The waterfalls. The hot springs. The hiking trails. The boiling lake. Dominica is a natural wonderland, and the adventure-focused island is getting even easier to visit, Caribbean Journal has learned.
The island will be getting a big boost from American Airlines beginning in August, according to Discover Dominica Authority CEO Marva Williams.
The island’s top tourism executive revealed during this week’s Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association Caribbean Travel Marketplace in Antigua that American Airlines will be expanding its Miami-Dominica flights to six times per week.
In September, that will scale down to just two per week (it’s the slowest month of the year for tourism in Dominica), then ramp back up to daily service in October.
Even better? In November and December, American will be super-sizing its service up to eight weekly flights.
It’s a “significant” boost to connectivity with the island, Williams said.
The news comes as Dominica is now enjoying its first-ever flights from the New York area, with United Airlines’ new flights out of Newark, a route that launched earlier this year.
It’s another boost for an island that I always recommend to people looking for a pristine, rugged getaway — a Caribbean island that’s a bit more like Hawaii.
Are you planning a vacation to Dominica at some point this year? I typically recommend three major hotels on the island of Dominica: Secret Bay, the six-star villa resort that’s one of the true bucket-list resorts in the Caribbean (rooms from $2,500); the amenity-filled, beachfront InterContinental Dominica, adjacent to one of the Caribbean’s most spectacular national parks (rooms from $439) and the Fort Young hotel, the historic, recently-transformed hotel in the heart of Dominica’s colorful capital of Roseau, which has rooms starting at just $192 per night right now.
What I particularly love about the Fort Young is its unique all-inclusive plan, which gives you a host of excursions to Dominica’s top adventure attractions included in your rate.
If you want somewhere even farther from the beaten path? Try the tiny, almost meditative Pagua Bay House.
So what’s one thing you may not think about when you plan your trip? Sure, there’s the Emerald Pool and the Waitukubuli Trail; but one of my lasting memories from previous trips is the endlessly funky town of Wotten Waven, filled with ramshackle hot spring shacks and a delightfully playful vibe.
