Carib Cultural Village by the Sea (Kalinago Barana Aute)

Carib Cultural Village by the Sea (Kalinago Barana Aute)

Carib Cultural Village by the Sea (Kalinago Barana Aute)
3.5
What people are saying
wbl3
By wbl3
Disappointed
3.0 of 5 bubblesFeb 2020
I was disappointed in this attraction. We drove a very long way (70+ minutes each way) to see this. I saw on their website it says you can see these things: “The huts (ajoupas) feature traditional activities such as canoe building, cassava processing, basket weaving, calabash carving, and herb collection and preparation. Demonstrations are conducted on a daily basis from October through April.” This is what really happened. When we arrived, we paid our fees and waited for the tour guide in a room that had historical information facts posted all over the walls. You read this information yourself and then the guide tells you to ask him if you have any questions about it when he starts the tour. We walked along a path for about 15 minutes that goes in a circle and the guide talked a little about the people along the way, mostly pointing out some of the local plants along the path. There was a pretty waterfall at the end. There was a snack bar and two souvenir booths at the end. The only traditional activities we actually saw were two ladies at the souvenir booths basket weaving. We did buy a souvenir to support them. I have done some Google searching myself to learn more about the Kalinago people and have great respect for them, but I had wished I had not taken a day and paid a driver to drive this far to come see this. You will learn more by visiting their website and Google searching. Maybe the Touna Kalinago Heritage Village would be a more enlightening experience.

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3.5
3.5 of 5 bubbles27 reviews
Excellent
7
Very good
11
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1
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3

wbl3
Tennessee123 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2020
I was disappointed in this attraction. We drove a very long way (70+ minutes each way) to see this. I saw on their website it says you can see these things: “The huts (ajoupas) feature traditional activities such as canoe building, cassava processing, basket weaving, calabash carving, and herb collection and preparation. Demonstrations are conducted on a daily basis from October through April.” This is what really happened. When we arrived, we paid our fees and waited for the tour guide in a room that had historical information facts posted all over the walls. You read this information yourself and then the guide tells you to ask him if you have any questions about it when he starts the tour. We walked along a path for about 15 minutes that goes in a circle and the guide talked a little about the people along the way, mostly pointing out some of the local plants along the path. There was a pretty waterfall at the end. There was a snack bar and two souvenir booths at the end. The only traditional activities we actually saw were two ladies at the souvenir booths basket weaving. We did buy a souvenir to support them. I have done some Google searching myself to learn more about the Kalinago people and have great respect for them, but I had wished I had not taken a day and paid a driver to drive this far to come see this. You will learn more by visiting their website and Google searching. Maybe the Touna Kalinago Heritage Village would be a more enlightening experience.
Written 20 February 2020
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.

duffpaules
columbia, sc187 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2014 • Solo
while i had the luxury of spending several days on the island of dominica, even those visiting the island for a more limited time should strongly consider taking a couple of hours to visit kalinago barana aute, the carib village by the sea.

the village/interpretive center is located in the carib territory, the only land in the caribbean that has been officially set aside for the indigenous people of the islands. it is located on the eastern coast of dominica, and there are some positively gorgeous views at several points along the interpretive trail.

the guide leading our tour was very knowledgeable and accommodating. not only did she answer all of our questions, but since i was the only person in our group who did not speak the french patois that's so common in dominica and the surrounding islands, she was kind enough to give us a bilingual tour, so i wouldn't have to try to follow along using my fractured high school french.

there is a covered dining area- a perfect spot to try one of their snacks for sale, or dine on your picnic lunch. a couple of small souvenir shops are also located in one of the covered structures. unlike one of the other reviewers, i experienced no pressure whatsoever to purchase anything. in fact, my group visited towards day's end, and i actually missed out on the opportunity to purchase a couple of carved cassavas that i'd eyeballed prior to my tour. (thankfully, similar items were available elsewhere on the island.)

my tour was rolled into an excursion package i purchased through my lodging on the island, so i'm not sure of the exact cost, but even if it's $15 US, it's still well worth the price of admission.
Written 6 August 2014
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.

moremanoi
Montreal191 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
We travelled to the Kalinagi Barana Auté recently and did the tour and watched the dance performance.

Our guide was patient and well informed, though soft spoken and at times difficult to hear. Much of the historical presentation was not new to me, as I had read the information in my guidebook to Dominica. The tour passes along plants which the Kalinago used as herbal remedies or food. This part was interesting but could have been elaborated.

For an additional fee, you can watch a dance performance. My kids loved it. However, after the performance you are invited to purchase jewellery and give a cash donation... There is a very uncomfortable pause where everyone is watching you until you actually do buy something!

The reconstructed village is small. There is someone making traditional cassava bread and it is very good.

At the end we were invited to try basket making. My daughter and I both participated... A great experience!

The baskets are for sale in the village and are of very high quality. I was pressured to buy from the woman who helped me with my basket... That is to say when i went to look at the stalls and saw one i liked, she said "that is the other lady's" and led me to her stall.

The food is very good and of good value.

In general I would say it is a good project put together by the community but could be improved by reducing the pressure to open your wallet every 5 minutes. I would have also liked to have seen other workshops (cassava bread, canoe building, herbal remedies etc). My husband and son found it much less interesting because there was nothing catered to them in terms of workshops.
Written 9 August 2012
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.

JustRose_CH
Basel, Switzerland2,228 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2017 • Couples
Definitely worth a visit. A guide explains about the history of Dominican people and shows you around the land explaining how the tribes still live. There is an opportunity to buy local hand made crafts at very reasonable prices. Lovely opportunity to support the tribes.
Written 29 March 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.

h0l0m
Dominica2 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Nov 2014
The tour services provided by Kalinago Tours to the Kalinago Territory is a must for anyone wishing to visit this unique community.
Written 26 June 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.

Heather M
Seattle, WA114 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2013 • Friends
We stopped by here on our way to the airport. We were the only group in attendance and hence had the tour guide to ourselves. It was interesting to learn about how the Kalinago people moved across the islands in the Carribbean and learn about their culture and history. There were interesting nuggets of history based on their account that completely counter the more traditional accounts taught in US schools. I had my eyes opened to hear a different perspective and for that I'm very grateful. For example, Carib is the name given to the people likely by a foreigner, however recently they decided to go back to their name: Kalinago.

The downside about when we visited was that there was no demonstrations occurring with the exception of the dance for a fee/donation. Unlike the other reviewer, we did not feel pressure to buy the jewelry, but two women in our party decided to anyways.

In terms of making this the main highlight of your to-do list for the day, I would recommend against that, especially if you're staying on the southeast side of the island - the drive is too long/windy (for an American) just to visit here. But it was a perfect 1 hour stop on our way to the airport.
Written 4 March 2013
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.

Margaret B
6 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
May 2024 • Solo
Extremely educational, giving me a historical perspective and knowledge about sustainable indigenous cultures. The guide was excellent about responding to our questions.
Written 7 May 2024
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.

JMGeneva
Geneva, Switzerland1,962 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Nov 2019 • Couples
This cultural center is somewhat out of the beaten track but if you happen to drive in front of it, it would be worth taking the steep descent to its entry. Short but quite instructive guided tours are available for a decent price and will allow you to know more about the last indigenous people of the Caribbean. Traditional artefacts are also available for sale.
Written 20 November 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.

Katie L
Miami, FL140 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Nov 2016
Once you arrive, you immediately sense the way of life of these Indigenous people. They are friendly and beautiful. The y lead you through a tour and you will get to sample some of their local and tasty foods. I enjoyed all especially the cassava bread!
Written 29 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.

Suskin333
Simsbury, CT5 contributions
2.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2017 • Couples
We went to the Barana Aute to learn more about the Kalinago which I am very interested in. We bought a ticket and asked for a map. We were told there was no map to give out, but we could use the one on the wall as a guide. It was not very detailed.
We walked around for about 30 minutes, but there were very few tourists, let alone Kalinago there. We felt there was a lot of information about this place on their website, but there is little guidance in finding information once you get there. They did have some labels for things, but no one to ask about them. Fortunately we did meet some Kalinagos in the nearby village that were wonderfully friendly and invited us to tour their abode and living area. It was quite an experience. But we didn't want to pick their brains about their culture as we thought it would be rude, which is why we went to the Barana Aute.
Written 30 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.

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Carib Cultural Village by the Sea (Kalinago Barana Aute), Saint George Parish - Tripadvisor

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