The carnival land of Trinidad, the larger part of this twin-island nation, is one of the most racially varied countries in the world. About 40 per cent of the population is of black African descent. A further 40 per cent can trace their ancestry back to India. The remainder is European, Chinese or a combination of all four groups and the languages you'll hear will be English, French, Spanish and Hindi. It's quite a mixture.
The island and its inhabitants move at a fast pace, especially in the capital, Port of Spain, whose 500,000 inhabitants live in the tightly-packed corridors of downtown. This is where the action is; the streets are a cacophony of bars, markets and taxis booming loud music.
The island lies close to the South American mainland to which it was once joined and with which it shares much of its wildlife. In the swamps of the south there are cayman alligators and the elegant scarlet ibis. Plant life in the rainforest, which covers the uncultivated part of the island, is lush. Trinidad's most amazing natural feature, however, is the Pitch Lake - 100 acres (400,000 sq m) of tar soft enough to swallow you should you spend too long standing on it.
But there is rarely time to stand still in Trinidad. The home of limbo, calypso and the steel band, it has a hectic nightlife, and if you have to eat, snacking is the domestic style; there is no time to sit down, especially when it's carnival time.
Twenty-two miles, or 35 km, away, Trinidad's small sister island of Tobago offers a striking contrast in landscapes and people. Tobago provides a much more relaxed introduction to the Caribbean. The pace of life here is slower and away from the established, but not crowded, resorts at the western end of the island there are plenty of secluded coves and bays in which to idle away the hours in the water and the sun in the classic Caribbean fashion.
Watersports feature strongly in its attractions: divers, windsurfers and fishing enthusiasts will love its beautiful beaches, clear waters and smart hotels. Eco-tourists will find rivers, waterfalls and a rich birdlife. Its main towns, Scarborough and Plymouth, are really large villages where there's always a friendly smile for visitors.
These two islands are as alike as chalk and cheese - so try both!

Diving
Tobago is the more famous island for diving although the diving on Trinidad is also excellent. The outflow from the Orinoco River takes the visibility down in some areas but brings with it the benefit of large plankton eaters such as manta and whale sharks. The diving here can be extremely exciting with wild drift dives and would probably suit more advanced divers, although there is plenty to occupy the less experienced too.

Some of the best Tobago dive sites organised by area:
Speyside
Japanese Gardens/Kamikaze Cut
Depth: 80 feet
Skill Level: Beginner to Intermediate
One of Tobago's prettiest reefs. From 40 to 80 feet, this sloping bank of coral is covered with waving fields of soft corals and sponges. But just when you are sure that your Sunday visit is complete here comes Kamikaze Cut. Like zeros from the sky, the current picks up speed readying itself for the run. At high speed you come barrelling down at two huge boulders certain that you are about to be splattered! But wait, you discover that a crevasse has been cut through the rocks and you flame down into a calm and gentle reef, returned to the calm and tranquil waters of Tobago

Flying Manta
Depth: 90 feet
Skill Level: Intermediate to Advanced
One of the best places on Tobago to encounter manta rays, this site is also a current thrill ride where creole wrasse, black durgon, angelfish and tiger grouper are your companions.

Bookends
Depth: 80 feet
Skill Level: Intermediate to Advanced
From the nubs of black rock that break the surface, let the current carry you along a rich reef slope of hard and soft corals where the big tarpon stand guard. Two stately nubs of black granite break through the surface providing the classic set of Bookends. These bookends enclose you in a sea of foam, providing a canopy that attract the Tarpons and Atlantic Manta Rays.

Blackjack Hole
Depth: 100 feet
Skill Level: Intermediate to Advanced
Located on the exposed southern wing of Little Tobago, expect woolly currents and choppy seas. The payoff: Atlantic pelagics including sharks, rays and dolphins. A family of dolphins frequent this ocean "roller coaster".

Batteaux Bay - Like two drunken sailors walking in a collision course down the street, Batteaux Bay is a conflict of two currents. So confused is the ocean's life force that mantas and sharks come to see which sailor will fall first. The ocean floods the site with nutrients so necessary for these animals
The Alps - If the idea of wind blowing through your hair makes you excited then the Alps are for you. There is no skiing here but plenty of current. Huge mountain like formations give this locale it name because it resemble a view of the Alps. Outstanding underwater mountain peaks ready for its skiers. The currents here are strong and unpredictable, bubbles go down before they go up, don't be surprised.
Keleston's Drain - What is most interesting about this location is possibly of the largest brain coral formation in the Caribbean, the grand old man of the sea. Many claim it to be the largest. If the unusual is your thing, then get the T-shirts on this one.

Charlotteville

London Bridge
Depth: 110 feet
Skill Level: Intermediate to Advanced
A natural rock arch topping a fat ocean pinnacle rises up from 110 feet. Line up single-file to ride the surge through the centre passage, or if the conditions are too rough for the eye, drop down to 80 feet and ride the prevailing current around canyons and folds of the pinnacle base.
The Sisters
Depth: 130 feet
Skill Level: Intermediate to Advanced
Encrusted with low-profile reef growth of flattened brain and star coral formations, these pinnacles offer a maze of canyons and alpine slopes. For those who crave extreme adventure above and below the seas, there is no greater thrill than that of SISTERS. Impressive rock spires tower above the turbid waves and plunge to a depth of 130ft. Here is truly the landscape of giants, as divers are dwarfed and overshadowed by the immensity of the maze of canyons and alpine slopes sinking outwards from the towering pinnacles above.
This low profile reef is home to a wide variety of aquatic animals including Mantas, Eagle Rays, Barracudas, Tarpons, Jewfishes, and Sharks. These gentle giants patrol the landscape, sentries guarding a royal palace.

Crown Point
Buccoo Reef
Depth: 40
Skill Level: Beginner
This four-acre zone of shallow patch reef spills out of Buccoo Bay on the Caribbean side of the island's southern tip. Also favoured by snorkellers and glass-bottom boats, it's an aquarium of corals inhabited by juvenile tropicals.
Mt. Irvine Wall
Depth: 60 feet
Skill Level: Beginner to Intermediate
Massive boulders that flake off from the shoreline cliffs form a shallow wall from 30 to 60 feet that's alive with fish. A hop, skip and a jump from Tobago's grand old Mt. Irvine Bay Hotel and Golf Course, sheltered beneath world class surfing exists one of the island's most dramatic coral walls. Beginning at a modest depth of 35 feet and plummeting to a depth of 70 feet, this underwater fortification resembles an ancient castle wall. Massive boulders form the foundation of a vertical coral wall. The undersea extension of the shoreline cliff which plough downwards to the ocean floor. For an added bonus be sure to bring a dive light for detailed exploration of an endless network of caves and crevasses. There is an array of lobsters, crabs, octopus and a motley crew of moray eels.

Flying Reef
Depth: 40 to 80 feet
Skill Level: Intermediate to Advanced
You'll reach take-off velocity as soon as you hit the westerly currents and, if you stay shallow, you'll cover more than a mile of reef on a single tank. Prepare yourself for the flight of your life as you scream over a mile of reef. As you rocket along effortlessly, a table spread of brilliant greens, yellow and pinks blurring beneath you, be sure to be on the look out for your table setting of giant boulders and rock spires , which rise up like candles and centre pieces.
Dropping down from 40ft to 80ft along the side of your table, you will slow down from 4 knots to a manageable 1 knot. You will cruise through canyon like cervices and cave -like ledges and overhangs. Here nurse sharks and turtles are the norm.

Culloden Bay
Depth: 40 feet
Skill Level: Beginner
Shaped like a nudibranch doing the Macarena, this U-bowed reef is fringed with fingers of spur-and-groove formations on its points.
Arnos Vale - This calm sheltered diving is perfect for beginners and rusty old salts trying to get back into the swing of things. The dense rain forest of the bay seems to submerge itself beneath the waves and transform into a coral jungle. The variety of tropicals are profuse. This is a photographers paradise!
M.V. Maverick: Lying in 100ft of water is the wreck of the M.V Maverick, once a passenger ferry between the twin islands of Trinidad and Tobago. The Scarlet Ibis as it was then called served for many years before being replaced with a bigger faster ferry.
The top of the Wreck is 55ft and descent is down a line attached to the bow, usually passing though a school of bait fish with Bonito fish darting in and out upon reaching the bow "Jacob "a resident Jew fish comes to greet the divers, weighing approx. 150lbs he is an impressive host to the ships tour. It is possible to penetrate the ship even as far as the diesel engine rooms. Reef building crabs, sennet fish and clams add to this interesting dive site.

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Choose on of the accredited dive operators to ensure decent safety procedures. The currents can be strong and unpredictable - take notice. Tobago used to be well known for manta riding - this is now completely forbidden, thankfully, but you stand a good chance of seeing these magnificent creatures here. These islands present a fantastic diving experience, quite unlike anywhere else in the Caribbean.

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