Charlotteville, Tobago: of lovers and pirates | Travellers’ tales

Visitors to Tobago often stay in its beautiful southwest, missing the opportunity to discover the charms of its northern towns, including Charlotteville. The area is part of the Northeast Tobago Biosphere Reserve, under the UNESCO Man & the Biosphere Programme. Aisha Sylvester takes us off the beaten path to two of its most beautiful and unforgettable beaches

  • Boats on the beach at Pirate’s Bay, Tobago. Photo by RobertHarding/Alamy Stock Photo
  • Boats on the beach at Pirate’s Bay, Tobago. Photo by RobertHarding/Alamy Stock Photo

I’ve accumulated many memorable moments over the years in Tobago. One of my top highlights is spending the day serenely ensconced in the scenic solitude of Charlotteville.

Quite possibly my favourite village on the island, this sleepy hamlet serves up some of the most idyllic stretches of coastline, and one day we visited two of them — Lovers’ Bay and Pirate’s Bay.

We cruised effortlessly across blue waters, past caves, over reefs, and around many dramatic rock formations. With every passing second, I felt more in awe of Tobago’s raw, unadulterated beauty.

Charlotteville seemed to be showing off that day because the water at Lovers’ Bay was the clearest and calmest I’d ever seen it. Dubbed Pink Sand Beach due to the pinkish hue the sand takes on when wet, the tiny beach also presented many different spots for photo ops. I split my time doing two of my favourite things: swimming and snapping pics.

‍We then moved on to Pirate’s Bay, where we set up camp for the rest of the day. Literally. We pitched a spacious tent and created our own little comfort zone in an alcove at the far end of the beach.

From within that clear-topped cocoon, we could see the sky up above and hear the waves just outside. And while we shared the beach with a few other people that day, for the most part, it felt like we were the only ones there.

I’ve had more beach days than I can count and logged more countryside excursions that I can recall, but this day was by far one of the most perfect I’ve spent in Tobago.

 

Aisha is obsessed with Trinidad Carnival, lives to travel, loves to write and dabbles in amateur photography. She shares her travel insights, tips and tricks on her blog islandgirlintransit.com.

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The views expressed on this website are those of the the authors and do not reflect those of the Direct Support Grants Programme.

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