Tour Overview
| Duration | 8 Days / 7 Nights |
|---|---|
| Destination | Martinique — The Isle of Flowers, French Caribbean |
| Price From | $3,612 per person (twin share) |
| Tour Style | Premium Island Discovery |
| Operator | Across Caribbean Excursions | Data: 2026 |
Itinerary Highlights
Day 1: Arrive Fort-de-France
Bienvenue en Martinique! Arrive at Aimé Césaire International Airport. Transfer to your hotel in Sainte-Luce on the island’s stunning south coast, known for its white-sand beaches and calm Caribbean waters. Welcome dinner featuring accras de morue (salt cod fritters), colombo de poulet (Creole curry), and ti’ punch — the island’s signature rum cocktail. Overnight at Pierre & Vacances Sainte Luce.
Day 2: Fort-de-France — The Paris of the Caribbean
Full day exploring the vibrant capital. Visit the Schoelcher Library, a stunning Romanesque-Byzantine building shipped piece by piece from France and reassembled here — its mosaic floors and wrought-iron interior were originally destined for the 1889 Paris Exposition. Explore the Grand Marché, a sensory explosion of spices, tropical fruits, and locally-made madras fabrics. Tour Saint-Louis Cathedral, an elegant iron-framed church designed by Gustave Eiffel’s workshop. Walk La Savane park, where a controversial statue of Empress Joséphine (Napoleon’s Martinique-born wife) stands headless — removed by locals protesting her role in maintaining slavery. Overnight in Sainte Luce.
Day 3: Les Salines Beach Day
Spend the day at Les Salines, Martinique’s most famous beach — a kilometer of powder-white sand backed by tall coconut palms, with the Caribbean Sea in every shade of blue. This is the quintessential Martinique beach experience. Swim, snorkel, and relax. Beachfront lunch: fresh grilled lobster with a chilled glass of rosé. Optional: visit the Étang des Salines, a salt pond behind the beach where migratory birds gather. Overnight in Sainte Luce.
Day 4: Balata Rainforest & Mount Pelée Country
Morning at the Balata Botanical Garden, a masterpiece of tropical landscaping set in the rainforest hills above Fort-de-France. Walk the 130m canopy walkway suspended among treetops, with 360-degree views of the bay and mountains. Continue to Saint-Pierre, the “Paris of the Caribbean” before May 8, 1902 — when Mount Pelée erupted, killing 30,000 people in two minutes. Visit the Volcano Museum and the haunting ruins of the theater where only one survivor, prisoner Louis-Auguste Cyparis (saved by his thick-walled dungeon cell), lived to tell the tale. Overnight in Sainte Luce.
Day 5: Route de la Trace & Rainforest Interior
Drive the legendary Route de la Trace, the old Jesuit road winding through Martinique’s mountainous heart. Stop at Cascade Absalon, a jungle waterfall where you can swim in natural pools. Continue through Cathedral-like bamboo groves and giant fern forests to the Pitons du Carbet, a chain of volcanic peaks offering the island’s most challenging and rewarding hikes (optional: choose the 3-hour or 6-hour trail). Picnic lunch in the forest, surrounded by the sounds of tropical birds and distant waterfalls. Overnight in Sainte Luce.
Day 6: Habitation Clément & Rum Heritage
Visit Habitation Clément, Martinique’s most prestigious rum distillery. This beautifully preserved 18th-century plantation house — where Presidents François Mitterrand and George H.W. Bush held their 1991 summit — sits amid 160 hectares of sugarcane fields. Tour the aging cellars where oak barrels hold over a million liters of aging rhum agricole (agricultural rum, made directly from sugarcane juice, not molasses). Tasting of vintage rums including the legendary 1952 vintage. Continue to the Caravelle Peninsula for a hike through dry forest to the 17th-century Dubuc Castle ruins overlooking the Atlantic. Overnight in Sainte Luce.
Day 7: South Coast & Diamond Rock
Morning catamaran cruise along Martinique’s south coast to Diamond Rock, a 175m basalt islet that the British Royal Navy actually commissioned as a warship — HMS Diamond Rock — during the Napoleonic Wars. Sail past Anse d’Arlet, a picture-perfect fishing village where the church steeple overlooks a bay of classic bobbing boats. Swim stop at Anse Noire, one of the Caribbean’s rare black sand beaches. Farewell dinner at Le Petibonum, the famous beach bar of celebrity chef Guy Ferdinand (“Chef Hot Pants”) — his grilled lobster with vanilla butter sauce is legendary. Overnight in Sainte Luce.
Day 8: Depart Martinique
Morning at leisure. Transfer to airport. À bientôt!
Inclusions
- 7 nights 4-star accommodation with breakfast + 7 dinners
- Fort-de-France guided city tour
- Balata Botanical Garden & canopy walkway
- Saint-Pierre Volcano Museum
- Habitation Clément rum distillery tour & tasting
- Catamaran cruise to Diamond Rock
- All transfers and private vehicle
