Dominica World Creole Music Festival
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Culture &
Travel |
Lodging |
Friday - Day One |
Saturday - Day Two |
Sunday - Day Three |
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| Dominica Lodging
Text and photos by William Farrington
(except for Springfield Guesthouses which are courtesy of Nancy Osler)
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Lodging choices, in Dominica,
have a more personal touch, taking on the character of its owner and
appealling to a particular traveler. We offer a small sampling to be
updated. Exotica for instance is the ideal artists retreat, for the
business traveler The Fort Young in downtown Roseau is a great choice,
Papillote appeals to the adventurer, and the Anchorage to the diver/
mariner.
The Springfield
Guesthouse
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| The Springfield
Guesthouse is abuzz with activity, hosting guests ranging from
researchers and scholars to adventurers at this Architectural
Heritage site that dates from 1760. Originally a French
plantation house and over the course of the centuries it has
been a guest house, private residence and even head of
Government after a hurricane struck the island so it is rich in
island history. Strikingly perched between steep, wooded
mountains with a view that reaches to the horizon, the property
has recently has been totally renovated and is now also a major
research center studying rain forest ecosystems in the
surrounding virgin forest. |
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| The Springfield and its
grounds (198 acres) were donated to Clemson University.
The original plantation house is the center building of a much
larger guesthouse that was built up over the decades. A double
occupancy room and a single occupancy room are located on the
upper floor of the original house (with a sea view). The dining
room and bar are located on the main floor.
Accommodations come in several options,
cottage, apartment, guest rooms and dormitories. Local chefs
provide 3 meals a day and bag lunches featuring local dishes and
organic fruits and vegetables from the estate garden. In
addition to wireless internet, library and computer room the
property is rich in island history.
Tourist rates start at $79.00 US single occupancy and $95.00 US
double occupancy. This includes all taxes, service charge and
breakfast. Dorm rates start at $39 US/ person/night including
tax, service charge and breakfast (max 6 ppl/ room, max group
size 50). Amenities: 200 acre rainforest estate, wireless
internet, walking trails, river bathing, organic farm, natural
history library, laundry service, cell phones for rent,
restaurant and so on. |
Contact Nancy Osler:
Nancy Osler 767449 3026
nosler@clemson.edu
website
www.springfield-dominica.org
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Hummingbird Inn
Address: PO Box 1901
Tel # 767-449-1042
www.thehummingbirdinn.com
The Hummingbird Inn is a small relaxed guesthouse. The Iguanas in the
trees,
flowering Hibiscus, and hummingbirds in the air that give the inn its
name
testify persuasively to this. Choose this hotel for its Dominican
hospitality, love of nature and local cooking. The rooms are simple and
comfortable, kept cool by the rising breezes off the sea and ceiling
fans.
Shrouded in a rain forest canopy, just off the coast road between Roseau
and
the Canefield airport the Hummingbird in sits elevated on Morne Daniel
with
views of Pringle's Bay. It consists of a main house and two 7 room guest
houses.
Owner Jeane Finucane tells us the land was once part of the vast
Canefield
estate, Lime Mangos and Orange groves covered the area but now it is
thickly
forested. The design, by Dominican architect Michael Bieze, is patterned
after a plantation era house, using native materials and its steep
hurricane
roof which allows hurricane winds to pass without causing damage as well
as
take advantage of cooling breezes. The stonework floor though was
Jeane's
idea inspired by a visit to Ghana. The guest accommodations are Caribbean
stlye design. Steps lead up the hillside to each room in two guesthouses
the
rooms share a common veranda.
Creole foods are served in the patio resaurant, the creole breakfast of
smoked herring or saltfish seasoned with peppers, onions, lime, and
parsley,
the Boiling lake sandwich to go for guests who Jeane says swear it
gives
them energy, and coconut fish or chicken is a favorite evening meal and
the
Kallaloo soup a delight.
The inn is environmentally friendly form its innovative in "Green"
design
and has won awards. Evening breezes keep the elevated inn naturally
cool at
nights and mosquito free, and the beach is just a two minute walk down
the
hill. Sea turtles nest there in summer months Speaking about her
commitments
to nature Jeane says "My guests have given me a lot of courage and helped
me
to keep on".
Exotica Cottages
Exotica Cottages
www.exotica-cottages.com
email:
exotica@cwdom.dm
telephone: 767-448-8839
fax: 767-448-8829 (contacts: Fae or Athie Martin)
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View from the property
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Guest Room |
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| Exotica is the labor of
love of a creative minded couple, Fae and Athie Martin, who opened the
cluster of cottages 1300 ft above the sea on Morne Anglais to guests.
After ascending the twisting old road through that clings to the side of
the western slope of the mountain the first thing one notices is that it
is much cooler than in Roseau. The calm here gradually dissolves the
stress of traveling. With a view from the cottage consisting mostly sky
with lush vegetation and sea far below, it is not a suprise when Fae
says that many of their guests come to get away from it all. |
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Cottage living room |
Cottage |
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When Fae and Athie came
here it was to retire. Athie started a garden, Exotica, to preseve local
fruit trees. He explained that "Common fruits had become exotic as a
result of the banana idustry" so he and his brother decided that there
should be a garden that preserves the Guava, Passionfruit, Soursop,
Avocado, Sugar Apples, Sapodillas, Tangerine, Grapefruit, Carambola, and
Cashew and other varieties of indigenous fruit trees.
The garden predates the cottages which evolved he says because "people
have always come to eat Fae's food wherever we have lived". Fae simply
says " I just love to cook". And her food was extraordinary.
Brunch began with a fresh squeezed juices - Tangerine, grapefruit, or
passionfruit followed by a menu of Tita a local delicacy made of
avocado, farina. Creole Liver in a cherry tomato sauce seasoned with
thyme, parsley, garlic, salt and vinegar. Codfish( soaked in Brown sugar
to kill the salt) mixed with tomato and onion seasoned with pepper and
curry, breadfruit, callalou, fresh fruit , and locally grown coffee. |
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Exotica Grounds |
Fae Martin |
Fae's Creole cooking |
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Hot mineral pool
Photo courtesy of
Papillot Website |
Map courtesy of
Papillot Website |
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The sights and sounds of
the rainforest surround guests at Papillote. The owners, Anne Grey and
Cuthbert Jno, support local artists. The Rain Forest Restaurant features
Creole cuisine served on hand carved wooden dishes in an equally
artistic decor, including mahogany sculpture by Desire, Dominica's
leading wood sculptur. The Rain Forest Arial Tram, Titou Gorge,
Trafalgar Falls and the Layou river all lie in close proximity to
Papillote and the small inn is a good jumping off spot to explore these
destinations or the more remote interior. The Rain Forest Arial Tram
whisks visitors up into the forest canopy in open gondolas. In order to
see the nearby Titou Gorge one has to slip into the water and swim
through a narrow opening that leads to a steep walled narrow rock
canyon. A short swim through the dark, cavelike
peaceful space leads to a smallwaterfall. Papillote's accommodations are
reasonably priced.
(Map & Key courtesy of
Papillote Website:) Our Visitor's
Map is the work of Canadian artist Nancy Osler. Her "birds' eye"
depiction of Papillote highlights most of the major features of our
grounds, including the network of walking trails that weave through our
gardens.Try our new Interactive Visitor's Map. You can click on the map
to view photos taken from different vantage points around Papillote! |
Map Key
1. Begonia Walk
2. Rainforest Rooms
3. Kai Zozyo (Bird Station)
4. Heliconias
5. Bromeliads
6. Office and Lounge
7. Iguana Pool
8. Aviary
9. Damsel Falls Overlook
10. Damsel Falls
11. Aroids
12. Gingers
13. Hot Mineral Pool
14. Rainforest Restaurant
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| Fort Young Hotel
Fort Young Hotel
Victoria Street, P.O. Box 519,Roseau, Dominica, W.I
Tel: (767) 448 5000 Fax: (767) 448 5006
Email:
fortyoung@cwdom.dm Website:
fortyounghotel.com |
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Photo courtesy Fort Young website |
Photo William Farrington |
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(Hotel info from Fort
Young Website:) The Hotel sits
on a site chosen by the French in 1720 for a fort, strategically located
to protect the Roseau harbor, the British upgraded and named it Fort
Young. The Hotel incorporated the foundation, (it is visible in the
restaurant). Conveniently located, the hotel is on a bluff overlooking
Roseau and the bay. A short walk from downtown and the ferry landing for
transportation to Martinique and Guadeloupe. The hotel was completely
rebuilt in 1989 and features include Waterfront Restaurant, Boardwalk
Cafe and Bar, Sun Terrace, Health & Beauty Centre, Jacuzzi, Exercise
Room, Duty Free Shops, Dive Shop, Jetty, Conference facilities, Business
Centre. A recently completed oceanfront expansion luxurious and spacious
Guest rooms with lounge area or Suites offering separate living room,
whirlpool tub, kitchen facilities (with microwave and fridge), large
balcony with expansive view of the Caribbean sea. |
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Photo courtesy Fort Young website |
Photo courtesy Fort Young website |
View of the Anchorage from the dock |
A table at the Anchorage restaurant |
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Friendly and efficient,
the family owned establishment is a mecca for divers and yachtsmen. On
the Castle Comfort side of Roseau offers home cooked meals including
popular Thursday night barbecues, and 30 years experience in island
safari tours. Its origins lie in serving yachtsman attracted to the area
calm waters. It still serves yachtsman but has prospered with the growth
of the whale watching and dive industries. Not all of Dominica's
adventures are above sea level, the landscape is just as dramatic
beneath the surface of Caribbean Sea. The reefs off the west coast are
known as some of the most pristine on the planet. Divers prize the deep
water vertical reef known as "Swiss Cheese and Condos". "Champagne" a
shallow dive takes its name from the geothermal vents that cause bubbles
to rise. The Anchorage Dive Center a mecca for international divers, we
spoke to the dive master who told us that Crater's Edge is
notable for it's varied marine life and unique shape. The atmosphere at
the Anchorage Hotel and Dive Center is friendly but serious, a
cosmopolitan meeting place for divers from around the world. Lessons
start in the Anchorage pool and lead within three days shallow dives
such as Champagne. The Anchorage also offers unrivaled whale watching
excursions aboard it's 60 ft luxury catamaran "Miser's Dream".
Dominica's deep water bays are home to Sperm, Humpback, Pilot, Spotted, Fraziela, Risso, Bottlenose and Pseudo Orca whales and dolphins. |
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Ocean facing room with view |
Whaling catamaran Miser's Dream |
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