Trinidad and Tobago

Trinidad's economy is fundamentally different from most Caribbean nations: rather than tourism, it is built on a hydrocarbon industry that extracts oil from onshore and offshore fields and processes natural gas into petrochemicals and liquefied natural gas for export. This industrial base has given Trinidad and Tobago a per-capita income well above the regional average and the financial resources to build significant public infrastructure, though it also creates volatility tied to global energy prices.

Culturally, Trinidad is one of the most vibrant and pluralistic societies in the hemisphere. Its population is roughly evenly divided between Afro-Trinidadian and Indo-Trinidadian communities, with smaller groups of mixed, Chinese, Syrian-Lebanese, and European descent. This diversity is expressed spectacularly in Trinidad Carnival — generally considered the greatest carnival in the Caribbean, and the cultural template from which Notting Hill Carnival in London and Caribbean carnivals in New York and Toronto derive. Tobago, the smaller island, is a quieter, tourism-oriented destination with pristine coral reefs and beaches.