Dominica

English is Dominica's official language and is spoken everywhere, so navigation and communication are straightforward for English-speaking visitors. Many Dominicans also speak Kwéyòl, an Antillean Creole with French roots, especially in rural villages and among older generations. You will hear it in daily conversation even though English handles every practical need.

Digicel and Flow both sell prepaid SIM cards from shops in Roseau, and registering one requires your passport. Coverage is solid along the coast and in the main towns, but drops out quickly once you head into the mountainous interior, including inside Morne Trois Pitons National Park, where long stretches of trail have no signal at all. An eSIM bought before departure is a convenient alternative if you want connectivity from the moment you land.

Tap water is safe to drink in Roseau, Portsmouth, and other main towns. If you fill a bottle from a stream while hiking, treat or filter it first. Pharmacies are found in the larger towns and keep regular business hours, with limited availability in rural areas. The main hospital in Roseau handles routine care, but serious or complex cases are often evacuated to a larger island such as Martinique or Guadeloupe, so travel insurance that covers medical evacuation is worth having. No vaccinations are required for entry from most countries, though routine vaccines and protection against mosquito bites are sensible precautions.

Most visitors do not need a visa. Citizens of the EU, UK, Canada, the US, and most Commonwealth countries can enter visa-free for stays ranging from a couple of weeks to six months, depending on nationality. Citizens of Haiti and the Dominican Republic are among the few who need a visa arranged in advance. Everyone needs a passport valid for the length of their stay, a return or onward ticket, and proof they can support themselves during the visit.

Visa and entry requirements change frequently. Verify current requirements with the official immigration authority or your country's embassy before travel.

Dominicans value polite, unhurried greetings: say "good morning," "good afternoon," or "good night" rather than a casual hello, and greet people you pass in villages. Dress modestly away from the beach. Swimwear belongs at the coast or a river, not on the street or in shops, and shoulders and knees should be covered inside churches. Ask before photographing people, their homes, or church interiors, and be especially considerate in the Kalinago Territory, where residents live with a lot of tourist attention. Stay on marked trails when hiking and carry out your litter.

Public holidays bring most shops, banks, and government offices to a stop, though restaurants and hotels generally stay open for visitors. Carnival, in February or March, is the busiest and loudest of them, with parades and street parties island-wide. Shops in Roseau and Portsmouth typically close on Sundays, and many businesses take a slower pace generally, with some closing for an extended lunch.

• By minibus: Shared minibuses run along the coastal road between Roseau and Portsmouth and cost a fraction of a taxi fare. Flag one down anywhere along the route and pay in cash as you get out.
• By taxi: Taxis are unmetered, so agree the fare before you get in. Licensed taxi apps with preset fares are available as an alternative to negotiating.
• By car: Renting a car gives the most flexibility for reaching waterfalls, trailheads, and villages away from the coast. A four-wheel-drive is worth the extra cost, since many inland roads are steep and unpaved.
• By ferry: A ferry service connects Roseau to Guadeloupe and Martinique, useful for combining Dominica with a wider Caribbean trip.

Traffic drives on the left, and most rental cars have the steering wheel on the right.

Dominican cooking blends Kalinago, African, French, and English influences, built around root vegetables, plantains, and whatever the sea or the mountains provide. Meals are simple and filling: breakfast is often bakes and saltfish, fried dough with salted cod, while lunch and dinner center on stewed meat or fish with rice and peas or ground provisions like yam and dasheen. Callaloo, a soup of dasheen leaves and coconut milk, became the official national dish in 2013, replacing mountain chicken, a large native frog that is now a protected species and rarely appears on menus.

Street food is easy to find in Roseau and Portsmouth: fried chicken, fish and chips, and tasty bakes sold from roadside stands make a cheap lunch. Local drinks range from cocoa tea, made from cocoa sticks grown on the island, to bush tea brewed from local herbs, and sorrel around Christmas. Kubuli, the local lager, and rum punch are the standard evening choices. Most everyday eating happens at small local restaurants and roadside stalls rather than formal dining rooms.

Roseau, the compact capital on the west coast, is most visitors' base. Our Lady of Fair Haven and Botanical Gardens are both within walking distance of the ferry terminal.

Portsmouth is Dominica's second-largest town, set on a wide natural harbor in the north. It is the gateway to the Indian River and Cabrits National Park.

The volcanic interior, much of it protected inside Morne Trois Pitons National Park, holds Dominica's best-known natural sights, including Trafalgar Falls and the Boiling Lake. In the southwest, the fishing village of Scotts Head sits on a narrow spit between the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic, popular for diving and snorkeling. The Kalinago Territory on the east coast is home to the descendants of the island's original Indigenous people and is the only place of its kind left in the Caribbean.