Due in part to the colonial efforts of Europe the demographics of the Caribbean islands is very diverse with British, French, Chinese, Indian and a small number of descendants from the original native people of the Caribbean. A large proportion of the population are descended from the slave population brought there by the French and British in colonial times.
Dominica has a particularly mixed culture and the last tribe of Caribs live on the island and elect their own chief independent of the political system of the islands as a whole. The annual independence celebrations are marked with traditional songs and dances. Dominica is also known for being the place where modern Creole music originated.
Island culture is influenced to a great degree by the African heritage and to differing degrees from island to island by the French influences that have existed over the years.
On Martinique culture is a blend of French and Caribbean. French is the official language and many businesses on the island follow the French custom of closing at midday. Many French people holiday is Martinique and the former capital of Saint-Pierre was formally called the Paris of the Lesser Antilles. Each year in November Martinique celebrates the release of the Beaujolais nouveau and it is also home to the Jazz l la Martinique festival.
The holiday of a lifetime. The company is Alaksa-owned and thhat makes a big difference to the experineces you get i.e. meet genuine First Nations tribes people. The amount of wildlife was beyond my expectation, and seeing everything on sucha small, intimate boat made it even more spoecial and unique.
Liz O
2 days ago
Adventure Life covered all the details in planning our trip to Ireland. Any questions we had were answered immediately. Any trip glitches, which always happen when traveling, were resolved immediately. There were no worries, just fun!
Kathleen Weller
2 days ago
It was an outstanding, up-close, educational vacation of nature, culture, history, animals and geology! It was everything they promised! Binoculars were plentiful on the boat, but I'm glad I brought my own. Food was excellent. Rooms had black-out shades. Pack/wear multiple layers of clothing (I carried a small backpack when off the ship). Crew were delightful and very accommodating! Remember to jump FEET FIRST first when taking the optional polar plunge! Spend as much time outdoors as you are able and ENJOY!!!
Janet Dutton
1 week ago
Excellent travel advice and service
This is my second experience working with Adventure Life. I’m sold. Jess Heuermann is an experienced traveler and provides a lot of useful information when planning a trip. These are the questions I like to ask at the outset - What’s it like to go here, there, what would you suggest, what do people report, can we add any additional side trips? Jess took the time to answer my questions and seek additional information to share with me. Petchie Colina is outstanding in helping with travel logistics and final preparations. Adventure Life has excellent guides and offers private guides and small group adventures. We enjoyed the opportunity to talk with the guides and drivers to learn more about their countries, cultures and histories. A highlight was having the guides pick local restaurants where we could share meals together. Highly recommend.
Claire Cordon
1 week ago
Our six-day tour in Iceland went smoothly with one exception. We had asked for two rooms each night. Somehow we were booked with one room with three beds. It could not be fixed at the first hotel in Reykjavik because the hotel was fully booked. Once informed of the problem, however, Adventure Life rebooked for two rooms for the remainder of the trip. As an 85-year-old traveler, I appreciated that one could participate at different physical levels at many of the stops. Iceland is a great place to visit but on the expensive side.