Five Days with the Kalinago
Your Dominica Itinerary at a Glance
- Day 1 Day 1: Roseau
- Day 2 Day 2: Into the Territory
- Day 3 Day 3: The east coast
- Day 4 Day 4: West coast
- Day 5 Day 5: South and out
What to Do in Dominica
Dominica Botanic Gardens
Free, forty acres, and the best plant introduction on the island.
Kalinago Barana Aute
The Kalinago run cultural site at Salybia, with craft demonstrations, a herbal medicine garden and, on about three days notice, hands on cassava bread making.
Hampstead Beach
Forest backed turtle nesting beach near Calibishie.
Guided sea turtle watch, Rosalie Bay
Led by the Dominica Sea Turtle Conservation Organisation on the main nesting beach.
Mero Beach
Black sand, calm water, local bars.
Scott's Head Peninsula headland walk
Fifteen minutes up the headland where two seas meet.
Jack's Walk to Morne Bruce
A last climb above Roseau before you go.
Where to Eat in Dominica
StarLine Ital Kitchen
Plant based Caribbean cooking on River Street.
Your Day by Day Dominica Itinerary
Day 1: Roseau
Start in Roseau, which is small, walkable and greener than any other Caribbean capital. Dominica has 63.8 per cent forest cover, the highest in the region, though its marine protection is 0.1 per cent of territorial waters, which is worth knowing before you book a dive.
Dominica Botanic Gardens
Free, forty acres, and the best plant introduction on the island.
Day 2: Into the Territory
The Kalinago Territory is roughly 3,700 collectively owned acres across eight hamlets, held under the Carib Reserve Act of 1978, now the Kalinago Territory Act, with an elected Chief and Council. It is the last communally held indigenous land in the Caribbean, and the communal ownership carries a veto over outside development.
Kalinago Barana Aute
The Kalinago run cultural site at Salybia, with craft demonstrations, a herbal medicine garden and, on about three days notice, hands on cassava bread making. Book the cassava session ahead: the larouma baskets and the bread are the same tradition.
Day 3: The east coast
The east coast takes the full Atlantic. This is turtle country, and the watch at Rosalie is run by the island's own conservation organisation on a strict protocol, so treat it as accompanying science rather than attending a show.
Guided sea turtle watch, Rosalie Bay
Led by the Dominica Sea Turtle Conservation Organisation on the main nesting beach. Red headlamps only, no flash, dark clothing, silent waiting, and no guaranteed sighting. March to July for viewing.
Day 4: West coast
Cross to the leeward side for calm water and black sand. The west coast is where the fishing villages are and where the sunsets happen, and it is a completely different island from the one you just left.
Day 5: South and out
Finish where you started, with the two free walks in Roseau. Dominica pledged after Hurricane Maria to become the world's first climate resilient nation, targeted for 2030, and you will see that in how things have been rebuilt.
Scott's Head Peninsula headland walk
Fifteen minutes up the headland where two seas meet.