Climate: The mean temperature averages 79°F. Two regular, alternating wind currents (east and northeast) cool the atmosphere. These are the tradewinds, called les alizés.
Martinique lies in the heart of the Caribbean Archipelago and is one of the many islands which make up the group of lesser Antilles. The waters lapping at its shores are those of the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Caribbean Sea to the west. The closest two neighboring islands are Dominica and Saint Lucia. The island has a surface area of 426 square miles and at its greatest length and width, measures 50 miles by 22 miles, respectively. The land rises gradually from the coast toward the center and northern parts of the island. It is in the north that we find the two peaks of the Carbet and Mont Pelée, a dormant volcano that is the highest mountain. This part of Martinique is also a legendary tropical rainforest. In the center of the island, the Lamentin Plain, made up of small, rounded hills and enclosed valleys, slopes down toward the south. The Salines Beach at the southernmost tip of the island comes straight out of a beautiful postcard

Martinique is truly "A little bit of France in the Caribbean islands." It exudes a distinctly French feeling -- In the excellence of it's caribbean cuisine, the beauty of its language. Yet Martinique has a cachet all its own, an endearing west indian warmth in its personality, a special spice in its caribbean music and dance, its local dishes, and its way of life. It is an island with style.

Martinique... So much in an island.

It’s what sets Martinique apart from the other Caribbean islands. Here, chefs are seasoned sorcerers; elsewhere, they are apprentices.
Magic aside, Martinique also happens to be French, and shows its Frenchness very noticeably through its love affair with good food. Many shops close from noon to 2:30 for the sacrosanct tradition of a copious and leisurely lunch, and dinner is often a gastronomic adventure lasting all evening. Since local people dine out as a matter of course, visitors to Martinique have one of the widest choices of restaurants in the Caribbean, more than 150. Hotels and better-known spots have menus in English, but many little places do not, so it?s wise to bring along a French phrase book and pocket dictionary. Many dining rooms offer both French cuisine and Creole, a wondrous mix of African, Indian, European and Caribbean flavors. Others combine the best from both. To classic French dishes, for example, might be added such exotic local fruits and vegetables as guava, soursop, cassava, christo-phine, breadfruit, okra and plaintain.
Fish is King
On every menu, fish is king, with daily specialties varying according to the morning?s catch. Typical are red snapper, kingfish, sunfish, soudons (small clams), z?habitants or cribiches (fresh water crayfish), lambi (conch), oursin (sea urchin) and langouste (clawless Caribbean lobster). Sometimes the fish is prepared in traditional Creole fashion using piquant spices and herbs, at other times it is served in the more lightly seasoned French style, and often it is a marriage of the two.