Gay Nagle Myers
Dominica is commonly known as the Nature Island, with its tapestry of rainforests, mountains, rivers, waterfalls, ravines, sulphur spas, dive sites, hiking trails, bird songs and even boiling lakes.
Now the island, south of Guadeloupe and north of Martinique in the eastern Caribbean, is capitalizing on its natural wonders with the launch of its Safe in Nature program, which is geared to help revive its tourism industry while offering a safe experience for its visitors.
The program is a collective effort of the Ministry of Tourism, International Transport and Maritime Initiatives, Discover Dominica Authority, the Dominica Hotel and Tourism Association and other tourism stakeholders.
Safe in Nature offers managed experiences while on the island, all the
while adhering to strict measures to safeguard both locals and visitors,
such as mask wearing inside tour vehicles and in all public spaces;
hiking in a single line to maintain social distancing; limiting
watersport vessels to 70% of capacity and requiring temperature checks
before boarding; visiting only specific pre-approved and inspected
tourist sites; and avoiding high-visitation sites, such as Trafalgar
Falls or Mero Beach, on weekends. Details of the Safe in Nature
experiences are found on the travel advisory page of www.discoverdominica.com.
Denise Charles, Dominica's minister of tourism, said that the program was targeted toward "those needing a well-deserved break from chaos and crowds, to those thinking about travel and those needing rejuvenation."
That seems to cover a broad swath of today's travelers who are suffering from Covid fatigue, quarantine weariness and expanded curfew hours.
Our map, updated regularly, shows entry requirements for countries throughout the region, including Dominica.
More than 50 certified properties, ranging from cottage clusters, guest houses and apartments to hotels and high-end resorts, are participating in Safe in Nature.
"Dominica is not only a vacation, but it can be the antidote to relieve the stress that many individuals and families currently are feeling," said Samantha Letang, marketing executive at Discover Dominica Authority.