Haiti

Port-au-Prince

A chaotic capital where the modern blocks of Petionville sit against sprawling slums. The historic centre was badly damaged by the disasters of recent decades and much of it has never been rebuilt.

Cap-Haitien

The northern coast holds onto its status as the country's cultural centre, with a colonial street grid still intact. Life here moves at a noticeably steadier pace than in the capital.

Jacmel

The town that draws anyone interested in art, with Victorian mansions and workshops turning out folk crafts. It is the most walkable place in Haiti and the easiest to like.

Carrefour

A major residential and transport node in the capital region. Most travellers pass through rather than stop, but it is a name you will see on every route board.

Les Cayes

The gateway to the southern beaches and the farming districts around them. Infrastructure out here remains extremely basic, so expect little in the way of services.

Gonaives

A key port and a political centre in the middle of the country. It has an outsized place in Haitian history relative to its size today.

The Citadelle: Laferriere, the vast mountaintop fortress, is the country's headline monument and a UNESCO-protected site. It was built to defend a newly free nation and the scale of it still lands.
The palace: The ruins of Sans-Souci at the foot of the mountain speak to the vanished grandeur of Haiti's nineteenth-century kings. The two sights sit close together and are normally seen on the same trip.
Waterfalls: Bassin Bleu near Jacmel is what to see if you want the turquoise water and the tropical grottoes around it. Getting down to the pools involves a scramble, which keeps the crowds thin.
History: The national museum, MUPANAH, holds the anchor of Columbus's flagship along with relics from the slave revolution. It is the single best hour you can spend on understanding the country.
Craft and architecture: The Iron Market in the capital stands out for its unusual eastern-influenced architecture and the sheer volume of artisan work inside. It is a landmark as much as a market.
Memory: The Vertieres monument commemorates the decisive battle that ended French rule on the island. For Haitians it is the founding site of the republic.

Currency: The gourde (HTG) is the official money, but everyday speech uses the Haitian dollar, a notional unit worth five gourdes. Prices are quoted in both, so always confirm which one someone means.
Cash: US dollars are accepted almost everywhere, though change usually comes back in gourdes at a rate that favours the seller. Bring your entire budget in cash, in a mix of small and large notes, because there is no reliable way to top up once you are in the country.
Exchange: Change money only at banks or official bureaux, since the rate is highly unstable and street deals go wrong. Count everything before you leave the counter.
Cards: Card acceptance is minimal and effectively limited to the expensive hotels of Petionville. ATMs are unreliable and should not feature in any plan.

Item	Price (USD)
Lunch at a cheap cafe	6.50
Dinner for two at a restaurant	54.00
Cup of coffee	1.30
Bottle of water 0.33l	0.80
Night in a secure hotel	200.00
Room in a guesthouse	35.00
Bus ticket from the Dominican Republic	40.00
Border fee at the crossing	40.00
Domestic flight	95.00
Local SIM with a data bundle	6.00
eSIM, 1 GB for a week	8.50
Tap-tap ride	0.30
Monthly transport pass	12.00
Departure tax	55.00
Insurance with evacuation cover, one week	250.00

Flights in: Toussaint Louverture airport operates erratically because of armed group activity around it. Schedules change at short notice and closures happen without warning.
Domestic flights: Sunrise Airways is the safest way to get from the capital to Cap-Haitien, at around 95 USD. Given the state of the roads, the flight is not a luxury.
Tap-taps: Painted pickup trucks run fixed routes across the towns for a few cents. Always confirm the fare before you climb in, since foreigners are quoted differently.
Overland: Caribe Tours coaches connect Haiti with the Dominican Republic for about 40 USD plus border fees. For many travellers this is a more predictable way in than flying.
Taxis: Moto-taxis are everywhere and cheap, but they carry a high risk of both injury and robbery. Agree the full price with any driver before the vehicle moves.
Roads: The RN1 highway between north and south is frequently blocked by gangs seizing vehicles. Overland movement between cities is the single riskiest thing most visitors do here.

Where to stay: In the capital, the only sensible option is a guarded hotel in the upmarket Petionville district. Everything else in Port-au-Prince carries risk that is difficult to manage.
Guesthouses: Jacmel and Cap-Haitien both have small family-run guesthouses in older buildings. These are the pleasantest places to stay in the country and the owners are usually excellent sources of local information.
Prices: A night in a properly secured hotel with its own generator and guards can reach 400 USD. That figure reflects the cost of running private infrastructure, not the standard of the room.
Utilities: Power and water problems are the norm rather than the exception. Choose accommodation with its own tanks and generator, and ask about both before you book.
Budget end: A budget bed in a private house costs roughly 20–30 USD a night. Standards vary enormously, so a personal recommendation counts for more than an online rating.
Booking: Use the online platforms to find places, but confirm the reservation directly over WhatsApp. Listings go stale quickly and a message exchange tells you whether the place is actually operating.

Griot: Pork marinated in citrus and then fried is the country's culinary emblem. Eat it hot and freshly cooked rather than from a tray that has been sitting out, which is the main way people get ill here.
Diri djon djon: Rice that turns black from the rare dried mushrooms cooked into it. The flavour is earthy and unlike anything else in the Caribbean, and it is usually reserved for occasions.
Soup joumou: Pumpkin soup that stands for independence itself, traditionally cooked and eaten at the beginning of January. Being offered a bowl is a genuine gesture of welcome.
Pikliz: A fiercely hot relish of pickled cabbage and chilli that comes with almost any meat dish. A little goes further than you expect.
Rum: Barbancourt, distilled from cane juice rather than molasses, is prized by people who know rum across the whole region. It is the obvious thing to bring home.
Water: Tap water is genuinely dangerous and should never be drunk. Buy bottled water from shops and use it for brushing your teeth as well.

The overall picture: Travel to Haiti is not advisable at present. The country is in a humanitarian crisis with large areas outside any effective law enforcement, and you should read your own government's travel advisory before considering a trip.
Gangs: Armed coalitions control as much as eighty per cent of the capital, including major transport junctions and the ports. Control of specific districts shifts week to week, so yesterday's safe route means nothing today.
Districts: Avoid Cite Soleil and Martissant entirely, along with the roads leading to the international airport. There is no version of these areas that is safe for a visitor.
Kidnapping: Foreigners are a priority target for ransom, with demands running into very large sums. This risk applies to aid workers and journalists as much as to tourists.
Highways: Intercity roads are patrolled by armed groups carrying out robberies and vehicle seizures. Nobody should be moving between cities after dark, and many routes are unwise at any hour.
Emergency response: State rescue and police services cannot guarantee safety even for diplomatic staff. Plan on the assumption that no official help will arrive quickly.

Vodou: Vodou is an officially recognised religion, blending African rites with elements of Catholic practice. It is woven through daily life rather than confined to ceremonies, and treating it as spectacle causes offence.
National pride: Haitians take enormous pride in being the first republic in the world to defeat slavery. That history is the reference point for a great deal of the country's culture and politics.
Greetings: Always greet people politely when you walk into a shop or an office. Skipping it reads as a real discourtesy rather than mere absent-mindedness.
Photography: Ask permission before photographing anyone. Taking pictures without it can escalate into a confrontation quickly, particularly in the capital.
Dress: Government offices and churches expect formal, well-covered clothing. Casual beachwear anywhere in town will mark you out immediately.
Bargaining: Haggling is expected at local markets, but it should stay calm and good-humoured. Aggression in a negotiation gets you a worse price and worse feeling.

Networks: Digicel has the best coverage and competes with the state operator Natcom. Between them they cover the cities well and the countryside patchily.
SIM cards: You can buy a SIM at an official shop with your passport, and mobile data bundles are cheap. Registration takes a few minutes.
eSIM: An eSIM from a provider such as Airalo keeps you connected without visiting an office or dealing with anyone at all, which has obvious appeal here. Around 8.50 USD buys a gigabyte for a week.
Messaging: WhatsApp is the essential tool for reaching drivers, hosts and fixers. Nearly every arrangement you make in Haiti will be confirmed on it.
Coverage: 4G is stable in Petionville and the larger towns but disappears completely in rural areas. It can also be cut during civil unrest.
Power: Constant rolling blackouts mean you should always carry a charged power bank. Charge everything whenever the mains come back on.

English	Haitian Creole	Pronunciation
Hello, good day	Bonjou	bon-ZHOO
Good evening	Bonswa	bon-SWA
How are you?	Kouman ou ye?	koo-MAN oo yay
Thank you	Mèsi	may-SEE
Please	Souple	soo-PLAY
Yes	Wi	wee
No	Non	non
How much is it?	Konbyen li ye?	kon-BYEN lee yay
Too expensive	Twò chè	tvo SHAY
Where is...?	Kote...?	ko-TAY
Help me!	Ede m!	ay-DAY m
I don't understand	Mwen pa konprann	mwen pa kon-PRAHN
Sorry, excuse me	Eskize m	es-kee-ZAY m
What's your name?	Kijan ou rele?	kee-ZHAN oo ray-LAY
Good, fine	Byen	byen
Water	Dlo	dlo
Food	Manje	man-ZHAY
Car	Machin	ma-SHEEN
Stop here	Rete la	ray-TAY la
Goodbye	Orevwa	o-ray-VWA

Navigation: Download offline maps before you arrive, because you cannot rely on being able to do it once you land. Mark your accommodation and the routes you expect to use.
Documents: Keep electronic copies of your passport and insurance policy in cloud storage. If anything is taken, those copies are what get you moving again.
Consular cover: Many countries have no mission in Haiti at all and handle it from elsewhere in the region. Find out which embassy covers your nationality, register with them if that service exists, and carry their emergency number.
Health: Get vaccinated against cholera, typhoid and hepatitis before travelling, given the state of sanitation. Local medical care is weak, so a policy that will fly you out for anything serious is the one thing not to economise on.
Valuables: Never display expensive electronics or large amounts of cash in public. Carry what you need for the day and leave the rest secured.
Fees: A tourist fee of around 10 USD may be collected on arrival, and there is a 55 USD departure tax that is frequently not included in the ticket price. Keep US dollars in cash for both.