Northern Haiti

Northern Haiti lies along the Atlantic side of the country and includes the northern peninsula. It is the area most visited by tourists, due to its relative safety and the presence of Labadee, a popular cruise ship excursion site.

Cities

• 1 Cap-Haïtien — the country's second largest city.
• 2 Fort Liberté — a border town near some interesting ruins and the Dominican border.
• 3 Gonaïves — a small-ish port, where the first black republic was born.
• 4 Milot — a small town right by two of the country's most famous landmarks: the Sans-Souci Palace and the Citadelle Laferrière.
• 5 Port-de-Paix — a smuggling haven en route to Miami, and a potential point of embark for Tortuga Island.

Other destinations

• 1 Labadee — Haiti's principal source of tourist dollar, surprisingly, is one lone (beautiful) private beach, off limits to Haitians, and owned by a busy cruise liner, dropping off hundreds of daytrippers every day.
• 2 Tortuga Island — an island just waiting to become a major tourist destination is as of yet still entirely undeveloped, with limited electricity, no police force, no infrastructure upkeep, as well as beautiful rocky views, one incredibly beautiful and isolated beach, centuries of pirate history, and a good number of mountaintop mansions belonging to various drug lords.

Get in

Cap-Haitien International Airport is the primary way of getting in, unless you're on a Royal Caribbean cruise bound for Labadee, in which case you'll arrive by cruise ship.

Get around

There isn't much public transportation in Haiti (understandably) so your primary way of getting around will be by car.

Go next

The central areas of Haiti are some of the most dangerous in the Western Hemisphere. The Dominican Republic, however, is generally safer for travel. Keep in mind the border between the DR and Haiti isn't always open, so plan ahead.