place! Moreover, benefiting from a tropical climate, fruits, vegetables and spices are plentiful in Martinique. From generation to generation, the inhabitants of the island have cooked and mixed them and have known how to make the most of them to offer you today refined dishes that you will not taste anywhere else! The dishes of Martinique are an integral part of its identity and also of its history marked by various waves of immigration and crossbreeding.
So come and taste passion or guava cocktails decorated with a thin slice of carambola and enhanced by our agricultural rum, mango sorbets, a lambis dombré, a well-spiced pork colombo and for dessert, a slice of amour caché, a coconut sorbet or a passion fruit panacotta...
Christopher Columbus was looking for spices when he went to the east, he wasn't looking for a hamburger and fries!
- A piece of France in the Caribbean
Does the French accent charm you? Are croissants for breakfast a must? Do you dream of going to France but hate long trips? Do you think vacations are sea, sun and coconut tree? Martinique is your destination. By traveling to Martinique, you will arrive in a French territory of the Caribbean. Indeed, Martinique is French since 1535 when the French decided to colonize the island. Since then, the island became a French department in 1946 as Paris can be. Citizens born in Martinique are French. As in the rest of the European Union, the currency is the euro.
Also, if you are in America know that Martinique is one of the closest solutions if you want to be in France. Only 3 hours of flight are necessary from Miami to reach Martinique, 4h20 from New York and 5h10 from Montreal. That's half the time of a trip to Paris which takes between 7h30 and 8h.
So why not combine your desire for France and sun?
- The human warmth and the unusual atmosphere
West Indians are known to be festive and warm people. If you want a total change of scenery in February-March, come and celebrate the Carnival in Martinique, it's a guaranteed atmosphere! Moreover, after the 4 days of parades in Fort-de-France or in the different towns of the island and the parties that follow, you will come back home tired of your vacations but so happy to have experienced the crazy atmosphere.
Otherwise you can come for the Tour des Yoles which takes place in the middle of the summer (end of July-beginning of August). Of course, you have to choose your favorite yawl and then follow the course every day on the arrival beaches of the stage. The animations are there and the atmosphere remains good-natured between supporters who are joking with each other.
Otherwise you can also go to the Cultural Festival of the City of Fort-de-France in July, to the public singing-night from November until Christmas or in parties to dance zouk collé-serré. Music in the skin...
- Martinique land of hikes
Put on your sport shoes and don't forget your hiking bag because Martinique has many sites that you can discover by walking. North, south, center, you will not be disappointed! You will have the opportunity to cross forests, go along mangroves and also discover magical waterfalls or rivers. Indeed, the nature of Martinique is a real green paradise!
In the forests of Martinique or in places near the beaches you will see rare tropical trees, animal species living in the discretion of humans but also 360° panoramas of parts of the island. At certain viewpoints and if the sky is clear, don't hesitate to take out your binoculars to see Saint Lucia to the south or Dominica to the north of the island.
Some hikes require an early start as they last several hours. So, prepare the day before to have something to eat and don't forget your camera.
There are several competitions of sport hikes in the heart of the nature and luxuriant vegetation such as the Raid des Alizés, the Tchimbé Raid or the TransMartinique.
- A diverse climate
Well ok, we started by the sun and the heat but in the course of the article, we lounged around in the sun enough and we want more freshness. Direction the north of the island! So yes, if it is often the south of the island that you will see in picture on the tourist posters, the north is not in rest. We could also have made an article on the reasons to prefer the north of the island to the south.
What reasons would we mention?
Fewer tourist waves and therefore more calm and discretion, the presence of Saint-Pierre (see below), an abundance of vegetation, rivers with "fresh" water (cold for those who are more cautious), less frequented beaches, beautiful flowers such as the wild plantains (Heliconia caribaea) which line the roads and also a much cooler climate. You will be amazed during a road-trip to feel the difference of climate between the south and the north. It is a welcome breath of fresh air.
- Eternal Saint-Pierre
Saint-Pierre the immortal, Saint-Pierre the unsinkable... Superlatives to describe the "Little Paris of the Antilles" at the beginning of the 20th century were insufficient. The city where the local bourgeoisie resided was the talk of the American continent and Europe.
It was Paris in America, social success, culture, educated people, the elite... and yet on May 8, 1902, Saint-Pierre the eternal would be completely destroyed, buried under the lava of the volcano of Mount Pelee which had just exploded.
34,000 dead... The city will not be reborn. This is what most of the population of the island thought, but they were wrong because if the city has not regained its former glory, it is still an essential part of the island.
- The ruins still mark this painful past.
- A museum makes it possible to not forget anything.
- A distillery (Depaz) was built by a young man whose family was decimated by the disaster.
- The mountain still overlooks the city.
- Some buildings such as the Chamber of Commerce or the church of Mouillage have been rebuilt identically.
Symbol of this pride of never giving up, the Virgin of the Sailors, which during the eruption refused to fall from its pedestal. Today, for the population, it is enough to raise the eyes to the sky and look at it to understand that Saint-Pierre will never die.
So don't go to Martinique without visiting this magnificent city, the eternal Saint-Pierre.
- Coconut trees on the beach
Well, here we wanted to finish with a more funny note. This reason may seem odd to some but you'll understand when you read on. Have you ever traveled to other tropical destinations where the sun was shining and a salesman offered you a sunshade and a deckchair for $20 a day? You were then unable to refuse.
In Martinique this problem does not arise because the beaches are very often lined with coconut trees that will offer you a welcome shade. Other trees such as sea grape trees or almond trees will play the same protective role thanks to their large leaves. However, beware of the mancenilla tree whose fruits are poisonous. They are always marked with a red paint on the trunk to identify them.
Anyway, coconut trees and beach trees are always better than the 20 dollar sunshade!
We could have easily written about 20, 30, 50 reasons to choose Martinique but we chose themes that touched us the most. However, we will not make a longer article because 10 reasons are more than enough to make the choice of the island of flowers.
If you still have questions, you must have missed some episodes in our article. Read it again from the beginning.
It is unthinkable that after all that you do not want to discover Martinique. So we'll see you soon! Kontan wè zot! (Welcome in Martinican Creole)
