Things to do
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Cabrits National Park
About thirteen hundred acres on a promontory north of Portsmouth, taking in two extinct volcanic peaks, dry forest, a marine section and the garrison ruins. Trails run to both summits from the fort.
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Cabrits Resort & Spa Kempinski
The largest resort on Dominica, on Douglas Bay under the Cabrits headland, opened as the island's first internationally branded five star property after Hurricane Maria.
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Douglas Bay
The bay on the far side of the Cabrits from Portsmouth, backed by dry forest and part of the park's marine section. It is a snorkelling stop more than a sunbathing one.
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Fort Shirley
A British garrison built between 1770 and 1815 to hold Prince Rupert Bay, abandoned in 1854 and cut back out of the forest from the 1980s by the historian Lennox Honychurch. A mutiny here in 1802 won African soldiers full military rights.
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Waterfront
Indian River
A slow river running inland from Portsmouth between swamp bloodwood roots, rowed by licensed boatmen because engines are not allowed on it. Scenes for Pirates of the Caribbean were shot along the bank.
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Purple Turtle Beach
The town beach at the north end of Prince Rupert Bay, dark sand on calm leeward water, with the Cabrits standing at the far end of it. It is the easiest swim in the north.
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Secret Bay
A small villa property on a headland north of Portsmouth, built into the cliff above two coves and repeatedly named among the Caribbean's best. It is the most expensive way to sleep on the island.