Located east of Port of Spain, Arouca is a largely residential town in Trinidad and Tobago’s East-West Corridor. It was the site of an Amerindian settlement during the Spanish colonial years before being designated as agricultural land when the French arrived in 1783.
Things to do in Arouca
On the southern edge of Arouca is the Millennium Lakes Golf Course, which features 18 holes on the banks of the Arouca River. It encompasses picturesque lakes that attract birdlife while offering spectacular views of the Trinidadian Northern Mountain Range. You can practice your swing at the covered driving range or utilise the putting green before relaxing with a drink on the clubhouse patio.
Arouca is a convenient base for exploring Port of Spain, which serves as the lively capital of Trinidad and Tobago. Get up close to plants from all corners of the globe in the Royal Botanic Gardens, which lies alongside the 110-hectare Queen’s Park Savannah. Sweeping views across Port of Spain can be enjoyed from Fort George, which was built in the 19th century by the British Governor Sir Thomas Hislop to protect against the Napoleonic fleet.
Sprawling south of Port of Spain is Trinidad and Tobago’s largest mangrove wetland, the Caroni Bird Sanctuary, which provides a habitat for more than 100 recorded bird species. Boat tours are the best way of exploring the reserve and seeing scarlet ibis and endemic cocricos. Caimans, swamp boas and crabs can also be spotted while exploring its maze of channels.
Getting around Arouca
Arouca is around an hour’s drive from Port of Spain and 20 minutes from Piarco International Airport, which has flights to destinations across the Caribbean and North America. Buses connect to Arouca while renting a car is the most convenient way of getting around the area.