Unfor­tu­nate­ly, most of Haiti’s pri­mor­dial wildlife has been cut down over the cen­turies, start­ing with French plan­ta­tion agri­cul­ture and mov­ing on to mod­ern devel­op­ment.
Macaya Nation­al Park pre­serves Haiti’s last pri­ma­ry cloud for­est which still has not been touched by mod­ern devel­op­ment. Nes­tled in the Mas­sif de la Hotte moun­tain chain that runs through the south­ern penin­su­la, Macaya is well worth the trip out.
Besides the old-growth for­est, Macaya Nation­al Park is home to many species of indige­nous plants, includ­ing rare orchids, and ani­mals, includ­ing the world’s largest con­cen­tra­tion of native amphib­ians. Vis­i­tors can hike up the Macaya and For­mon moun­tains, explore the for­est, and take pho­tos of the stun­ning veg­e­ta­tion.