Scuba Diving St. Martin

scuba diving st. martin

The History Of The Caribbean

If you are looking for something to spice up you interest in a lovely Caribbean beach holiday, you have only to look no further than the history of the islands to get all the drama and excitement you need. It's hard to imagine the relaxed and laid back atmosphere of the islands today as anything else, but only a few centuries ago the Caribbean islands were a hotbed of piracy, uprising and colonial battles.

Caribbean holidays today have all of the attraction and fortunately none of the drawbacks of the allure that first drew pirates and settlers to the waters. Once an important for Spanish gold ships carrying back treasure from the Aztecs, the Caribbean islands are dotted with sunken galleons that were lost from storms or attacked by pirates during the seventeenth century. Even today, spectacular finds are still occasionally made on a previously undiscovered wreck and in addition to a thriving trade in diving trips the existence of a hitherto unknown map of a wreck fosters as much skullduggery and intrigue as it did in the classic pirate stories.

Barbados holidays are regarded as a luxury now, but there was a time when you get there for free! When it started to dominate the world sugar trade, plantation owners in Barbados couldn't find enough workers to use on the plantations to cope with the blossoming demand for sugar. In addition to transporting criminals from Europe, many unsuspecting people fell victim to kidnapping by the gangs that supplied labour to the plantation owners, and these "red legs" were forced to work alongside the slaves on the cane plantations.

Antigua can boast of being the first British naval base in the Caribbean, and the maritime tradition still runs deep in the island and its activities. Although he stayed on board his flagship for most of his stay, the residents of Antigua are proud of their seafaring traditions and if you are lucky, Antigua holidays can happen at the same time as one of it's famous sailing competitions or regattas. Still a major fixture in the world yacht racing calendar, you can also see many of the local fishermen demonstrating their skills as they pull in the morning's catch.

St. Maarten Wreck Dive SCUBA