Port of Spain

**Port of Spain**, is on the northwest coast and is the capital city of Trinidad and Tobago.

Port of Spain is a great place to spend a couple of days, with many opportunities for shopping, and is the hub for the Trinidad's famous carnival. It has been the capital since 1757 and is the main administrative centre.

The main shopping area is between Frederick Street and Charlotte Street, running from north to south towards Independence Square where the Brian Lara Promenade is located. There are numerous stalls on the street selling everything from fruit to CDs, as well as the brick-and-mortar shops, .

In the evening Independence Square is a liming spot for some locals (**liming** - hanging around).

### Get In

**From Piarco (Airport)**
The airport is not really near Port of Spain, if you look carefully on the map you will see this (even though the airport code is POS for Port of Spain). If you can walk around with your luggage-this is the less expensive option: take a taxi from the airport that is heading to the Eastern Main Road, then get on a maxi taxi heading west along the main road to get to Arouca at the Five Rivers junction (~$4 TTD), near the Police Station. From there you can get onto a maxi taxi (heading west also) that is travelling along the Priority Bus Route to Port of Spain (~$6 TTD) - so it will have a special PBR sign displayed near the bottom of the front windshield. The main road maxis can also get you to Port of Spain, but it will take immeasurably longer to get there due to heavy traffic along the main road especially at certain times during the day. (Be sure to confirm prices with all maxi taxis/taxis.)

### See

* Carnival. The Trinidad Carnival is one of the best in the world and hotels are guaranteed to fill up in the months preceding this event and some may also double their rates! Carnival takes place in the days before Lent and is a mixture of parades and music and calypso competitions. Participants wear elaborate costumes and parade dancing through the streets to the sounds of a steel band or a soca music truck/band. Each year on Carnival Sunday a competition is held to award the King and Queen of Carnival. On Carnival Monday and Ash Tuesday, the bands compete to win the "Band of the Year" title. Everyone takes part, from young to old and rich to poor. In the weeks before the events the Steel Bands rehearse nightly at their *Pan Yards*. There may be several in one stretch of road, such as Western Main, and watching the rehearsals has become a tradition among visitors and locals alike.

* International Waterfront Centre, Wrightson Rd. A major skyscraper development designed to revitalise the city's waterfront.
* National Academy for Performing Arts, (Also called NAPA located just south of the Queens Park Savannah). Styled after the Sydney Opera House.

* Royal Botanic Gardens. Established in 1818, these are one of the oldest gardens in the Caribbean. Features 700 trees of which 13% are indigenous to Trinidad and Tobago. The Gardens are a perfect picnic spot in spite of the lack of amenities.
* Woodford Square and the Red House. Woodford sq is a place of historical importance and also still used today as a gathering place and a venue for some local events. The Red House stands just across the street, west of the square, a very strategic location considering it historically was the seat of Parliament and many a political meeting would have been held in the square, which has also been called the University of Woodford Square.

### Stay In

* Wello's Guest House - "Walking distance to malls, nightspots and the Oval" (1-868-628-6232) 47 Luis St, Woodbrook
* Hyatt Regency
* Radisson Hotel

### Get Out

There are buses leaving Port of Spain for the Piarco airport at 6:15 and 7:!5 in the morning and 3:15 and 5:15 in the afternoon. Other ways to leave Port of Spain, would by via the maxi taxi hub at City Gate or to catch a taxi to your destination. There is no specific taxi hub for all taxis leaving Port of Spain, therefore you will have to find out where the taxi stand is for your destination.