To Dominica From UK and Europe
To Dominica From North America
Car Rental and Ground Transportation
in Dominica
Getting to Dominica has never been easier or more affordable!
Now, more flights and lower airfares give visitors more choices
and greater value. Whether you use a travel agent or prefer to
arrange your own flight through an online travel site such as
Expedia, Travelocity, or DestiNETion, you will discover that traveling
to Dominica is now comparable to other popular Caribbean destinations.
Dominica has two airports, Melville Hall Airport
on the north east coast and Canefield Airport on the south west
coast, just to the north of the Capital, Roseau. Neither is an
international airport, although Melville Hall Airport has the
longer runway and can accommodate medium sized planes. The connecting
leg of your journey will be on one of the inter-island carriers,
from either San Juan in Puerto Rico or from one of the neighboring
islands, Guadeloupe or Antigua to the north and Martinique or
St. Lucia to the south. St. Maarten to the north and Barbados
and Grenada to the south serve as Eastern Caribbean hubs.
A
Getting here from UK and Europe
There are regular fights from Gatwick to our
neighbours, Antigua and St. Lucia with British Airways, Britannia,
Caledonia and Virgin. Dominica is 4 hours behind GMT (5 hours
behind BST). Your connecting flight is usually arranged on Air
Liat or Caribbean Star and takes only 35 minutes. The other option
is to fly from either Orly or Charles De Gaul Airports in Paris
to our nearest neighbouring islands, Guadeloupe or Martinique,
which remain territories of France. Consequently these are regarded
as domestic flights and are often cheaper than those from London.
Air France and various charters fly regularly, also giving you
the opportunity to do some duty free shopping in France on your
return.
Paris is also a main point of departure for visitors from elsewhere
in EUROPE. Depending on your arrival/ departure times from either
Guadeloupe or Martinique you may prefer, instead of flying, to
take the fast catamaran ferry to Dominica (max. sailing time 1hr.
45min). Even though Barbados is a little further away, there are
often very cheap excursion flights offered in the UK. Due to a
weakening of the US$, over the past year, your £'s or €'s
will now go much further.
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Getting here from North America:
The most frequent route used by visitors from
the USA is on American Airlines via San Juan (their 'HUB' for
the Caribbean) and their subsidiary, American Eagle. The cost
of flight tickets for this option, however, can vary tremendously,
depending on the time of year and how far ahead you book - AA
policy seems to be to increase the fares as the number of seats
available on any particular flight diminishes, so the earlier
you book the better. Another popular option for Midwest and eastern
USA travelers is to fly AA through Miami to St. Maarten and then
to Dominica via Air Liat or Caribbean Star. As landing and take-off
times at Dominica's airports are currently still limited to daylight
hours, connecting times from some western States may necessitate
an overnight stopover in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Air Canada has
regular direct flights from Montreal to our nearest neighbours,
Guadeloupe or Martinique (you can connect from Toronto at no extra
cost). There are also direct flights from Toronto to Antigua from
where your connecting flight is usually arranged on Air Liat or
Caribbean Star and takes only 35 minutes.
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Car Rental & Ground Transportation:
Most visitors choose to lease a vehicle for
some, if not all of their Dominica vacation. We recommend that
you consider doing the same. Though the island is only 29 miles
by 16 miles 'as the crow flies', distance here is deceptive and
the island feels much larger. Winding and narrow roads over mountainous
terrain require that you take your time in driving even modest
distances. Brand name and local rental car companies can provide
you with late-model, air-conditioned vehicles that are appropriate
for intended destinations on the island. Visitors who plan on
driving off the main roads should ask for SUV's because such vehicles
will have higher carriages and four-wheel drive. It is wise to
accept the leasing companies offer to provide additional insurance.
Mini-buses, taxis, and tour guides can be arranged for your guided
tours to our island attractions. We will be glad to provide transportation
recommendations and arrangements at your request. A temporary
Dominican driver's license may be obtained at the airport for
approximately $12 USD or $30 EC.
For vehicle rental information contact any
of the following via email:
Best Deal Rent-A-Car bestdeal@cwdom.dm
Island Car Rental islandcar@cwdom.dm
Bonus Car Rental cphillip@cwdom.dm.
Younis Taxi Service, $60.00(USD) per person, round trip, Melville Hall airport to Exotica
