One look at Vanessa Dieudonne’s TikTok page and you’d swear she has been visiting Trinidad and Tobago for years. The majority of her content is dedicated to our twin islands, capturing everything from Maracas Beach and Port-of-Spain to the folklore of Crusoe’s Cave and the nighttime rhythm of Buccoo.
But the reality is she has only spent eight days on these shores: four in Trinidad in December last year and another four in Tobago in January this year.
Despite visiting over 30 countries across six continents, T&T tops her list. Her journey here started as a simple search for some sun.
“Honestly, I picked T&T mostly because I wanted somewhere warm for the holidays,” she told WE.
“The flights weren’t crazy expensive, so I literally just went for it. It was a spur-of-the-moment decision.” Back in New York, she says friends keep asking why this place—unlike anywhere else—has her so hooked. “It’s just… something in the air, the light, the rhythm of daily life. Even without roots here, I felt part of something bigger.”
That instant belonging came straight from the people.
On Dieudonne’s second day in Trinidad, a local guide invited her home to join the extended family’s Christmas Day spread, introducing her to sorrel and “one of the most delicious meals I’d ever had.”
From there, she dove in head first. Her Port-of-Spain hotel was just for sleeping. She immersed herself in the culture, drawn to the capital’s bold architecture and the welcoming vibe of our landmarks. She remembers standing in the middle of Maracas Beach during a light rain, surprised that a place she had only just met could already feel like home. “Not to be melodramatic, but I literally stood at one point for about 20 minutes straight, not moving an inch; just staring out into the water. I wasn’t thinking about anything dramatic; I was just there. Fully present.”
Tobago’s island life was just as refreshing. The “nosy” bats circling around her at Crusoe’s Cave and the late-night steel pan performance at the popular Sunday School event remain at the top of Dieudonne’s mind. She hadn’t heard steelpan music performed live before; it left her mesmerised.
“A few locals noticed how captivated I was, and we started chatting. Normally, I am incredibly timid when talking to foreign locals, especially at night, but there was instant camaraderie.”
And the food? That won her over completely. She still thinks about bake and shark, doubles with mango chutney, and king fish. She even recalls her Tobagonian guide spending the morning calling around just to find her a piece of breadfruit pie. “When I finally got it, I swear that the entire container did not live to see the next morning. It was that delicious.”
What truly captured Dieudonne, though, is T&T’s unapologetic cultural confidence. “Nobody here feels the need to tone themselves down for outsiders,” she observes. “The culture just exists as it is. Loud, colourful, layered, and so proud. Even something as simple as ‘liming’ says so much. That is just life in T&T!” That’s why she so easily brushes off the cautionary travel advisories that deter others.
“I felt looked out for,” the New Yorker insists, “and the company I had made me feel safer than I’d felt on most of my trips. I would tell a fellow nomad this: don’t let fearmongering rob you of an experience that could genuinely change you.”
At 35, Dieudonne has a lifetime of stories to tell. Growing up in poverty and experiencing homelessness once robbed her of her self-worth, but those hardships built her fearless approach to life and travel today. As a paediatric registered nurse in homecare, she designs her schedule around her adventures, not the other way around. “You only get one life. Eighty or 90 years if you have good health, then poof... lights out. I decided to make it count.” Her journeys and personal health transformation inspired her book, Globe-Trotting and 60 Pounds Down, written under the pen name Vanessa Vasoé.
As a single woman exploring the world, she’s not chasing romance—but she’s open to whatever comes.
For now, she’s simply basking in the freedom she worked so hard to earn.
So, where to next? She doesn’t know yet. “I’m always curious about what’s out there, but I don’t plan every move 100 per cent of the time. Honestly, that’s the best part. I have no idea what’s next, and that’s exactly how I like it.”
Some places you visit. Others claim you. For Vanessa Dieudonne, Trinidad and Tobago did the latter.
