Martinique

From World travel guide

Martinique is a Caribbean island that is an overseas department, (or dependent territory), of France in the Caribbean Sea, to the north of Trinidad and Tobago.

The island is dominated by Mount Pelee, which on 8 May 1902 erupted and completely destroyed the city of Saint Pierre, killing 30,000 inhabitants.

Contents 1 Regions 2 Cities 3 Other destinations 4 Understand 4.1 Climate 4.2 Terrain 4.3 History 5 Get in 5.1 By plane 5.2 By boat 6 Get around 7 Talk 8 Buy 9 Eat 10 Drink 11 Sleep 12 Learn 13 Work 14 Stay safe 15 Stay healthy 16 Respect 17 Contact 18 External links 19 Geography 20 People 21 Government 22 Economy 23 Communications 24 Transportation 25 Military 26 Transnational Issues

Regions

In the South of the island, there are many beautiful beaches with a lot of tourists. In the North, the landscapes and the black sand beaches are worth seeing.

Cities

• Fort-de-France - Capital
• Saint Pierre
• La Trinite

Other destinations

Understand

This island experiences an average of one major natural disaster every five years. This includes hurricanes, flooding and volcanic eruptions.

Climate

Tropical and humid with an average temperature 17.3 degrees C. The climate is moderated by trade winds. The rainy season is from June to October but the island is vulnerable to devastating cyclones (hurricanes) every eight years on average.

Terrain

Mountainous with indented coastline and a dormant volcano as well as related volcanic activity.

Highest point 

Montagne Pelee 1,397 m

History

Colonized by France in 1635, the island has subsequently remained a French possession except for three brief periods of foreign occupation.

Get in

By plane

• From Venezuela, company Avior Airlines ~180€ each way.
• From Guadeloupe, company Air Caraibes ~150€ round trip.
• From Germany, FRA (via Paris), company Air France ~700€ round trip.

By boat

From the surrounding islands, you can use these ferry companies:

• Express des Iles
• Brudey Frères

Get around

You can rent a car to drive where you want. There are no trains and the buses are not the best to drive around in the island, especially for tourists.

Talk

Languages 

French, Creole patois

Buy

Eat

Drink

• Karaoke-Café, quartier Basse Gondeau 97232 Le Lamentin, 0596 50 07 71, bar/restaurant/nightclub, currently the trendiest place (but not the most typical). Live music, Karaoke, 80s, dance, techno, worldmusic. Entrance 20€ with a drink.

Sleep

Learn

Work

For European people coming from an EU country, working in Guadeloupe is allowed without problem. If you're from outside the EU, you will probably need a work permit - check with the French Embassy in your country. Do not forget though that the unemployment rate is high. But if you work in the heath sector (doctor, nurse), it will be much easier.

Voluntary service: Volontariat Civil à l'Aide Technique (VCAT). Conditions: you must be French or from another EU-member state or a country belonging to the European Economic Area. You must be over 18 and under 28 years old (inclusive). You must not have had your civic rights revoked by a court or have been convicted of certain offences. VCAT

Stay safe

Stay healthy

Respect

Contact

External links

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Geography

Geographic coordinates 

14 40 N, 61 00 W

Area 

total: 1,100 sq km
water: 40 sq km
land: 1,060 sq km

Area - comparative 

slightly more than six times the size of Washington, DC

Coastline 

350 km

Maritime claims 

exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM

Natural resources 

coastal scenery and beaches, cultivable land

Land use 

arable land: 9.43%
permanent crops: 11.32%
other: 79.25% (1998 est.)

Irrigated land 

30 sq km (1998 est.)

People

Population 

422,277 (July 2002 est.)

Nationality 

noun: Martiniquais (singular and plural)
adjective: Martiniquais

Ethnic groups 

African and African-white-Indian mixture 90%, white 5%, East Indian, Chinese less than 5%

Religions 

Roman Catholic 95%, Hindu and pagan African 5%

Government

Country name 

conventional long form: Department of Martinique
conventional short form: Martinique
local short form: Martinique
local long form: Departement de la Martinique

Dependency status 

overseas department of France

Independence 

none (overseas department of France)

National holiday 

Bastille Day, 14 July (1789)

Constitution 

28 September 1958 (French Constitution)

Legal system 

French legal system

Judicial branch 

Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel

Flag description 

a light blue background is divided into four quadrants by a white cross; in the center of each rectangle is a white snake; the flag of France is used for official occasions

Economy

Economy - overview 

The economy is based on sugarcane, bananas, tourism, and light industry. Agriculture accounts for about 6% of GDP and the small industrial sector for 11%. Sugar production has declined, with most of the sugarcane now used for the production of rum. Banana exports are increasing, going mostly to France. The bulk of meat, vegetable, and grain requirements must be imported, contributing to a chronic trade deficit that requires large annual transfers of aid from France. Tourism, which employs more than 11,000 people, has become more important than agricultural exports as a source of foreign exchange. The majority of the work force is employed in the service sector and in administration.

Industries 

construction, rum, cement, oil refining, sugar, tourism

Agriculture - products 

pineapples, avocados, bananas, flowers, vegetables, sugarcane

Exports - commodities 

refined petroleum products, bananas, rum, pineapples

Imports - commodities 

petroleum products, crude oil, foodstuffs, construction materials, vehicles, clothing and other consumer goods

Economic aid - recipient 

$NA; note - substantial annual aid from France

Currency 

euro (EUR)

Currency code 

EUR

Exchange rates 

euros per US dollar - 1.1324 (January 2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); French francs per US dollar - 5.8995 (1998), 5.8367 (1997)

Communications

Telephones - main lines in use 

170,000 (1997)

Telephones - mobile cellular 

15,000 (1997)

Telephone system 

general assessment: domestic facilities are adequate
domestic: NA
international: microwave radio relay to Guadeloupe, Dominica, and Saint Lucia; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)

Radio broadcast stations 

AM 0, FM 14, shortwave 0 (1998)

Radios 

82,000 (1997)

Television broadcast stations 

11 (plus nine repeaters) (1997)

Televisions 

66,000 (1997)

Internet country code 

.mq

Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 

2 (2000)

Internet users 

5,000 (2000)

Transportation

Highways 

total: 2,105 km (2000)

Airports 

2 (2001)

Airports - with paved runways 

total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2002)

Airports - with unpaved runways 

total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2002)

Military

Military branches 

no regular indigenous military forces; French Forces (Army, Navy, Air Force), Gendarmerie

Military - note 

defense is the responsibility of France

Transnational Issues

Illicit drugs 

transshipment point for cocaine and marijuana bound for the US and Europe

fr:Martinique ja:マルティニーク