The southern segment of the Lesser Antilles is known as the Windward Islands. For our purposes, these stretch from Dominica down to Trinidad and Tobago. As with their Leeward neighbors to the north, the Windwards are legendary among divers and other travelers from around the world. Beginning in the north, the island of Dominica is surrounded by deep water that is home to open ocean species, including billfish and even Sperm and Humpback Whales. You never know what you’ll encounter—but you can be sure it will be exciting. At the southern end of the island, the reefs are loaded with invertebrates and night dives bring out the best of these. Just down from Dominica, Martinique is well known for its fish life, including schools of Atlantic Spadefish and lots of tropicals. Whales and Whale Sharks have been reported here, too. There are walls and pinnacles.

St. Lucia is famous for its seamounts, but everywhere you go there are healthy reefs and abundant marine life. Wrecks only add spice to this delicious divers’ recipe. St. Vincent and The Grenadines represent some of the most colorful diving in the Caribbean because of their wealth of sponges. Among these are countless invertebrates and reef fish. Drift diving is a specialty in these islands.

Grenada offers a huge wreck and reefs thick with gorgonians and hard corals. Nurse sharks are a highlight. Nearby, the smaller island of Carriacou boasts a drift dive you will never forget. More in the Atlantic than Caribbean, Barbados offers many varieties of reef diving, but all feature healthy sponges and corals. Barrier reefs offer larger coral formations, concentrations of fish and turtle encounters. There are several notable wrecks off this island, too. The two-island nation of Trinidad/ Tobago lies just off the coast of Venezuela. Tobago has the best diving. This includes several types of reef terrain and lush concentrations of invertebrates and fish. There are drift dives and pinnacles surrounded by pelagics.