Sunday, August 14, 2011

Tobago Trip Tips

What you must bring
For the beach: Sunscreen, hat, sunscreen!, beach shoes (the sand gets very hot), more sunscreen, beach umbrella (unless you want to rent one at Store Bay), bottled water, money (to use public bathrooms or shop at Store Bay)

For your apartment rental: Dish soap (let's be green and not use disposable dishes), vinegar (for cleaning), toilet tissue, towels, paper towels, laundry soap (if you plan on doing handwashing or machine washing), road map (to find your way around), filter bottle or jug to filter the tap water.

Public transportation
Taxis from the port can range from $7 (the ones you find on the street) to $60 (the ones who accost you first)

What's within walking distance of beaches (Store Bay and Pigeon Pt.)?
Bonkers Inn, Coral Inn (not advertised well - you may have to know someone who knows), Best Resort (yup that's the name) and others along John Gorman Rd. in the region of Crown Point/Bon Accord

Some special tips for Coral Inn (not the same as Coral Reef)
from personal experience:
Coral Inn is a great little set of two-bedroom apartments, with the basic amenities: Pool (the water is quite warm on evenings), hot water shower, a/c in one bedroom, TV (TRICO cable service), stove, fridge, microwave, electric kettle, two slice toaster, cups, plates, bowls, flatware. There are a few things you may miss though.
-Some S-hooks and over door hooks will be useful for hanging wet things that can't be laid out on the porch chairs.
-Bring a jug for juice or purchase a large bottle of water from the nearby mini mart to mix your juice unless you plan on buying individually-packaged drinks or bottled soda.
-If you're particular about your coffee mugs, better bring one.
-Planning on a lot of baking: bring a baking tray (medium sized, the ovens are not very large)-there's one medium tray in each apartment.
-Can opener is old-fashioned requires muscle, easier to walk with one that you're comfortable with.
-Sharp knives are important to people who want to cook in the shortest possible time, so bring one if you think you will need it.
-No washing machine, so plan on handwashing in the bathroom/kitchen sink if you need to do any clothes washing.
-No wifi so if you don't have a Blackberry and want internet access, there's a cafe nearby.
Other facilities nearby (within walking distance):
-Bike rental ($55 per 24hr- closed on Sunday)
-Bonkers Inn restaurant
-Bar
-Two other mini marts
-Vegetable vendor (not the freshest but great in a pinch)
-Local preserves/local candy vendor (walk south to corner and turn left at Bonkers): tamarind balls, red mango, bene sticks, bene balls, nut cakes (very ginger-y), sugar cakes (made with coconut), toolum (molasses and coconut) and fudge.

Enjoy your trip!

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