We are doing the unthinkable[IMHO]and are going to Dominica for our April vacation,giving in to 3 children[teens]pressure...this time.Debbie and I will be back for our fourth visit to paradise this summer.We are all snorklers and hikers, while 3 of us are divers.If any of you could give us any info good or bad about Dominica we would appreciate it.Thanks in advance and if you are near Belmar at night say hello to BUCHI!

Marty Roddy

Marty,
Seb and I have been to Dominica several times but have not been recently.
It is a beautiful island, lush and mountainous.
What kind of information are you seeking?
Where will you be staying?
mary w

Hi,
We're mainly looking for first hand info...restaurants,grocery stores,good snorkle spots,waves, beaches,don'ts.Staying near Salisbury in a house rental.I've done extensive internet research, so "been there" is what we need.We've been spoiled by all the info on BT.Nothing like that for Dominica.
Thanks,Marty

Hi Marty,
Seb and I stayed at Castle Comfort Lodge at least three times which is an all inclusive little resort. Maria, the resident cook, prepared all of our meals, my favorite of which was her Callaloo soup.
Castle Comfort is just south of Roseau which is at the southern end of the island, on the coast. Salisbury, also on the coast, is in the middle of the island.
We dove with Dive Dominica at Castle Comfort.
We snorkeled and did some shore diving right in front of Castle Comfort. The boat dives we took were (I believe) mostly south of Roseau. (I'd have to check my old dive logs -- now where are they....) When weather permitted, we dove at the southernmost part of Dominica.
We have not been back to Dominica since 1999.
We have not been to any restaurants (nothing beats Maria's cooking), any grocery stores (I went to market in Roseau on market day and bought some fruit to share with my favorite captain Gus), and did not do a lot of touring.
We arrived at Melville Hall Airfield on one side of the island, and Roseau is diagonally on the other side! We had quite a tour just getting to Castle Comfort. The ride is about an hour-and-a-half up and then over the mountains. We passed through many banana plantations, then through a forest reserve, then through more banana plantations before we finally got back to sea level.

Since we did so much diving, we did not hike.
On the day we were to arrive on our last trip to Dominica, four inches of rain fell in a short period of time just before we tried to land. The tiny airport was flooded and we could not land in Dominica. Instead, we had to spend an overnight in Puerto Rico. On that same day, some folks who were staying at Castle Comfort decided to take a hike in the mountains. Four inches of rain nearly washed these folks away! Personally, rough hiking and exerting myself at altitude is not something I would do in the middle of a dive vacation.
We don't go to Dominica anymore because the variety of fish cannot compare to Bonaire.
Hope this helps.
Have a great time.
Mary W

Hi again Marty,
I forgot to mention specifics about the diving!
Currents can pick up without warning. Several of the dives we did turned out to be drift dives. At that time in our diving careers, we were young divers (100 dives each) and pretty much stayed with the dive masters.
I'll find my old dive logs if you need more information.

mary w

Marty,
Wish I could give you a little first hand knowledge but I don't leave for Dominica until 4/17. Like you I have found a lot of information about activities but have little knowledge on places to eat. Like Mary I am also staying at Castle Comfort.

I hope your trip goes well.
Pat

What a super island..the Carib Reservation, peanut punch, Indian River cruise..oh my..can I come?

Annie