Montserrat: the least visited Caribbean island

When a friend of a friend told me his family was from Montserrat, he was met with a blank stare. Back then, I really had no idea where Montserrat was, which is not altogether surprising considering it is the least visited Caribbean island. It is a British overseas territory 30 miles from Antigua, and I knew I had to go visit one day. More than a decade later, this May, I finally found myself on my way to Montserrat.

Visiting the island, it’s hard to understand why the entire world hasn’t rushed over to see it. With beautiful black sand beaches, Montserrat is green and lush, with the Soufrière Hills volcano rising out into the sky in the middle. In 1995 it erupted, with half of the population leaving, partly explaining while Montserrat has remained a hidden gem for so long. A large part of the island still remains an exclusion zone, uninhabitable, with the previous capital city of Plymouth buried. I knew I could only visit the zone with a special permit and was crossing my fingers it would happen.

Getting there

There are two ways to get to Montserrat from St.John’s in Antigua, by ferry or by plane. I opted for the ferry and got seasick (which usually isn’t a problem), but on the way back I armed myself with some anti nausea tablets and was fine. There are a few airlines that fly into Antigua, I flew with BA (direct flight, always a plus).

Montserrat tends to be a quiet island, but it gets very busy for St. Patrick’s Festival in March and Carnival in December.

Where to stay

There are no hotels on the island (apart from the gorgeously placed the Vue Pointe hotel which didn’t look like it was in operation when I visited, but hopefully that will change in the future), which means you can either rent a villa or stay in a b&b. I stayed at Erindell Villa Guest House, the island home of Lou and Shirley, who have a few affordable rooms and the pool house, where I stayed, available. Shirley not only prepared a breakfast for me every morning, she drove me around the island every day since I can’t drive, which I appreciated massively. She also thoroughly entertained me with stories of ghosts and magic on the island!

Getting around the island

I’d definitely recommend renting a car for getting around the island. The island is so hilly bikes/motorcycles are out of the question, and while the island is small, you would struggle to walk everywhere. There are taxis available but to really get the best out of your trip, rent a car.

Where to eat

I wrote a whole post about the lovely food and places to eat on the island- read it here!

What to do 

Black sand beaches

The first thing you see arriving to Montserrat is Little Bay, with it’s volcanic black sand beach in stark contrast to the white beaches you typically see in the Caribbean. Montserrat has several beaches and the beauty of them all is that you are most likely to not see another soul or be disturbed in any way!

Little Bay is arguably the ‘busiest’ of the beaches (and I use that term very loosely here- I didn’t see anyone when I went there), with a few restaurants as well as showers and toilets available for washing off after a swim. 

I also stopped by Isles Bay Beach, which has a restaurant if you want to sip a cocktail while you relax. There are several other beaches, such as Woodlands beach, which have no facilities or restaurants, meaning total isolation if that’s what you’re after. 

The Volcano Observatory

The volcano eruption of 1995 in fact actually continues to this day, with the volcano observatory in place to monitor activity. The observatory has a small visitor centre where you can learn more about the history of the volcano, and how the eruption in 1995 impacted life on the island. You also get great views of the volcano itself.

The exclusion zone and the buried city of Plymouth

The previous capital of Plymouth has been dubbed a ‘modern day Pompeii’, as it was buried when the volcano erupted in 1995 after being dormant for hundreds of years. Before the eruption, Montserrat had also been devastated by Hurricane Hugo in 1989. Following the eruption, with many residents choosing not to return after being evacuated, tourism to the island also declined.

Visiting Plymouth and the exclusion zone is now one of the most interesting things you can do not only in Montserrat, but in the whole of the Caribbean. Entering the zone requires a special permit and a police escort, but luckily I got the chance to visit as planned. Seeing the remnants of the city, with a church roof sticking out of the ground after being buried, and visiting houses with abandoned books and furniture still covered in ash, was a really special experience. I wrote more about it here.

Overall, I had the perfect trip to Montserrat: I saw some beautiful places, was stunned by the force of nature that is the volcano, and got some much needed relaxation in as well. I also made sure to take a sip from the Runaway Ghaut burn, so I hope to indeed return to Montserrat one day!