Jaine Blackman raves about Tobago

Floating in the clear blue water of a natural, metre-deep warm pool in the middle of the Caribbean Sea was a wonderful enough way to spend my birthday.

Then, the captain of our glass-bottomed boat informed us local lore has it that a dip in the Nylon Pool at Buccoo Reef, Tobago, leaves you looking 10 years younger. What more could a woman of a, ahem, certain age want? Well, plenty more if you’re as greedy as me.

I wanted palm fringed, white-sand beaches, waterfall pools, friendly locals, curried crab, rum punches, brightly painted houses on stilts; tropical beats, a carnival atmosphere and sunshine. Lots of sunshine. In short, I wanted the little island, the smaller sister of the twin island republic of Trinidad and Tobago, to be everything I imagined a Caribbean paradise to be.

And it was... and more.

Laid-back and lovely, about 40km long and 10km wide, it also boasts a rainforest, fantastic dive sites with stunning crystalline waters, is a mecca for birdwatchers and a growing destination for eco-tourism.

Accommodation ranges from plush oceanside hotels to tiny guesthouses but the general feel of the island is of one big resort.

Visiting for the Tobago Jazz Festival, there was plenty of music in the air. The main concerts with big name stars (Jennifer Hudson, Jill Scott, Miguel, Kool and the Gang) were taking place at Pigeon Point Heritage Park – considered its most beautiful beach – but free fringe events had locals and tourists alike dancing in the streets... and on the beaches.

And not just to jazz, the music was an eclectic mix from smooth soul to energetic soca, a style said to have originated – along with steel pan drums – in Trinidad and Tobago. The one constant, strangely and rather charmingly, was Ed Sheeran’s Thinking Out Loud which seemed to play everywhere we went, either the original on sound systems or given a new twist by local musicians.

But it wasn’t all just music, we sampled a great selection of the island’s other attractions, including stand up (or in my case sitting down) paddle boarding at Pigeon Point, a visit to a cocoa estate, a rain forest tour and a look at Fort King George, built in the 1780s – started by the French, finished by the British and a reminder of the 32 times the island changed hands while European powers battled over it.

During our visit we stayed at two hotels: the first was Bacolet Beach Club, on the outskirts of Scarborough, the island’s capital. The boutique hotel, developed by former model Gloria Jones-Knapp, sits on a hillside with terraces leading down to a small private beach. And while the hotel is small, the 20 rooms are large, stylish and have balconies giving spectacular views. There are also two pools, Cafe Havana restaurant and a beach bar. The second was Blue Waters Inn, Speyside, at the other end of the island, a 46-acre estate on its own private bay. Close to some of the world’s best dive spots and the oldest bird sanctuary in the western hemisphere, it had more of a back to nature feel.

The food was particularly good , a high accolade in what was a trip full of delicious dishes.

Other restaurants of note were the Blue Crab Restaurant in Scarborough (great curried crab and delightful hosts in Alison and Ken Sardinha); La Tartaruga Restaurant, Buccoo (eating Italian in the Caribbean isn’t as mad as it sounds when you have a passionate foodie patron like Gabriele De Gaetano at the helm); Suckhole Restaurant, Charlotteville (traditional food on the beach with a great vibe) and Jemma’s Seaview Kitchen (family-style dining in a treehouse).

I may not have come home looking 10 years younger but I was probably 10lb heavier.

If you want to check out Trinidad, flights from Tobago take 20 minutes and cost £15 each way (Caribbean-airlines.com).

THE FACTS

British Airways Holidays offers seven nights at the 4* Blue Waters Inn (bluewatersinn.com) from £779 per person for selected departures in September and October (booking before July 31) and seven nights at the 4* Bacolet Beach Club (bacoletbeachclub.com) from £819 per person. Prices include flights and breakfasts. For reservations visit ba.com/tobago

tobagostyle.travel

tobagojazzexperience.com

gotrinidadandtobago.com

Small things add up to make a big experience

Oxford Mail:

Sometimes it’s the little things which make the biggest impact.

Here are some of the small wonders that made Tobago so special for me:

Watching hummingbirds flit about the feeders outside the rooms at Blue Waters Inn.

Seeing leafcutter ants in the Tobago Forest Reserve, the oldest protected forest in the Western hemisphere.

Taking a dip in the Castara waterfall pool while Hans Phillips, our guide, cooked breadfruit over an open fire.

Hans’ insider information and passion for his island in general and bird-life in particular... even if his jokes were dreadful. It’s well worth hiring a guide or going on a tour to get the local lowdown on the island (hanstourstobago.com or see tobagostyle.travel).

Pulling in the nets at Castara beach. The free, open-air jazz event was halted while onlookers were invited to take part in the tradition of hauling in the day’s catch.

The beach scenes and spectacular sunsets complete with small boys playing cricket and chickens grubbing about in the sand.

Stopping for roadside food, although I was more taken with the roti, a stuffed thin flat bread fluffy on the inside and crispy and flaky on the outside, than the souse (marinated trotters) and pigtail stalls.

And, not such a little thing, seeing Kool and the Gang perform their hit Celebration at the Tobago Jazz Festival.

The concert-goers were so well-behaved and polite, most stayed seated for the performances, that I was able to capture it on my phone: