We've just returned from a Winter break to the Caribbean island of Tobago. We decided that, for the first time, we'd break our cardinal rule of holidaying - never go back to the same place twice! The first time we went was March 2002, and we liked it so much, that we decided on a return visit this year. If you've already had a look at my gallery, then hopefully you'll see why!

Last time we went it was with Kuoni, and they were very good, but this time we decided we'd go with Virgin as we'd heard good things about them, and they were a fair bit cheaper for exactly the same holiday.
Our flight was from Gatwick on Monday morning, on a Virgin Atlantic 747. It's a direct flight which also carries people going on to Grenada who have to wait for an hour or so in Tobago. Virgin Atlantic are always banging on about how great they are, so we we're looking forward to getting on board and kicking off the holiday in style.
Well, to be perfectly honest, it was a bit of a disappointment. I mean, it's not that there was anything wrong with them, it's just that they're no better than anybody else. Totally bog standard. Overcooked food, pretty stingy on the leg room (I think easyJet actually has slightly more legroom) and the seat just slightly too narrow to be totally comfortable. But, like I say, this is pretty much like any airline in economy class, so I couldn't complain. The few concessions I did notice were a little 'pack' they handed out to everybody which had things like flight socks, eye mask, ear plugs, note pad and pens in, and when you had wine with your meal, you actually had a GLASS, rather than a plastic. Also, you had a little screen in the seat in front of you with rolling films so you could watch whatever you wanted, but as I found out, if the person infront of you wants to put their seat all the way back because they're, oh, I dunno, a stupid old codger who wants to read a yachting magazine, then you can't actually see your screen any more because it's LCD and the angle is wrong. So there you go. Nothing to write home about, but Virgin are a bit naughty for raising expectations beyond what they can deliver.

An uneventful 8 hours and 40 minutes later, we touched down at the tiny Crown Point airport in Tobago. Stepping out of the plane was like walking into a sauna. Considering it had just been snowing a few days earlier in the UK, walking out into 30 degree heat was a bit of a pleasant shock! This was more like it - just what the doctor ordered!

Customs was swift enough. You have to fill out a landing card on the plane, and some guy reads through it all and lets you through. The luggage carousel was, however, a bit of a joke! Bearing in mind, we'd just stepped of the world's largest commercial passenger plane (for the time-being, anyway), there was a fair amount of luggage to get off-loaded. The carousel can take about 10 cases at a time, so you can imagine what fun we had. I hate waiting for your luggage - it has to be the most nervewracking part of the whole holiday! And this was no exception. Crate after crate of luggage was loaded onto the carousel, and there was no sign of ours! Bearing in mind that there was only one Virgin flight a week to Tobago, if our cases hadn't made it, it would have been no joke! And what made it all the more nervewracking was the fact that we took advantage of Virgin's 'Twilight Check in' service whereby you go to the airport the night before, and check in as you would normally, but with no queues. This meant that the next day you could just go straight through to departures with just your hand luggage. So what if our cases had been forgotten, having been left at the airport overnight?
Well, thankfully, they arrived in the last batch and we were on our way. The Virgin Rep was waiting outside to point us on our way and we hopped onto a minibus and were at the hotel in minutes.

We stayed at the Coco Reef Resort which is within spitting distance of the airport (although, with an island this small, no hotels are particularly far away, it's just that the roads aren't that good in some places, so it can take a while!).
This is where we stayed last time, and was a big part of why we decided to come back to Tobago, so we knew the ropes. We checked in, and got taken to our lovely seaview room. We casually mentioned that we'd been previously, and although they try to look out for people who have been before, we'd moved house since, so they would have no way of knowing it was us. They said they would "make it up to us" later...
It was getting 'late' by this time - about 5pm, and the sun sets around 6pm on the dot around there, so we quickly got our swimming gear on and got in the sea! Just what you need after a long flight! WHat you'll notice is, the closer to the equator you are, the quicker the sunsets are. In the UK, it can start to get dark about 3, and not actually be totally dark until after 7pm, but here the sun vanishes into the sea by about 6:10, and it's totally dark by half past. After a dip, we booked a table at the superb a la carte restaurant, Tamara's and went for some pre-dinner cocktails on the terrace.

As I said before, the food was part of the reason for us coming back, and we weren't disappointed. As you might expect on an island, the fish is particularly superb. During our stay we had barracuda, marlin, tuna and catfish to name but a few, all of it prepared to very high standards.

During, and after dinner, there usually tends to be some sort of entertainment on. Last time we came, this was excellent, and we were looking forward to seeing some of the same acts from before. However, I have to say it wasn't quite as good this time. Don't get me wrong - the various bands and singers were very good, but they tended to do more covers of European and US music, and lots of Abba, which is all well and good, but I would've preferred to hear more local stuff. One night we had the Katzenjammers who are a local steel band with about 8-10 members, including some very young lads on drums and steel drums who were excellent. They did play more Caribbean music and were a real highlight.

When we got back to our room, we were pleasantly surprised, as they'd placed a nice cold bottle of bubbly, and a superb looking fruit platter on the table! This was obviously what they meant by "making it up to us" later. Nice touch! Although, having just enjoyed our All Inclusive drinks and food, there was no way this was going to get touched tonight!

And so the holiday progressed. As it was a beach holiday, most of our time was spent relaxing on the beach. Most mornings we walked round to Pigeon Point beach, just 5-10 minutes away as there is never anybody about here, and it's far more picturesque than the hotel beach - it's a typical white coral sand beach, with palms leaning over into the water. This is one place you really have to come if you're ever in Tobago. Sadly, they charge you for entering the Pigeon Point 'park'. They're not actually allowed to charge you for using the beach as all beaches in Tobago are open to the public, but the whole area is fenced off and they make it difficult for you to get in if you don't pay. However, just before you reach the gates, you can cut through between the huts and get onto the beach and walk all the way up to Pigeon Point itself - this is what all the locals do as they, quite rightly, don't feel they should have to pay to use their own beaches. I mean, can you imagine having to pay to go on the beach at Brighton? Quite! Nobody would ever bother because it's rubbish, but that's not quite the point - you just shouldn't have to.

Usually between around 12 and 1pm we would make our way back to the hotel. We were staying on an All Inclusive basis, so our lunches were included, and we certainly made use of them! Every day they have a barbeque in the beach side restaurant 'Bacchanals'. There's always steaks and burgers, and there's always a 'catch of the day' - more lovely fresh fish which we certainly had a lot of during our stay. Alongside this, there was always things like fries (for the Brits!), fried squid, shrimp and all manner of accompaniments. You always eat too much, but who cares! That's what holidays are about, right? Dessert was also very very good. Things like banana and coconut tarts really hit the spot, but what I ended up having most of was the cheesecake. Mmmm mmmmmm! If you've ever had Eli's cheesecake (which they have in Pizza Express in the UK), which is a baked New York style cheesecake, you'll know what I mean. It's so rich and creamy, you just gotta eat more!

Afternoons were generally spent on the hotel beach (after a quick nap, of course). This is where we started to notice a change in the place. Although there were one or two kids last time, this time there were hoards of them. The last thing you want when you're lying back relaxing on a tropical beach, is some kid whinging about wanting an ice cream or something. To be fair, most of the younger kids weren't too bad, but it's the slightly older ones who are annoying - just screeching and making a right racket. There's just no need! I'm sure I was the same when I was younger, but when you go to an exotic tropical destination, you hope to get a bit of piece and quiet! Still, escaping to Pigeon Point every day meant it wasn't really an issue.

The other thing we noticed that had changed was the more diverse range of countries that people came from. Last time, it was just about all Brits, but now we had Germans (yes, Germans! Can you believe the cheek of it?!), some Spanish (I think), and, most worryingly, Americans. Yes, the Yanks have discovered Tobago! So I advise you to visit Tobago before it's overrun!

Because lying on a beach all day every day can get a bit boring, one day we decided to have a trip out to the Buccoo Reef for some snorkling. Unlike the Maldives, Tobago doesn't have loads of accessible reefs just offshore for you to snorkle over, so it's worth getting in a boat to see some, and Buccoo Reef is the nearest as it's just off Pigeon Point. If you walk to Pigeon Point, you'll normally be asked by somebody if you want to go on a glass bottomed boat trip. This is the most cost-effective way of doing it. They charge about $90TT (currently about 9 pounds Sterling) per person for a trip of 2-3 hours which includes a quick stop over the 'Coral Gardens' where they turn off the engine and you just drift over the reefs, taking a gander through the glass bottomed boat. You'll see all sorts of superb corals, and it's well worth a look, especially if you're not keen on snorkling. You'll also see plenty of colourful tropical fish. Then you move up to where the reef is at it's highest point, where the waves break and here you can get out and have a snorkle. Here, the corals are not really the main attraction, it's the fish you're looking for, and you will certainly see plenty of them. The skipper on the boat will usually have a card with a picture of all the various fish you're likely to see, so you can identify them later.
After a quick snorkle, you'll be taken to the 'Nylon Pool'. So-called because of the colour of the water, it's a nice shallow area of lovely warm water where you can get out and have a dip. Your skipper will probably stay behind and smoke some weed and drink a couple of Carib beers! And that's about your lot. As I said, it's by far the cheapest way of doing this trip, as your holiday company will charge something stupid like $50US for it because they add on a barbeque which, when you're at an all-inclusive resort anyway, you really aren't bothered about.

The only other trip we did was a trip into the rainforest. We'd done this last time, too, but we fancied a change of scene from the beach, and this was a different part of the rainforest, in any case. Our guide turned out to be David Rooks who is a very well respected ornithologist and naturalist who worked with David Attenborough on a few of his films including the Trials Of Life. He obviously has a real passion for the subject, as he always had a story to tell, so a walk which should've taken about 45 minutes ended up taking a couple of hours as he had to keep stopping to tell us his tales! It was all fascinating, though. He showed us how quickly the rainforest repairs itself after damage - Tobago had just been hit by the tail-end of the last hurricane season, so there were a few trees lying around on the forest floor. He also pointed out various wildlife (mainly birds, because people had eaten everything else) along the way. I would definitely recommend a trip into the rainforest, especially if you can get David Rooks to be your guide. He'll definitely give you a feel for how fragile the world's environment really is, and that can only be a good thing. In fact, this is one trip where I would really encourage Americans to go along. They can see and hear directly how much damage their government's lack of environmental policy is having and maybe, just maybe, make them start to change their ways.

And so, that's about that. The last part of the holiday is always the worst - going home. However, I have to hand it to Virgin again, because they operate this 'check in and chill out' service whereby you can actually checkin for you flight at your hotel. So they just pickup your luggage, give you your boarding passes, and you just stay at the hotel so you can continue to use the facilities. The return flight, as seems to be the norm with long haul (when flying East) was a night flight, so in theory you lie back, get some kip, and wake up at 9am at Gatwick. Yeah, right! I don't know how anybody can sleep on a plane, but I certainly can't. The worst part is trying to get your legs comfortable - you just can't! So the most I usually manage is five minutes here and there. Oh, and into the bargain, my little LCD screen wasn't even working this time, so I couldn't watch any in-flight entertainment at all. All in all, I wasn't massively impressed by Virgin, although as I said before, it wasn't so much that they were no good, just that they were no better than anybody else. So, by all means, fly with Virgin (I expect I will be doing so in the future) but don't expect anything out of the ordinary.

To sum up, if you want to visit an unspoilt and uncommercialised part of the Caribbean, then go to Tobago. But go now. Things are starting to change, and it wont be long before it's the same as any other island. I'm glad we went back, as it is a great island, and a great hotel which will really recharge your batteries, but I doubt I will go back again now. I think I will be sticking to our cardinal rule of holidaying from now on, and not going back to the same place twice.