Haiti Off The Beaten Path

  Cap Hiatien, street scene
by melosh
 
  • Cap Hiatien, street scene
      Cap Hiatien, street scene
    by melosh
  • Countryside house
      Countryside house
    by melosh
  • Mom listens to child read
      Mom listens to child read
    by melosh
  •   Off The Beaten Path
    by melosh
  • Kids at play
      Kids at play
    by melosh
 

Reviews from VirtualTourist Members

Jacmel in Haiti

by Beausoleil

If you want an adventure, take public transportation from Port-au-Prince to Jacmel on the south coast of Haiti. If you want a slightly less adventurous trip, hire a private car. Either way, the views are incredible and Jacmel is a wonderful little town that still has remnants of it's colonial past in evidence.This picture was taken on the back terrasse of Manoir Alexandre while drinking a cup of the delicious smokey sweet Haitian coffee and visiting with friends.There are art galleries, restaurants, tourist shops, hotels and wonderful black sand beaches and there is nearly always great surf at Jacmel.

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Market in La Croix

by Hobbes007

If you want to come here, you'll need to hike for a few hours (no roads suitable for cars for miles around La Croix). This is the biggest market of the whole mountain range, people come from far and away to buy and sell goods. They carry everything on their heads, the lucky few have a mule or a horse.When we arrived, we were the attraction of the day! 6 "blans" on the market, that had probably never happened before.

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Surprise appetizers from a neighbor

by sherrillbland

While I'm not sure every town has one, Croix des Bouquet has a lady who lives just outside the Gospel Mission compound and one night, she made several wonderful appetizers that we devoured! One is marinade, which is quite like a cornmeal hushpuppy with shredded veggies and/or meat inside. Very tasty. Then there were fried bananas, patat (if I recall correctly was a slice of potato quick-fried). Then there was this awesome hot coleslaw to give it all some ooomph! She quickly became our new best friend.

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All of Hiati is off the beaten path!

by melosh

In Haiti even the guidebook recommended things to see are currently off the beaten path. The first step to the unconventional experience is to rid yourself of the fear engendered by Haiti's reputation, and without giving up common sense, start to wander and interact with people you meet. A bit of French is useful, but even without it you do not need a guide. Lots of people will offer to help you, almost all with an expectation of a financial reward, but almost all accept graciously a persistent refusal. Of course, if you decide to hire a guide chose carefully and establish the compensation beforehand. Even if you do this you can expect a begging argument for more money at the end of the experience. Although your visit will not go unnoticed, unless you look like a native in skin color, clothing and behavior, you will not be hassled. People are quite sociable so you can expect to be...

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Coco Beach

by IceBlu

This countries has some great beaches, however you must endure the road trip, with very poor road conditions.If you have the time and up to being adventurous, La Citadelle worth the backhorse ride, be ready to be accompanied by crowds while climbing up the hill.

fresh air in the mountains

by dunearn20

Kenscoff and Furcy, more than one hours drive up in th emountains. Very beautiful, there is even a Hotel with Restaurant in the middle of nowhere called The Lodge. Great for walking, It is very fresh there, even cold compared to PaP.

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Go to see the Citadel. A few...

by Elmsaafir

Go to see the Citadel. A few miles south of Cap Haitien, it's an incredible work of Napoleonic era construction. Built over the course of several years and at the expense of over 10,000 Haitians that worked on it, it was constructed to defend against an attack by Napoleon. Fortunately, that attack never came, but one can still see the stacks of cannonballs waiting for him. It's a rugged area, and the trip up takes about 45 min on foot. You can hire a donkey to take you up, but when I was there, there weren't any other tourists. We had the place to ourselves. Of course, we were also carrying guns, and that might have contributed as well. You can hire a guide to explain the place, and there were several available at the bottom of the mountain. This picture was taken from a helicopter as we flew past it on a site visit.

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Most of my 'tour' was in Cap...

by Guardian624

Most of my 'tour' was in Cap Haiten, on the northern coast. I was part of a helicopter team and saw most of the region from the air. I think we saw a (former?) beach resort northeast of town. A very impressive (French colonial?) fort/castle is poised on the mountain ridgeline just south of town.

The Pacot area of...

by russka

The Pacot area of Port-au-Prince is full of these old 'Gingerbread' style houses. After years of neglect, most are rotting and in danger of being demolished. A lucky few are being restored like the one seen here. I hope more can be saved. They are truly beautiful and unique.

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I think that most people come...

by scrawfish

I think that most people come to Haiti thinking that they can help the people with money. The Haitians do not want our money, they want us to become part of their culture. Stop and get to know the people around you. You are not always better than the people around you, the Haitians have a lot to show you if you take a moment to look.

Top 3 Hotels in Haiti

Villa Creole  Haiti

 4 Reviews and 24 Opinions  Price Day is Us$ 100,00 - www.villacreole.com 

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Karibe Hotel  Port-au-Prince

 37 Opinions

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Hotel Florita  Jacmel

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 Hotels in Jacmel

The Place

Reviews and photos of Haiti attractions posted by real travelers and locals. The best tips for Haiti sightseeing.

Experience Haiti
 

Questions and Answers

JHelmet profile photo

Q:  I know there are no scheduled ferries. I know there are flights from Jamaica or Dominican to Cuba. Has anyone tried hitching a... 

GrumpyDiver profile photo

A: I assume you are joking.... 

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