Martinique is a slice of France set down in the tropics. Islanders wear Paris fashions and eat croissants. Zouk music pouring out of tape players, bars and nightclubs will remind you, however, that Martiniquans have a culture of their own, solidly based on West Indian Creole traditions.
Urbanization has spread through much of the island, and most of Martinique's large towns feel like modern suburbs. Nevertheless, nearly a third of Martinique is forested and other areas are given over to pineapples, bananas and sugarcane fields. There are also plenty of hiking trails into the mountains.
When To Go
Martinique is warm year-round, with temperatures usually peaking close to 30°C (around 85°F) during the day. The best time to visit Martinique is the slightly cooler, drier season of late winter to early spring (February to May) when temperatures average about 26°C (85°F). Note that this is also the peak tourist season and prices will be at their highest and attractions and lodgings most crowded.
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Factoid
The Empress Josephine
Martinique's most famous colonial daughter was the Empress Josephine. After a relatively short-lived marriage to a wealthy army officer, Alexandre de Beauharnais, Josephine began a passionate love affair with a largely unknown military officer named Napoleon Bonaparte. Although she had two children by her first marriage, Josephine was unable to bear Napoleon an heir and in 1809 Napoleon acrimoniously divorced her. Curiously, Josephine's daughter from her first marriage, Hortense de Beauharnais, married Napoleon's brother and gave birth to a son, Louis, who would take the French throne as Napoleon III in 1852.