If your definition of "cottage" is four walls and a sensible arrangement of windows, you'd have to call Indigo's Tree Cottage an abstract take. Waking up groggy in the mosquito-netted bed of this minimalist study in bamboo and driftwood, you might wonder who stole the front wall. But after slowly taking in the fanciful collection of rustic furniture, the colorful canvasses on the three walls, and the bird's-eye view of the forest that includes exotic birds looking back at you, you remember that everything is just as it should be at Indigo.
Three miles outside Dominica's second city, Portsmouth, up a goat track of a road leading to a knife-edge ridge smothered in overexuberant plant life, lies the rustic home and studio of Marie Frederick and her husband, Clem. A couple of years ago, Marie, a self-taught artist from Normandy, began serving ital snacks and fresh juices to visitors who came to see her art. Eventually, she agreed to cook full lunches and dinners on an appointment-only basis. When Pirates of the Caribbean came to the island, Johnny, Orlando, Keira and the rest took to spending long days at Indigo, and once they found themselves relaxing in the Frederick's eclectic plein-air gallery, enjoying fresh-as-can-be meals cooked over a primitive wood stove and getting to know Clem – possibly the first real Rasta some had ever met – the next step in Dominican cultural adventure was asking to sleep over. Thus was born the Tree Cottage, a single, separate guesthouse that Clem built on the ridge above the gallery, with a basic kitchenette, rustic furniture, a private cold-water shower, an outhouse with view of Morne aux Diable (Devil's Peak), and thanks to an electric line run in 2008, even a small fridge. While it's certainly not for everyone, Indigo's Tree House is definitely one of the Caribbean's most unique stay-overs.
From $100 year-round; indigo.wetpaint.com; 767-445-3486. Gallery open Friday through Monday, 2 to 6 p.m.; meals for up to four guests by appointment only (get there before 6 p.m. or you miss the view).
Three surprises wait at the end of a long driveway just east of the town of Calibishie on Dominica's north coast. There's a lot of local chatter about this area. People say it's here that the next big little things in island tourism will erupt. When you look up and do a double take at the incongruous (for Dominica) sight of a killer villa – complete with Southwest flagstone facade, stone terrace with infinity-edge pool, and plunge pools off bedrooms – you realize something's already happening. The second surprise comes along a sandy trail that winds through sea grapes and palm trees and leads to an honest-to-goodness beach bar. A beach bar on Dominica? That would seem to imply A few more steps along the path, and damn if you don't break through the green growth into sunlight and onto an actual beach of soft, multihued sand (no artificial ingredients here).
The beach, Pointe Baptiste, forms a supple stretch of coast between startlingly red volcanic cliffs. A small outcropping just offshore rebuffs incoming waves, so there's even a permanently calm spot for soaking and snorkeling. After your bare feet get over the shock of being loosed from stiff hiking boots and caressed by the warm sand, you shuffle back to the bar and meet Stacey and Gina Hovde, who left the temperate rainforests of the Pacific Northwest for the tropical kind in Dominica.
Last March, they opened the immediately popular Escape Beach Bar & Grill (palapa-topped tables in the sand; tropical pizza, octopus in coconut sauce, passion-fruit pie) and the first two rooms of Red Rock Haven. Their Bamboo Guestroom invites restful romance with a private terrace above the grove just behind the beach, while the Caribbean-style Garden Cottage stands on a hillside overlooking the coast and includes a full kitchen. The big test, though, awaits the completion of the 3,000 square foot Grande Ocean Villa (slated for late this year), when they'll discover if there's an upmarket clientele looking for big luxe amid the lush.
Rooms $200 in low season ($225 high); villa $600($650 high); redrockhaven.com; 767-445-7997. Escape is open from noon until 9 p.m.
Dominica's longest beach spills into Portsmouth's Prince Rupert Bay. Coal-black above the high-water mark, Ayohayo Beach's fine-ground sand turns coffee colored where it's percolated by the wavelets. Just behind the beach, two rows of Creole cottages sit amid clouds of bright tropical blooms. It's here that producers and writers for Pirates of the Caribbean washed ashore during filming. 
Nameplates still hang above the doors, and while it doesn't have the same historical significance as a "George Washington slept here," you do find yourself wondering if your cottage's previous tenant, Jerry "Mr. Blockbuster" Bruckheimer, also used the fridge to chill mangoes he'd bought five for two bucks at a roadside stand or hung his wet bathing suit below the ceiling fan to dry.
Picard is owned and operated by the Armour family, Dominican tourism pioneers who've outfitted these 18 cottages as rustic little vacation homes with basic kitchens, air-conditioned bedrooms, nice front porches and even Wi-Fi. You can't get closer to a better swimming beach on the island; there's a dive shop within walking distance; and even though the AC at first seems odd on cool, green Dominica, you'll definitely appreciate it when it comes to sleeping here at sea level on the leeward side, where the heat and mosquitoes can be prickly. Despite its status as temporary home to at least one movie mogul, Picard is a budget pick – and it's worth upgrading to the beachfront units. The cuisine and service at the adjacent restaurant are lackadaisical, but there are several dining options nearby. The most inspiring sight at Picard, though, may be the 600-plus-year-old samaan tree that watched Columbus sail by. It's at least 20 feet around at the trunk, and you can't help but wonder: Was Jerry Bruckheimer as tempted to climb it?
From $80 in low season ($160 high) picardbeachcottages.com; 888-790-5264
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