John Mooney says:
Feb 11, 2019 11:02 PM

Dominica was not what was to be expected after the hurricane. Roseau has been nicely rebuilt but there are many abandoned building like on many of the other islands. We expected to see much worse conditions. In fact, it has the nicest Super Market we have seen on any of the islands. Pancho gave us a tour around the island and he was fantastic. Had a meal at the Drop Anchor and Guy made us feel like family.

Would love to return to spend more time however Mr. Bean (Seacat Moorings) made it very uncomfortable for us. If we return we will head to Portsmouth instead of returning here because of Mr. Bean. Also, his mooring ball rates are varied depending on his mood and he charged us 80 EC for two nights plus money for his gas, it was a first that we have ever seen. Doyle Guide book says you can anchor in that area but Mr. Bean said no, and when questioned about the price for mooring he said the guide books are wrong and that is the price. Too bad Mr. Bean can ruin the whole experience of the island.

On 17 March ’18, we paid for a mooring buoy from Markus – all was OK. Our only remark is that there was a lot of wood drifting around in the bay – most probably locals who left all “debris” of their houses on the beach! Dangerous for cruising yachts. We do believe Roseau responsible can do better!
SALOME III

Update: I was there again: Disco is closed, no more loud music at this place. Marcus (moorings…) said this will be permanent! Dinghy dock at customs, the one at Fort Young Hotel is NOT for guests…

Posted by Eve and Tom on the main Dominica Page:

We stayed in Dominica in January 2018.
There is much devastation around the island: trees are ripped bare and many roofs are (partly) missing. Construction and repairs are in full progress, and the trees have new leaves on them already. People are very friendly and helpful. I think the best thing to do right now is to spend some money (go to a cafe, restaurant, get a mooring, do a tour) and spread the word about lovely Dominica.

ROSEAU

The Anchorage hotel is abandoned and the ‘conspicuous white roof’ described on Navionics is missing.
The moorings in the north of the bay belong to Markus, and the moorings in the south to Seacat. Because of some initial confusion we accidentally took a Seacat mooring – after reading the messages here on Noonsite we wanted to moor with Markus. Markus wasn’t on VHF 16, Seacat was. The moorings were both 40 EC.

Seacat doesn’t have tenders or a dock, so you have to take your dinghy onto the stony beach to pay them and to get to town. Markus uses the dock of an abandoned building, which we also used for our dinghy. The middle part of the dock is gone so you have to walk along narrow concrete beams to get to land. You have to pass through the abandoned building, which we did, also at night. It was not a problem, but we felt a bit insecure at first. We paid Markus 10 EC to watch our boat and gave him a couple of packs of cigarettes, which he was very happy with.

The cruise dock is being used again. We witnessed the first cruise ship dock since the hurricane. The whole town was working and rushing to make everything look fine for the tourists. The hotels near the cruise ship dock are in the final stages of being repaired and the central market place has just opened up again.
Customs and immigration are in the cruise ship terminal. We paid 85 EC for the formalities (2 persons, including a cruising permit). It is possible to check in and out at the same time if you stay less than a week.

Seacat offers tours, but if you’re walking along the road you get plenty of other offers for tours as well. The best offer we got was 100 EC for the waterfalls (for two persons). You can also take a local bus up to Wotton Waven, but they don’t run on Sundays.

It is amazing to hear first-hand stories about the hurricane from the (locals) and very inspiring to hear how the country is getting back on its feet.

I heard about the moorings issue and I believe more yachts broke off from the same mooring field prior to the incident you witnessed. From what I was told by the marine security, the moorings that broke off all belonged to SeaCat. There are many other moorings in the area, such as those from Dive Dominica, Marcus and Dominica Marine Center (checked and double checked every month using 1-1/2″ twisted nylon with no shackles and swivels – meaning no weak points).

Posted by Chris Doyle (www.doyleguides.com) on the Dominica Cruisers Facebook Page:
Unfortunately, Roseau does not have the benefit of PAYS. Security is provided with my Marcus, who used to be paid for the full security he provides but now only gets a fraction and sometimes has to buy his own gas. But he loves the job and does it well. So if you are stopping in Roseau please give him a call (285-3793) and give him a tip. We have figured $5 EC per boat per day would go a long way towards helping. It will be a suggestion in the new guide, but that is a long time for him to wait!

Thanks, Ivarekseth … do visit Roseau and join us at THE LOFT! free internet, book exchange, weather information café and art gallery all in one. Yes, we have the fuel dock with water, ice, bakery and groceries all on site. The Loft is part of Dominica Marine Center serving the best shrimp pizzas in the Caribbean 🙂