Beaches
Long, wide, sandy, and bordered by mostly luxury hotels, Ponte du Bout, across the cove from downtown Fort-de-France, and Le Diamant, on the southwestern point of the island, are Martinique's two most popular tourist beaches. Off the shore of Le Diamant stands the monumental Rocher du Diamant (Diamond Rock), sort of a Caribbean Gibraltar, a huge rock that is one of the picture postcard symbols of Martinique.

Bibliotheque Schoelcher (Schoelcher Library)
Fort-de-France
Believed to be the largest library in the Caribbean, containing nearly 250,000 volumes, this elaborate structure in downtown Fort-de-France was originally built in France for an exposition in the 1880s and moved here in the 1890s. The architecture has influences of Romanesque, Byzantine, and Egyptian design, and was named after the Frenchman Schoelcher, who was credited with spearheading the movement to abolish slavery in the French colonies. The library was started with Schoelcher's own personal collection of 10,000 books. Nearby, in front of the Palace of Justice, is the Schoelcher Monument, a statue of Schoelcher with a freed slave.

Chateau Duboc
Presqu'ile de la Caravelle
There once were 300 slaves on this enormous sugar cane plantation, founded around 1770. Many of the stone buildings, or at least their foundations, survived, as did some copper pots, as big as hot tubs, and other artifacts, displayed in a tiny museum. Equally spectacular is the view from the top of the steps of the main house. It overlooks a protected cove, from which, according to legend, the Duboc family also partook in piracy and smuggling. Now a regional nature park, the estate also contains hiking paths down the hill toward isolated beaches that are popular with local families for Sunday picnics and outings. This is an ideal family excursion, but bring your own food and water, since there is no real snack kiosk here.

Distilleree St. James and Musee du Rhum
Sainte Marie
A museum tracing the history of rum in Martinique is housed in the plantation's gingerbread-style colonial mansion. Hostesses in native costumes serve tiny samples of aged and unusual rums, and, of course, there is a shop for purchasing the plantation's wares, including rare century-old aged rum and local handicrafts. It is also possible to tour the actual distillery, a few steps from the mansion, to see the sugar cane being stripped, crushed and fermented, and then bottled.

La Pagerie Museum
Trois Ilets
This little stone house is where Marie Josephe Rose Tascher de la Pagerie was born in 1763. Marie is better known as Empress Josephine, wife of Napoleon. The museum contains some of their love letters, portraits, and her childhood furniture and clothing.

La Vallee des Papillons (Valley of Butterflies)
Carbet
Situated on the ruins of a plantation founded in 1643, this is a combination butterfly refuge and botanical garden. Depending on the season, you can spot monarch butterflies making a rest stop in Martinique on their annual migration between Mexico and Canada. The plantation ruins also can be toured. This is a fascinating excursion for children.

Le Jardin de Balata (Balata Garden)
Fort-de-France
Shoulder-high rose-red ginger plants line the path from the entrance to this garden, a bus ride from downtown. Le Jardin de Balata is also lush with orchids ranging in size and color from tiny purple thumbnails to roof-high plants (with white flowers and philodendrons with leaves large enough to be dinner tables). In the middle of this exotic garden, which contains nearly 200 varieties of plants and flowers, is a restored Creole house filled with antique furnishings.

Marche Couvert (Covered Market)
Fort-de-France
This giant and busy bazaar is where the locals do their own shopping. Row after row of fragrant spices, including cinnamon and saffron, medicinal herbs, tropical flowers of every color, carved wooden bowls and utensils, colorful cottons, and the ubiquitous T-shirt for the ubiquitous tourist can be found here. Go early in the day, as many stalls close by mid-afternoon so sellers can return to their villages. There is also a fish market along the Riviere Madame, and a produce market next to the Parc Floral. Here the colors and varieties of local foodstuffs are a shopper's delight.

Mount Pelee
A long and windy road with several heart-stopping hairpin turns leads to the top of Mount Pelee, a still-active volcano 4,656 feet above sea level. At the top, the view is lush tropical rainforest flowers in front, with lush green valleys and brilliant turquoise Caribbean water in the distance. There is a well-marked hiking trail to the top, which follows the road in parts, but you must start around dawn to complete the six-hour round-trip before the worst heat of the day. Bring food and lots of water, since there is none along the route, unless an enterprising Martinican happens to be selling snacks. It also is possible to climb the rock cliff side of the mountain, but an experienced local guide is a necessity.

Musee de Poupees Vegetales (Museum of Plant Dolls)
Basse Pointe
This is one of those nowhere-else-in-the-world museums; a display of whimsical and unusual dolls, all created by local artist Will Fenton out of dried flowers and plants and dressed in traditional costume. The museum, a delight for children, is on the grounds of the Leyritz Plantation. Also on the premises is a formal garden, rum distillery, and slavemaster's quarters, all of which can be toured.

Musee Gauguin (Gauguin Museum)
Carbet
Paul Gauguin lived and worked in this unpretentious cabin just outside Saint Pierre in 1887. While there are no original paintings here, only copies, some of the actual furniture and photographs of local residents who modeled for him are on display, next to the copies of the paintings that include them. The little museum also features letters written by Gauguin and to him from friends, including other Impressionist artists. In the back, there is a small but excellent collection of historic and traditional Creole clothing, plus a rotating exhibit of work by local artists. Across the road from the museum is a lovely crescent-shaped white sand beach, with Mount Pelee towering in the distance.

Saint-Pierre
This was Martinique's capital city and main port (known as "the Paris of the Antilles" because of its beautiful theaters and residences) until it was destroyed by the massive eruption of the Mount Pelee in 1902. The volcano blast killed more than 30,000 people within three minutes, and the shock wave sent dozens of trading ships to the bottom of the sea (visiting these wrecks is a popular destination for scuba divers). Ruins of several buildings, scarred black by the molten rock, can be toured, and the tiny Musée Vulcanologique (Volcano Museum) has pictures and relics that trace the history of the disaster, including a clock that stopped the exact moment the volcano erupted.