How many times have you been to the Caribbean? How many times would you need to go to feel you’ve discovered it all? Imagine getting to experience many different cultures, endless miles of picture-perfect beaches and landscapes that have been featured on the big screen, diving nearby the world’s second-largest coral reef system, or indulging in the flavors that are the result of centuries of culinary traditions. Keep scrolling to learn our compilation of fun facts about the Caribbean.
The Caribbean in Numbers.
If we were to highlight the main aspects of this popular vacation destination it could go in many different ways. For example, 700 is the number of islands, islets, caves, reefs, etc. There are only 2 seasons, the rainy and the dry. The smallest inhabited island, St. Martin, only has 87 square kilometers and is shared by 2 nations. One of which is part of the 3 Caribbean islands that are part of the European Union: Saint-Martin, Guadeloupe, and Martinique. The 75% of the entire population of the region lives mainly in Cuba, Dominican Republic, and Haiti. Popular records include how Jamaica has the highest amount of churches in the world and the greatest sprinter of all time, Usain Bolt, the eleven-time World Champion sprinter.
The Island of One Love
We have gone into a bit of detail on how a trip to Jamaica is ideal for the love birds. As told back then this island is not just famous for being the homeland of the founding fathers of reggae music, such as bob Marley or Peter Tosh, but also, for inspiring Ian Fleming to write about James Bond. “Dr. No”, the first motion picture about the famous spy, was filmed in Jamaica.
The shortest, the biggest and the popular.
Saba is an island part of the Lesser Antilles chain, part of the Caribbean Netherlands. Pilots put their skills to the test when landing in Juancho E Yrausquin Airport, which features the world’s shortest runway. Puerto Rico’s
Aeropuerto Internacional Luis Muñoz Marín is one of the biggest, and Punta Cana International Airport in the Dominican Republic has been named the best in terms of customer service.
As for the most visited country in the Caribbean, the spot is taken by the Dominican Republic.
A melting pot of flavors.
Your palate won’t get bored in the Caribbean.
Whether it is due to the unavoidable influence of other countries, or made with ingredients endemic to the region, some of the Caribbean’s most popular dishes contain spices that can stay in your memories for as long as you revisit the island. Allspice, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, garlic, paprika and mace are some of the most used spices in the cuisines of the countries across the region.
Did you know? Grenada is called Spice Island for its wealth of nutmeg, allspice, clove and cinnamon.
Getting Familiar with the Scoville Scale
For those who don’t know much about spicy food, there is a way to measure the pungency levels of chili peppers, it is called the Scoville Scale.
If you enjoy spicy food then you might already know that Cayenne Pepper can be found in Cayenne, French Guiana, the yellow version of the Manzano Pepper can be found across the region and in Mexico while the Scotch Bonner Pepper is popular in Jamaica. The Habanero Pepper is harvested in Yucatan, but the name comes from La Habana in Cuba, where the orange version of the pepper is available.
For a while, the red-hot chili pepper Trinidad Scorpion, from Trinidad and Tobago, was known as the world’s spiciest, but now remains in the second position, which is still not for the faint of heart.
The Caribbean in History
There is an endless amount of information contained in the scrolls of the history of each country, from discoveries, adventures, pirates, fantasy tales, folklore and so much more. But there are a few bits that can be quickly highlighted such as how George Washington, the first president of the United States of America only left the North American continent only once, when he sailed to Barbados with his half-brother Lawrence in 1751.
Another event that went down in history, albeit with different air, is how the welsh Henry Morgan gave life to a transition out of a novel, going from pirate to Governor of Jamaica.
There are probably hundreds of other fun facts about the Caribbean we could go over, but surely, nothing beats visiting the charming and popular spots across the countries that are part of it. The Privilege Club presents its members with multiple ways to plan their dream vacation for many of these destinations.
Visit our Travel Talk section to read more fun travel articles or go over the Concierge Recommends articles to learn more about the attractions outside the resort. Be sure to tag your vacation posts on social media with #VacationAsYouAre, and don’t forget to follow us on Instagram and Facebook.
