The Pitch Lake
The Pitch Lake
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
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4.5
19 reviews
Excellent
11
Very good
4
Average
4
Poor
0
Terrible
0
Elizabeth B
16 contributions
Nov 2022 • Couples
I and my boyfriend had another Tour with Island Experience yesterday. Ms. Gunda organized it for us. We were so pleasant pleased with everything, from beginning to end. Our Tour Guide Janelle was excellent, informative, friendly and professional. We visited a local produce market and was able to see, touch, smell and learned the names of fruits and seasoning, we then went to the Pitch Lake (Wow), spectacular. Our tour guide Billy was great, we saw and experienced everything. Billy made sure we were safe. We then went to a two different Hindu Temples. We learnt a lot. Along our traveling, Janelle was point out building, grave site, roads, historical sites to us. Bob our driver was safe, friendly and slowed down when someone wanted to capture something on their Camera. We went to Lunch in a beautiful mall. We all had a great time. I loved every moment going and coming. I would go on many more tours with company on my next visit to Trinidad&Tobago.
Written 27 November 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Gerald-lee P
14 contributions
Nov 2023 • Family
Special thanks to Vicki, our tour guide. I have done the tour before and she was the best. Very knowledgeable and experienced in everything inreguards to the pitch lake. Only go with the official tour guides. There are plenty of local people thay will try and do the tour onto the pitch lake, and it won't be as great of an experience. Once at the lake park at the official parking lot. There, you will meet with security and the official guides. Wear comfortable shoes or comfortable water shoes, be ready to walk a bit, you will be hot, have water with you, wear sunscreen and bug repellent. Have swimwear to get into the springs and a towel to dry off. Must follow guys instructions while on the pitch lake so not to get hurt.
Written 11 November 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Wrldtvlr27
Washington DC187 contributions
Apr 2017 • Solo
Truly a unique place to visit, its a giant lake of pitch, aka - asphalt. The tour was very interesting and informative. I drove from POS, about 2 hours, parked in the visitor's lot, and signed up for a tour with an official tour guide (about $US5) - The hour long tour was really interesting - you learned about its history, walked on the pitch, and experienced a fascinating natural phenomena. I felt very safe and had absolutely no negative vibe - if you park in the visitor's lot, there are no touts or hagglers.
Written 6 April 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
glopatm
Port of Spain, Trinidad39 contributions
Mar 2017 • Family
Extensive area with patch of asphalt dotting nag the landscape in the distance can be seen conveyors to the waiting ships for foreign lands a tourist booth supplies visitors with samples of rocks and the history of the site. Bathroom facilities fairly clean staff knowledgeable one can walk on the asphalt to the middle of the lake
Written 15 June 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
eric h
140 contributions
Sept 2019
When i told my story to friends, there were not surprised...Lots of crooks in that area..
I did not go through the main entrance as we just stopped on the road . Some of the guys present invited us to come for a visit. I went along with it as I was interested to hear to bistory of the pitch lake.
I did asked the price to the guy who presented himself as Vincent Anthony , recognized guide and asked how much. I was told , no fee, people give what they want. I should have recorded that moment for later
Visit was interesting. At the time to pay, I handled 25 TT$ to him, he got very furious and asked for 150 TT$, around 20US$.
He grabbed a large piece of tar and was getting ready to throw it on the car. My wife present in the car, which did not come along for the visit asked me not to argue fearing for something to happen.
I gave him 100TT as my wife from Trinidad insisted to give him. Alone, I would have certainly left without paying extra
I tried to call to report the problem, never got any one to pick up the phone
Must admit the comments during the visit were of good quality.
Just want to make sure people dont fall in that trap
I did not go through the main entrance as we just stopped on the road . Some of the guys present invited us to come for a visit. I went along with it as I was interested to hear to bistory of the pitch lake.
I did asked the price to the guy who presented himself as Vincent Anthony , recognized guide and asked how much. I was told , no fee, people give what they want. I should have recorded that moment for later
Visit was interesting. At the time to pay, I handled 25 TT$ to him, he got very furious and asked for 150 TT$, around 20US$.
He grabbed a large piece of tar and was getting ready to throw it on the car. My wife present in the car, which did not come along for the visit asked me not to argue fearing for something to happen.
I gave him 100TT as my wife from Trinidad insisted to give him. Alone, I would have certainly left without paying extra
I tried to call to report the problem, never got any one to pick up the phone
Must admit the comments during the visit were of good quality.
Just want to make sure people dont fall in that trap
Written 10 October 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
MLAY
Paramaribo, Suriname109 contributions
Aug 2018 • Couples
The pitch lake should be on your trip list when visiting Trinidad, without doubt. You can drive up by yourself, if you like roadtrips or go with a tour.
I have been there twice already (mostly because I like roadtrips)
I have been there twice already (mostly because I like roadtrips)
Written 26 August 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
helen1381
Ashford, UK147 contributions
May 2016 • Friends
I saw the brochure for the Pitch Lake when we landed in Trinidad and thought it would be something unique to see as I'd never even heard of a pitch lake before.
It's a bit of a drive from Port of Spain, and the closer you get the worse the roads get- slightly ironic but our guide later explained its because veins of the pitch are under the whole town and as they mine the pitch it causes subsidence in the local area.
When you arrive at the visitor centre and pay your entrance fee ($30TT Per person when we visited) you are assigned a guide to take you out on the lake and provide you with the history and then information on the mining etc. Our guide Garvin was great. You are taken round the lake and shown the different states and get to feel the pitch and shown what the pitch mud looks like in a more liquid form.
The tour lasts about 40mins bear in mind there is no shade so take a hat and some water, we went in flipflops and it wasn't a problem.
Our visit was on a Saturday which meant that there was no mining going on, if you go during the week they will be mining while you're there.
It's a bit of a drive from Port of Spain, and the closer you get the worse the roads get- slightly ironic but our guide later explained its because veins of the pitch are under the whole town and as they mine the pitch it causes subsidence in the local area.
When you arrive at the visitor centre and pay your entrance fee ($30TT Per person when we visited) you are assigned a guide to take you out on the lake and provide you with the history and then information on the mining etc. Our guide Garvin was great. You are taken round the lake and shown the different states and get to feel the pitch and shown what the pitch mud looks like in a more liquid form.
The tour lasts about 40mins bear in mind there is no shade so take a hat and some water, we went in flipflops and it wasn't a problem.
Our visit was on a Saturday which meant that there was no mining going on, if you go during the week they will be mining while you're there.
Written 28 May 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
travelall7continents
Fort Lauderdale, FL56 contributions
Dec 2015 • Couples
Natural pitch rises to the surface here, some of it still too soft to walk on. Methane gas also bubbles to the surface. Pitch is still mined (quarried?) from the lake and converted to industrial grade asphalt. Yes, the same stuff used for roads and roofing tar. You can bathe in the sulpher water, but use a guide to avoid dangerous spots.
Written 11 December 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
stacy_868inthe246
Barbados4 contributions
Oct 2019 • Family
Our tour guide Mr. Neil was very knowledgeable and took time to answer questions and explian the history of the pitch lake. I would definitely recommend!
Written 8 October 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Des1963
Johannesburg, South Africa1,767 contributions
Apr 2019 • Friends
I visited the Pitch Lake with friends on a sweltering day. The heat was unbearable, especially since there were no trees to shelter us. The lake was fascinating. Before I heard about it on this visit, I had never given asphalt a second thought. The Pitch Lake is the largest natural deposit of asphalt in the world, estimated to contain 10 million tons. The locals call it the "Eighth Wonder of the World". The lake is one of several natural asphalt lakes in the world. The La Brea Tar Pits (Los Angeles), McKittrick Tar Pits (McKittrick) and Carpinteria Tar Pits (Carpinteria) are all in California. Lake Guanoco is in Venezuela. It's incredible to think that this pitch is linked to some of the world’s most heavily trafficked highways, international airport runways and bridges. However, the road leading to the lake is uneven, with some huge potholes. The irony cannot escape you.
Written 23 July 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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