Haiti

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Landscape, Golden hour sunset on the lake, Montrouis, Haiti ; Shutterstock ID 404154313; your: Sloane Tucker; gl: 65050; netsuite: Online Editorial; full: Destination Page
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Shutterstock / Sylvie Corriveau

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Overview

The most common phrase in Haiti might surprise you. It’s 'pa gen pwoblem,' and it translates to 'no have problem.' Haitians use it in a dizzying array of contexts: responding to thank-yous, asserting well-being, filling awkward silences. Despite Haiti’s well-documented struggles, exacerbated lately by natural disasters, proud Haitians use the phrase sincerely, conveying an uncanny ability to live in the moment and appreciate what they do have, which is quite a lot.

Attractions

Must-see attractions

Grand Rue Artists

Port-au-Prince & Around

While most of Haiti’s artists are represented in the rarefied air of Pétionville’s galleries, a collective of sculptors and installation artists produces…

Citadelle Laferrière

Haiti

Haitians call the Citadelle the eighth wonder of the world and, having slogged to the 900m summit of Pic Laferrière (or ridden horseback for US$15), you…

Île-à-Rat

Haiti

Your basic paradise, this tiny island offers white sand, a lush core of trees, and turquoise water where snorkelers encounter centuries-old cannon and…

Museum of the People

Port-au-Prince & Around

This small jumble of a museum attached to the mission is worth a stop on your way up to Kenscoff. There are taxidermied specimens of Haitian fauna …

Sans Souci

Haiti

Built as a rival to Versailles in France, Henry Christophe’s palace of Sans Souci has lain abandoned since it was ruined in the 1842 earthquake. The years…

Marché de Fer

Port-au-Prince & Around

Several of Haiti’s cities have iron markets, but Port-au-Prince’s is the original and the best. Constructed in 1889, the exuberant red-metal structure…

Musée du Panthéon National

Port-au-Prince & Around

This modern, mostly subterranean history museum, set below gardens, hosts a permanent exhibition chronicling Haiti’s history, from the Taínos and slavery…