Jacmel (Jakmèl)

The old coffee port of Jacmel on Haiti's southern coast was once a beautiful city, with marvelous French colonial buildings and black-sand beaches. It was originally founded by the Spanish in 1504, but abandoned when they left. The French repopulated it in 1698.

In the 1950s, then leader Duvalier cut off trade with Jacmel and the city started declining. In 2010, Jacmel was heavily damaged by an earthquake, but despite of that, the city still retains much of its former glamour and most of the 19th-century colonial architecture has been quiet well preserved, including several so-called Gingerbread houses.

Numerous buildings have been converted into galleries and shops. Apart from the colonial architecture, you'll find several Vodou temples in town. The bustling Saturday market is well worth a visit. Some 12 km (7.5 mi) from Jacmel are the lovely waterfalls and pools of Bassins Bleu.

The days leading up to Ash Wednesday, Carnival, or Mardi Gras is celebrated. The festivities involve street theater with actors that wear huge papier-mâchée masks and act out parables of good versus evil.

There are several hotels and restaurants in Jacmel. The city is 39 km (24 mi) southwest of Port-au-Prince south of Port-au-Prince.