Description
Time: Start 9am (From Marina). Return 4pm.
Note: Group rental of up to 15-20 persons per yacht. Transportation from hotel/home at an additional cost.
A cruise “Down D Islands” or “DDI” — as the small islands off the North-Western coast of Trinidad are known locally — is a perfect getaway, the experience of a whole new world just minutes from the mainland.
Explore the famous island of Chacachacare and seek an adventure in its ruins. Learn the history of the former leper colony and its legends of ghosts that are said to haunt this forsaken island still. Walk its sandy shores and admire the beaches surrounded by the untouched forests.
Treat yourself to a refreshing swim in the calm waters of a secluded bay, chosen just for you or play with one of the many water toys we provide. Don’t want to go into the water? Just kick back and enjoy the serene Caribbean vibe with some relaxing music and an invigorating drink in your hand!
Additional information:
From a private marina, we board a spacious yacht where we make our way “Down D Islands” or “DDI” — as the small islands off the north-western coast of Trinidad are known locally. Relax and look forward to enjoy a blissful day at sea, with close friends and family. Cruising less than 5 miles along the ‘Bocas del Dragon’ archipelago, we will find the island of Chacachacare.
With 900 acres of forest and rocky land covered by scrubby plants and other trees, we enjoy the beautiful bays and natural scenery. Home at various times to cotton and sugar plantations, cocoa estates, and a whaling station, the island is perhaps most notorious as a former leper colony, housing patients from 1922 to 1984.
By the mid-nineteenth century, the population of lepers in Port of Spain numbered over 300. Those affected by the highly contagious and (at the time) incurable disease wandered the streets begging, many of them exiled from their own families. In an effort to contain the disease, the British government in Trinidad established a leper colony in Cocorite in 1845, and in 1868 invited a group of Dominican nuns from Burgundy, France to care for patients. The nuns dedicated their lives to the leprosarium, risking their own health for the sake of their wards.
Chacachacare, isolated as it was from the rest of the nation, was considered the perfect location for the founding of a new leper colony when it was decided that the Cocorite leprosarium did not adequately prevent the spread of the disease.
Today all that remains of this story are the ruins. You can still see doctor’s office, the remains of the patients’ quarters, the decaying Convent where the sisters lived, and the Chapel where they worshipped. The only inhabitants on the island now are the lighthouse keepers who continue to keep watch. It is a job not for the faint of heart, considering the ghosts that are said to haunt the forsaken island still.
After this exciting visit, we continue our cruise. Enjoy spectacular views and great photo ops with the tiny, scenic islands as the backdrop and a soundtrack of local music. Swim at secluded bays chosen just for you, play with water toys or just kick back and enjoy the serene Caribbean vibe.
Included in your cruise:
Catered Food
Toilet Facility
Life jackets
Basic Water Toys (stand-up paddle, kayaks, noodles, floats etc.)
Water, ice.
Optional extras that can be added at an additional cost:
- Alcoholic drinks, snacks.
What to expect
Stop at: Chacachacare and Monos Island/Turtle Bay
Pass by:
Gasparillo Island (Little Gasparee / Centipede Island), Huevos Island.
