France

Northern Martinique

WHS Score 3.15 Votes 20 Average 3.62

The Volcanoes and Forests of Mount Pelée and the Pitons of Northern Martinique comprise internationally renowned examples of volcanic morphologies and processes.

The Pitons du Carbet count 12 peaks and are shaped by lava domes. Mount Pelée (which is only partly included) is an iconic volcano, remarkable for its fierce eruptive style. It has produced a high number of eruptions, such as the deadly one in 1902-1905 which led to the construction of one of the first volcanological observatories in the world. The site further has the most diverse biodiversity in the Lesser Antilles (forest, plants).

Community Perspective: you can hike up Mount Pelée in a couple of hours, but it can be a wet experience and you may find the top covered in clouds.

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Site Info

Official Information
Full Name
Volcanoes and Forests of Mount Pelée and the Pitons of Northern Martinique (ID: 1657)
Country
France
Status
Inscribed 2023 Site history
History of Northern Martinique
WHS Type
Natural
Criteria
  • viii
  • x
Links
UNESCO
whc.unesco.org
All Links
UNESCO.org

Community Information

  • Community Category
  • Natural landscape: Volcanic
  • Human activity: Transport and Trade
Travel Information
No travel information
Recent Connections
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Connections of Northern Martinique
Geography
  • Type of volcanic eruptions
    "the Peléan type, which is marked by alternating dome-forming and Plinian eruptions, characterized by the formation of convective eruption columns." (AB ev)
  • Recently Active Volcanoes
    "The 1902-1905 eruption of mount Pelée is considered the deadliest volcanic event in the 20th century" (AB ev)
  • Caribbean Sea
    Reaches the sea at its northern tip
History
  • Historical Events
    Criterion (viii): Earth's history and geological features 'The 1902-1905 eruption is considered a key event for the history of volcanology. - AB Evaluation
Ecology
World Heritage Process
WHS on Other Lists
News

No news.

Recent Visitors
Reserved for members.

Community Reviews

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First published: 06/11/24.

Svein Elias

Northern Martinique

Northern Martinique (Inscribed)

Northern Martinique by Svein Elias

During our easter holiday this year we visited some islands in the Lesser Antilles. The French Island of Martinique was one of them and naturally we visited this new WHS. We arrived at Fort-de-France, the islands main city, by ferry from Castries St Lucia, a ferry trip of 1 ½ hour. After a bus ride to the airport for picking up the rental car we were on our way to our next WHS.

The buffer zone of this site covers a major part of the northern part of the island, but the core zone is divided into two smaller areas. Our route took us through the southern WHS area which contains The Pitons du Carbet, but we opted for passing through the green and lush lower areas as it was already afternoon. Even though the drive is beautiful the main site for us would be the Mount Pelèe with its 1397 mas in the norther core zone. The mountain area is visible from a distance – if there’s any visibility. We were lucky.

We went for the parking on the southeastern side which is about 800 mas to figure out how to “attack” this mountain the following day. From the parking there is little to see. The visibility was good enough, but you only see the first bit of the climb. The better view was from a distance. Our survey did nothing for us other than we could see that the hike starts with a steep climb up …

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First published: 04/10/19.

Zoë Sheng

Northern Martinique

Northern Martinique (Inscribed)

Northern Martinique by Zoë Sheng

I'm typically biased towards nature site but this one is really nice and worth a visit. An hour's drive from FdF at the most through beautiful scenery already (although the roads can be narrow yet in good condition) you arrive at the parking lot for Mount/Montagne Pelée. The lookout is nice too but the mountain is obviously what you came for - yes, ignore that ugly power station at the start of the hike /cough cough.

The hike is roughly 6-7km depending where you actually go. The goal is Le Chinois, should I be offended here? The peak doesn't really look like a "Chinaman" at all. You do not necessarily get to the top to enjoy this place. The start of the hike is steep and you may be wondering why the path is so tiny. The mist can make this also a very wet hike and the top is often covered with clouds as you can still make out in my picture, this was the best one I got before it was covered up again. This also meant that some of the hiking is frustrating because the view is not that great sometimes. Don't let it stop you from circling around this lovely and once deadly volcano.

The nature here is just outstanding and fresh. So green. There are other places that want to be inscribed such as Caravelle à Trinité but I stopped there and wasn't that impressed. There are many places on Martinique worth visiting …

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