I traveled from Guadeloupe to Montserrat from Monday 29 December 2025 to Thursday 8 January 2026. I took a flight from Guadeloupe to Saint Martin, a taxi to go to St. Marteen where I slept one night in a hotel. On Tuesday 30 December 2025, I took a flight for one hour to go to Montserrat, a Bristish Overseas Territory and a Parliamentary Democracy in the Caribbean Region. It is affectionately known as « the Emerald Isle of the Caribbean ». According to the Official Website of the Montserrat Tourism Authority, the island is governed by a locally elected Premier and Parliament. According to the official website of the Government of Montserrat, The Premier is Hon. Reuben T. Meade. The UK Government works with Montserrat’s Government to strengthen the island’s economic planning, emergency management, and security. The UK Government appoints a governor who lives on the island, and functions as an advisor on these matters. The Montserratians are British nationals but they have their own passport and National Song called Motherland. The population is approximately of 5,000 residents on the island. Included among Montserratians, are immigrants from Dominica, Jamaica, Guyana, the Dominican Republic and Haiti, who came to help rebuild the island after the first volcanic eruption.  Montserratians who live off the island, primarily reside in the UK, US and Caribbean. The EC Dollar is the official currency of Montserrat. In 1995, life in Montserrat was changed forever when the once dormant Soufrière Hills Volcano erupted for the first time in almost 400 years. Two-thirds of the southern part of the island, including the capital, Plymouth, was devastated and much of it remains buried beneath thick layers of ash and mud. More than half of the population has since migrated to North America and the UK. The city of Plymouth, St. George’s Hill, the Soufriere Hills Volcano, and the entire south of the island are in Zone V, referred to as the Exclusion Zone. Access is allowed only to Plymouth to view the Buried City and must be with a certified tour guide. Visits are strictly monitored by a police escort and there is constant radio contact with the Montserrat Volcano Observatory (MVO). There is also a siren alarm system installed around the island which is used to warn of any volcanic activity that might affect the rest of the island. It goes off every day at noon as a test. It was my first time in the island. K@ribbean Newsweek shares with you some pictures.

Day 1: Monday 29 December 2025

In Guadeloupe, I took a flight of Air Caraibes to go to Saint-Martin and a taxi to go to an hotel called Carl’s Unique Inn & Conference Facilities in St. Marteen. I slept only one night because my flight was very early the next morning to go to Montserrat.

The pilot of Air Caraibes from Guadeloupe to Saint-Martin told us to see Montserrat on our left and Antigua and Barbuda on our right.

Day 2 : Tuesday 30 December 2025 – The Queen of Queens Regional Female Calypso Competition

Breakfast is included in the hotel room price at Carl’s Unique Inn & Conference Facilities in St. Marteen. Thanks to the staff, it was possible to have my breakfast at 5 AM. The bakery opens at 6:30 AM. The hotel called a taxi for me to go to Princess Juliana International Airport. My flight with Winair was at 7:30 AM. Initially, it was at 7 AM, then the air company sent me an email to let me know that it was 7:30 AM, after it was 8:30 AM and again 7:30 AM. I was confused. So the taxi picked me up at 5:45 AM.

I filled an Online Immigration Form 3 days before traveling. I arrived at the John A. Osborne Airport in Montserrat at 8:13 AM. I showed the Montserrat Online E.D Form Immigration Receipt to an agent of the Immigration Service at the airport. She asked me questions such as where I live in Montserrat. I went to the Last Chance souvenir shop to buy a cap with the map of Montserrat and I bought a veggie burger in the restaurant at the airport. Before traveling, I asked Ricky Melvric Williams, the owner of Paradise Villa Rooms to arrange a taxi. Before 11 AM, DC Bus and Taxi service picked me up at the airport to go to the Bank of Montserrat and to Paradise Villa Rooms located on Baker Hill. I paid $50 EC (15,83 euros). I changed Euros in EC Dollars and a small amount in US Dollars at the Bank of Montserrat. I gave $100 EC (31,66 euros) to the taximan to buy the ticket of Elegant Affair for the New Year’s Eve on Wednesday 31 December 2025. I had my bedroom with the bathroom in Paradise Villa Rooms that is clean, beautiful and quiet. There is a view of the sea and a good wind or breeze. I found the accomodation on Booking. The prIce was about 289 euros or USD $340.85 for 7 nights. When I was in the accomodation, Ricky Melvric Williams, who lives in the UK, sent me a payment link. I paid 253.18 £GB (291,13 euros and 6 euros for a card payment commission on my bank account). By walking, the house is near restaurants, a supermarket, the Bank of Montserrat. At around 5 PM, Jane a neighbor showed me the way to go to the nearest supermarket.

On my way to go to the Montserrat Carnival 63′, there was a traffic : an elderly man had an accident with his car because he is diabetic. If I well understood, he must have fainted while driving. He was alive and transported to the hospital.

I spent my first night in an event of Montserrat Carnival 63′. I paid $50 EC (15,83 euros) for Adults at the gate of Carnival City in Little Bay to attend the Queen of Queens Regional Female Calypso Competition featuring Terri Lyons from Trinidad, Roselyn from Tobago, Empress Lyric from Nevis, Blessings, Maggie D and Black Pearl from Montserrat, Super Star from Grenada, Joy from Dominica, and Ge’Eve from Antigua. The performance of the 9 queens of Calypso was great. I really liked the performance of Terri Lyons and Ge’Eve. There were two rounds. Supporters came with the flag of their country. Terri Lyons won the Delta Petroleum Queen of Queens 2025, USD $5,000.00. Ge’Eve was the 1st Runner Up, USD $3,000.00 and Roslyn was the 2nd Runner up, USD $2,000.00. The competition finished at almsot 2 AM. I ate Jamaican food and I drank some local juice. The taxi DC waited for me and dropped me at Paradise Villa Rooms. I paid $70 EC (22,16 euros) for a round trip.

Day 3 : Wednesday 31 December 2025 – Children’s Carnival Dreams & Elegant Affair for the New Year’s Eve

In the morning, I walked a little bit until Cudjoe Head, I took a bus and I paid $5 EC (1,58 euros). I saw the headquarters of the Governor’s office, the fire station, the police headquarters, the office of the Premier, others Ministries in Brades such as the Ministry of Agriculture Trade, Land, Housing and Environnement. It was a public holiday. I talked to Deborah and her daughter Faith who sold seamoss juice. I bought one bottle of seamoss juice. Deborah works at the Ministry of Agriculture Trade, Land, Housing and Environnement. I did not find the sign of the Ministry of Communication headquarters to take a picture.

In the afternoon, I went to the Children’s Carnival of Dreams. The parade started at 3 PM from the public market to go to the Carnival City in Little Bay. I paid $10 EC (3,16 euros). Each group performed on stage. I bought local food and drink and icecream of Montserrat. I left at 6 PM. The Dj, the fair skin guy with locks who was in the truck for the Children’s Carnival of Dreams (I forgot to ask for his name) called the taxi DC for me. I paid $70 EC (22,16 euros) for a round trip.

At 10 PM, I sat down in a restaurant named Scoreboard to have a drink and at 11 PM I went to Elegant Affair at Goodlife Nightclub. It was Drinks and Food Inclusive. I saw the New Year’s Fireworks. Every DJ played good music. The Dj, the fair skin guy with locks played music. I left at 5 AM. The taxi DC and his wife were also at the party. They dropped me at Paradise Villa Rooms. I paid $70 EC (22,16 euros) for a round trip.

Day 4 : Thursday 1st January 2026 – Street Parade & Closing Ceremony

In the morning, I went to Little Bay Beach for the first day of the year 2026. I wanted to swim a little bit. I walked until Cudjoe Head to get a bus. I paid $7 EC (2,21 euros) to go to Little Bay Beach. While I was walking to go back to my accomodation, Glenn gave me a ride until Cudjoe Head.

In the afternoon, I went to the Street Parade & Closing Ceremony which really started after 2:30 PM instead of 2PM. I saw different groups of carnival dancing in the streets. They reached the Carnival City and each group performed on stage. It was free. Everyone could attend the closing ceremony. I bought food and drank coconut juice and local juice. Thanks to Maureen, I tasted the National Dish called Goat water at Annies Bar, but unfortunately it was without the meat inside the soup. There was no meat anymore. I drank only the soup called water. I did not pay for this local dish.

Volpanics and Genysis, two steelpan groups played. De Bear performed on stage. I left at 10 PM. The taxi DC dropped me at Paradise Villa Rooms. I paid EC$35 (11,07 euros).

Mr. Kenneth P. Silcott Sr., the director of the Montserrat Art Council made a speech at the Closing Ceremony.

Day 5 : Friday 2 January 2026 – ZJB Radio Montserrat 88.3 & 95.5 FM, the Montserrat National Trust Botanical Gardens

In the morning, I spent about 1 hour in the Bank Of Montserrat. I changed the US Dollars in EC Dollars. There was one teller for many people. So another teller helped. Some people went back to work. I came back to the Ministries headquarters. Thanks to an agent, I saw the sign of the Ministry of Communication, Works Labour and Energy inside a building.

I talked again to Deborah, she asked Terry to drop me at ZJB Radio Montserrat 88.3 & 95.5 FM on Davy Hill. Terry is an assistant driver of the radio station. I met the Manager Herman Sargeant, the Executive Producer James White Jr and three women journalists in the newsroom. At 12 PM, a team of the radio was going to buy lunch and they droppped me in front of the Bank of Montserrat. I took a bus for Salem. I paid the bus $5 EC (1,58 euros) to go the Montserrat National Trust Botanical Gardens. I paid $20 EC (6,33 euros). I talked to a staff member called Kenrick from Jamaica. He showed me where the staff make the plants, where visitors can buy plants. He gave me some plants from the medicinal garden to make some tea in my accomodation. I went to the Oriole Gift Shop and I talked to the saleswoman from Ghana. I forgot to ask for her name.

After the botanical gardens, I had my lunch at Wendy’s Kitchen & Variety. The food was really good. I saw a flag of Jamaica. The owner of the restaurant are from Jamaica.

Near a shop, I talked to a man from Papua New Guinea. He explained me that he came with a group of 30 men from his country to build the new port in Montserrat He told me that there are 800 languages in his country. But he can speak the langage of his group and another one of a group close to his own group.

On my way to go to the accomodation, I talked to a neighbor called Gregory « Isaac ». He was building his own house.

Day 6 : Saturday 3 Januaary 2026 – the National Museum of Montserrat

I visited the National Museum of Montserrat in Little Bay from 11 AM to 1 PM : Montserrat First Peoples – Amerindians, Remembering Jim Allen, Music and Masquerades, Our Story : 1960-2010, Made in Montserrat. I paid $20 EC (6,33 euros). It was very interesting. Alongside the ‘Our Story’ exhibit, I watched the MVO film (Saturdays only). I saw historical images of Montserrat before and after the volcanic crises, and I learnt about the science behind the Soufriere Hills Volcanic eruptions. People lost everything, their houses, their jobs. More than half of the population has since migrated to other caribbean islands, to North America and the UK. A staff member of the Museum explained me that Montserrat had a population of over 10 000 residents before the Volcano eruption. Now, it is appromimately 4000 people. When I read the map of Montserrat, more than half of the island is in a restricted Zone V. People can not live there anymore. She also said that there are three big projects : The Port, The Hospital. I do not remember the third one.

I had my lunch at Buss a Lyme, a restaurant in Little Bay Beach. The local food was really good.

In the afternoon, I walked a lot, then I took a bus to go to Luv’s Sea Island and Cotton store in Salem but it was too late. It was closed. I paid $10 EC (3,16 euros) for the round trip.

On my way to my accomodation, I talked to Norman Cassell, a tour operator, who has an airbnb house on Baker Hill. In the morning, I met him with a group of tourists in the National Museum of Montserrat. The neighbor Gregory « Isaac » gave me 3 mangos.

Day 7 : Sunday 4 January 2026

I rested a little bit in my accomodation Paradise Villa Rooms. I was hungry. So I decided to go to a restaurant. The restaurants at Little Bay Beach were the only ones opened on Sunday. I walked a lot. Max gave me a ride to go to Little Bay Beach. I had my lunch at Scoreboard.

Day 8 : Monday 5 January 2026 – the Montserrat Volcano Observatory, Plymouth the buried city

Access is allowed only to Plymouth to view the Buried City and must be with a certified tour guide. The taxi DC asked the relevant authorities an authorization to visit Plymouth. On Friday 2 January 2026, he filled the Entry Into Zone V Application Form that costs $160 EC.

Thanks to the taxi DC, I saw Runaway Ghaut. I visited the Montserrat Volcano Observatory where I took pictures of an exhibition. I went to Plymouth, the buried city. It is like a ghost city and an abandoned cemetery. I took pictures of the buried city, and the Volcano. The black sand of the Volcano covered everything. I saw the second floor of some buildings. Below there are the first floor. If I understood well, the taxi DC drove in a road where below was the old road or buildings. Montserrat has a mining where they use the black sand of the volcano to build houses. They sell the black sand abroad. I also saw the new building of the Montserrat National Museum. I paid USD $130 for the tour and $160 EC for the Entry Into Zone V Application Form. If I remember well, a freelancer from the Disaster Management Coordination Agency (DMCA) came to open the gate to go to the buried capital of Plymouth. He gave the taxi DC a talkie walkie to be in contact with the Montserrat Volcano Observatory. A helicopter of the MVO also flew over the Zone V. It was an amazing experience.

I spent about one hour in the Bank of Montserrat to change Euros in EC. I wanted to buy leather shoes by Cecil Wades but I did not find that I wanted. So I bought other things made in leather. After on my way to go to a restaurant, I talked to Karim, a man with locks. I had my lunch at Chit Chat, a snackette & bar catering service. The food was really good.

I bought a cheesecase at Wendy’s Kitchen & Variety where I met Carolyn who lives abroad. If I remember well, her parents are from Anguilla but she was raised in Montserrat. We talked a little bit about travel. She invited me to eat one mango.

Cudjoe Head is a village in Montserrat and gets its name from the story of Cudjoe. Before going back to my accomodation, I took pictures of the tree where Cudjoe’s head was hung. This slave was beheaded for his efforts to become a free man. His head was cut off and hung in this tree. In a house next to this tree, I talked to Jauvere (Chanzzy is her name as a singer), Clarone, Semmae and her mother about the story of Cudjoe Head.

Day 9 : Tuesday 6 January 2026

It was time to leave Montserrat. Once I arrived in Montserrat on Tuesday 30 December 2025, Winair sent me an email about a schedule change for Tuesday 6 January 2026. It was 10:15 AM instead of 9:55. During my stay in the island, I read another email about a schedcule change 10:30 AM instead of 10:15 AM. On Monday 5 January 2026, the schedule changed again, 10:25 instead of 10:30. The night before, it was impossible to check in online. Winair is the only airline company who travels from St. Marteen to Montserrat. If I well understood, it did not fly because of weather conditions. This category of plane needs a level of wind to fly. There was no wind in Montserrat to take off and land. At the beginning, there was a lack of communication. The staff did not explain that it was because of weather conditions, they just cancelled the flight. A passenger explained me and I asked the staff because I told them that I have another flight from Saint Martin to Guadeloupe. For the staff, it was my problem.

A group of passengers tried to find an alternative and see if we could pay a charter with Fly Montserrat which costs USD $3000 to go to St. Marteen for the next day. Of course, it is 3000 divided by 5 or 6 persons.

I also tried to find my own solutions : I asked the staff of Winair to pay one night for my accomodation, or to make an arrangement with Fly Montserrat for the passengers to go to St. Marteen. They said no for the two options. I asked Fly Montserrat to go to Antigua. From Antigua, it is possible to go to St. Marteen. At the end, it was less expensive for me to wait for the next day. Winair sent me an email called reaccomodation, same hour for Wednesday. I contacted the owner of the accomodation. The taxi DC picked me up at the airport to go back to Paradise Villa Rooms for one night. I paid £37.03 (42,79 euros + 0,98 euros for a card payment commission on my bank account). I asked the owner for a receipt.

In the afternoon, I talked to a neighbor called Gregory « Isaac » about this situation with Winair. He gave me 2 mangos.

Day 10 : Wednesday 7 January 2026

Winair did not fly again because of weather conditions. Winair sent me an email called reaccomodation, same hour for Thursday.

With a group of six passengers, we decided to pay the charter of Fly Montserrat. The charter is USD $3000 to go to St. Marteen. But If I well understood, the owner of the air company told us it is USD $4000 including taxes. They were already aware of the situation the day before because they had a list with the name of passengers. An access man working in a government office came at the airport. He told us that the charter with Fly Montserrat is free and we will ask Winair for a voucher. There was hope in the eyes of everybody. One of the six passengers called Trevor told us that he called the Premier of Montserrat who did not know about the situation with Winair. Thanks to the Premier, we could travel. The plane was supposed to take off at 1:30 PM. However, before 1PM, the same access man told us that the charter was cancelled because the traffic was too much important in St. Marteen. The plane could not land. Before that, I asked SVG Air the price to go to Antigua: it was $442 EC for one way ticket but there were not planes. It was about $ 600 EC for Fly Montserrat to go to Antigua. At the end, I contacted the owner of the accomodation. The taxi DC picked me up at the airport to go back to Paradise Villa Rooms for one night again. I paid £37.03 (42,84 euros + 0,99 euros for a card payment commission on my bank account). I asked the owner for a receipt.

Day 11 : Thursday 8 and Friday 9 January 2026

I asked again SVG Air to go to Antigua. The staff told me it does only charter.

Winair could fly. Weather conditions were perfect. There was more wind. First of all, Winair flied to Antigua and after came back for the passengers of the destination St. Marteen. I paid a departure tax of $35 EC (11,07 euros) at the John A. Osborne Airport in Montserrat. All the passengers who were supposed to fly on Tuesday 6 january 2026, arrived in St. Marteen on Thursday 8 January 2026 at around 2 PM. I had to sleep one night in Grand Case near the airport. As for me, I arrived in Guadeloupe on Friday 9 January 2026.

My experience with Winair

Mother Nature did not help Winair to fly ! It is the first time of my life that I hear a plane can not take off or land if it does not have a level of wind to fly. It was back luck on Tuesday and Wednesday. It was an excuse for Fly Montserrat and an indian man in a supermarket I talked with. According to Trevor, a passenger, same things happened for St. Patrick in March 2025.

Winair has the monopoly to fly from St. Marteen to Montserrat. The ferry from Montserrat to Antigua does not operate anymore. A man from Montserrat told me that there were flights between Montserrat and Guadeloupe long time ago, perhaps before the Volcano eruption. If I look at a map of the Caribbean Sea, Guadeloupe is very closed to Montserrat perhaps 15 or 20 minutes by plane. On Monday 29 December 2025, the pilot of Air Caraibes from Guadeloupe to Saint-Martin told us to see Montserrat on our left and Antigua and Barbuda on our right.

I think I need to have my own plane and boat ! If someone from Guadeloupe wants to stay for a week in Montserrat, she or he has two solutions: flying with Winair from St. Marteen hoping to have good weather conditions, or taking three planes, flying from Guadeloupe to Saint-Martin, from St. Marteen to Antigua and taking Fly Montserrat from Antigua.

I was tired and I lost my english a little bit. I had headaches for two days, on Tuesday and Wednesday,. I slept less. I do not know why I was very cold on Tuesday evening in the accomodation, even though I had the sheets. I stayed only in the accomodation. For me, it was not holidays anymore. I was very sad because I wanted to go back to Guadeloupe the day I decided to do it !

When I arrived in Saint Martin on Thursday 8 January 2026, a taxi man told me that it was true that there was a lot of traffic at the Princess Juliana International Aiport, perhapts because of the situation in Venezuela that happened the weekend before.

I wrote to the customer relations of Winair to get a refund for the two nights I paid for Paradise Villa Rooms and the additional expense for the flight ticket from Saint Martin to Guadeloupe. This situation was the responsability of Winair not mine. Even if the staff said it is because of Mother Nature and they could do nothing about it !

My experience with Winair was a scary movie. I was stranded for two days in an island closed to mine. It was not funny !

I show you the answers of the customer relations about my request sent on Wednesday 28 January 2026, the same day I published my article : « While we truly regret the impact this situation had on your travel plans, we are unable to reimburse expenses related to accommodations, missed reservations, or alternative transportation arranged independently. For assistance with the unused portion of your ticket, we kindly recommend contacting our Reservations Department, who will be pleased to assist in accordance with the applicable fare rules and conditions ». The Reservations Department answered me that « According to the history of this booking, the booking was used« .

People I met at the airport

I met other passengers from Montserrat who lives abroad : Claudia, her husband and her son, Meredith and Trevor. We did the picture on Thursday 8 january 2025. Winair could fly. Weather conditions were good. Kwame traveled days after without any issues with Winair, he was luckier than us. Amelda-Rose, who knows Claudia, helped me to get the contact of the customer service of Winair.

I also talked to a couple, passengers like us : she (I don’t know her name) is from Anguilla and her boyfriend is from Montserrat. They live and work in Anguilla. Other passengers, white people were in the same situation than us.

During the two more days at the airport I met two people I talked with : Ingrid Buffonge and Mr. Kenneth P. Silcott Sr. the director of the Montserrat Art Council. Ingrid Buffonge told me that she works in a health sector. If I well understood, she explained me that there is a project to set up medical evacuations by helicopter for seriously ill patients at the Hospital in Guadeloupe. She saw me at different events. She asked me why I came to Montserrat. She told me I can come with friends next time. I follow her Instagram and I saw that she is a doctor and a Health Minister. On the Official Website of the Government of Montserrat, she is the Minister of Education, Health, Social Services and Youth Affairs.

Official Websites & contacts in the country

For more information, you can go to :

• The Official Website of the Montserrat Tourism Authority : https://www.visitmontserrat.com/
• The Official Website of the Government of Montserrat : https://www.gov.ms/
• The Official Website of ZJB Radio Montserrat : https://zjbradio.com/
• The Official Website of Montserrat National Trust to visit the Botanical Gardens and the National Museum of Montserrat : https://montserratnationaltrust.ms/
• The Official Website of the Montserrat Volcano Observatory : https://www.mvo.ms/
• The Facebook of Montserrat Festivals : https://www.facebook.com/MontserratFestivals
• The Facebook of Montserrat Art Council : https://www.facebook.com/MontserratArtsCouncil
• Ricky Melvric Williams, the owner of Paradise Villa Rooms : + 44 7984 636 291
• DC BUS AND TAXI SERVICE : +1 (664) 392-4994
• Norman Cassell Tour Operator : +1 (664) 492-1672

All the photos and videos are on Instagram and the Facebook’s page of Karibbean Newsweek.

Résumé

Connue pour être l’île d’Emeraude des Caraïbes, Montserrat est un territoire britannique dans la mer des Caraïbes. Selon le site Internet de l’Office du tourisme de Montserrat, l’île est administrée par un Premier ministre et un Parlement élus localement. Le gouvernement britannique nomme un gouverneur qui réside sur l’île et qui joue un rôle de conseiller. Les habitants de Montserrat sont des ressortissants britanniques, ils possèdent un passeport de Montserrat et un passeport britannique. L’île compte environ 5 000 résidents. Parmi eux, des immigrants originaires de la Dominique, de la Jamaïque, du Guyana, de la République dominicaine et d’Haïti, venus prêter main-forte à la reconstruction après la première éruption volcanique. En 1995, la vie à Montserrat a basculé lorsque le volcan de la Soufrière, longtemps endormi, est entré en éruption pour la première fois en près de 400 ans. Les deux tiers de la partie sud de l’île, y compris la capitale Plymouth, ont été dévastés et une grande partie reste enfouie sous d’épaisses couches de cendres et de boue. Plus de la moitié de la population a depuis émigré dans d’autres îles anglophones, en Amérique du Nord et au Royaume-Uni. La ville de Plymouth, la colline Saint-Georges, le volcan de la Soufrière et toute la partie sud de l’île se trouvent en zone V, également appelée zone d’exclusion. L’accès est autorisé uniquement à Plymouth pour visiter la Cité ensevelie et doit se faire en compagnie d’un guide touristique agréé. Les visites sont strictement encadrées par un agent en freelance du Disaster Management Coordination Agency (DMCA). Une liaison permanente est maintenue avec l’Observatoire volcanologique de Montserrat. Un système d’alarme sonore est installé sur l’ensemble de l’île et sert à signaler toute activité volcanique susceptible d’affecter le reste du territoire. Il est testé quotidiennement à midi.

Je me suis rendue dans trois événements du Montserrat Carnival 63′ : Queen of Queens Regional Female Calypso Competition, Children’s Carnival of Dreams, Street Parade & Closing Ceremony. J’ai aussi passé le Nouvel An dans la soirée Elegant Affair. J’ai vu les bâtiments des ministères et administrations locales. J’ai été à la plage de Little Bay. J’ai visité le jardin botanique du Montserrat National Trust, le Musée national de Montserrat, l’Observatoire volcanologique de Montserrat. Il est possible de regarder un documentaire de 26 minutes de l’Observatoire volcanologique sur la vie à Montserrat pendant et après l’éruption du volcan uniquement le samedi au musée, et les autres jours à l’Observatoire volcanologique. Accompagnée d’un guide touristique agrée, je suis allée à Plymouth, la ville ensevelie. C’est vraiment une ville fantôme. C’est impressionnant. J’ai compris pourquoi j’entendais la sirène à midi chaque jour. J’aime bien discuter avec les professionnels des médias. J’ai rencontré Herman Sargeant, le directeur de ZJB Radio Montserrat 88.3 & 95.5 FM, et les journalistes.

J’étais censée revenir en Guadeloupe le mardi 6 janvier 2026. Je suis finalement rester deux jours supplémentaires, bloquée sur une île proche de la mienne. C’est franchement l’ironie du sort ! J’ai essayé de trouver des solutions pour rentrer chez moi assez rapidement. Je pense que je dois avoir mon bateau et mon avion. La nature est en cause parce qu’il n’y avait pas assez de vent à Montserrat pour permettre à ce type d’avion de la compagnie aérienne Winair d’atterrir et de décoller. Si j’ai bien compris, c’est un phénomène qui se produit assez souvent. Winair a le monopole pour les trajets de St. Marteen à Montserrat. J’ai engagé des dépenses supplémentaires à Montserrat et pour revenir en Guadeloupe. C’est une situation qui n’est pas de ma faute. En tant que passager, je constate que j’ai été livrée à moi-même. Par conséquent, j’exige un remboursement des frais engagés. Voici la réponse du service relations clients :« Nous regrettons sincèrement les désagréments occasionnés par cette situation sur vos projets de voyage. Malheureusement, nous ne sommes pas en mesure de rembourser les frais d’hébergement, les réservations annulées ou les transports alternatifs organisés par vos soins. Pour toute assistance concernant la partie inutilisée de votre billet, nous vous invitons à contacter notre service des réservations, qui se fera un plaisir de vous aider conformément aux conditions tarifaires applicables ». Le service des réservations m’a répondu :  » D’après l’historique de cette réservation, celle-ci a été utilisée« . Pendant ces deux jours supplémentaires, j’ai fait la connaissance des personnes originaires de Montserrat, qui rentraient dans les pays où ils vivent et travaillent. Quelle aventure !

St@y connected !

Salaura DIDON