A #1 Travel Destination For 2020
The Wall Street Journal names Dominica the leading destination worth discovering in 2020.
With a world full of unique and fascinating destinations, choosing the perfect place for your next trip is no easy task. Thankfully, travel experts at The Wall Street Journal recently offered their recommendations for the top 10 destinations travelers should be putting on their itineraries for 2020—and the Nature Island was the first place on their list.
Top 10 Wonders Worth The Journey
Morne Trois Piton National Park
Recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the park is like stepping back in time. Acres and acres of misty rainforests form a seemingly impenetrable canopy that beckons you to discover the hidden secrets below, which include a landscape full of lakes, volcanoes, waterfalls, hot springs and at its highest elevations a cloud forest that is, in a word, breathtaking.
The second largest of its kind in the world, Boiling Lake is a 200-foot wide flooded fumarole that’s enveloped by swirling clouds of vapor. The lake’s waters, which are superheated from the molten magma below the surface of the surrounding rock, are hot enough to hard-boil an egg if dangled above it. The roughly 6-hour plus advanced hike to Boiling Lake is also one of the most demanding on the island and draws intrepid travelers from around the globe.
Named for the bubbling waters rising from volcanic thermal springs on the ocean floor, Champagne Reef attracts diving and snorkeling enthusiasts from across the globe. The reef’s plummeting and towering volcanic formations perfectly match Dominica’s massive topside mountains and gorges.
Titou Gorge
Dominica’s unmatched landscape offers a natural playground full of wonders to explore—and exhilarating ways to explore them. Titou Gorge lets you swim through a cave formed by volcanic lava to find a hidden waterfall and epic eddy beneath it. Magical and exhilarating, the cinematic sights were also used for a sequence in the Pirates of the Caribbean: Dread Man’s Chest.
Waitukubuli Trail
The only long-distance hiking trail in the Caribbean, the Waitukubuli Trail is the ultimate hiking adventure. Extending over 114 miles from the island's northern shores all the way to Scotts Head in the south, it is comprised of a series of short, connected trails that will take you on an adventure through coastal villages, woodland hills, into lush rainforest, past waterfalls, through rivers, and down to the sea.
There’s no better way to embrace the rhythm of life in the tropics than through three nights of pulsating Creole music. Occurring each year on the final Friday in October, the festival is a renowned staple of the regional music calendar and features stars and styles from across the Caribbean, French Antilles, Africa and North America.
The descendants of the island's original people, the Kalinago are always eager to welcome the island’s guests and treat them to the joys of their culture, dance and song, artistry, and daily living. Here you can learn their ageless crafts of basket weaving, canoe building, pottery making, and wood carving. Their deep connection to nature is sure to help you discover your ancient self and soothe your soul.
With underwater drop-offs that create deep sheltered bays along its western coastline, Dominica is the perfect haven for sperm whales to breed and the only country in the world where these majestic creatures reside all year long. Just a short boat ride will bring you into contact with the world’s largest toothed animal among the calm, turquoise Caribbean Sea.
A little ways inland from the island’s capital of Roseau and enveloped by tropical forest is the tiny village of Wotten Waven. After a long day of hiking and exploring, the village’s natural hot sulfur springs and mud pools are the perfect medicine for soothing sore muscles and calming your inner thoughts.
This location is not to be missed when traveling to Dominica. Fed by clear mountain water rushing from a 40-foot waterfall, the pool’s waters appear emerald green in the leafy, filtered sunlight. Its color and drama have served as the backdrop for several Hollywood movies as well as weddings.
