Gorges de la Falaise

Useful Information

Location:	Chem. de Semaine, L'Ajoupa-Bouillon 97216, Martinique. N1 coast road, at roundabout turn off on N3 to L'Ajoupa-Bouillon 5.1 km. In the village there is a left turn of the main road, follow road straight ahead. Signposted. (14.8203834, -61.1294118)
Open:	All year daily 8-17, last tour 16. Currently closed for renovation. [2025]
Fee:	Adults EUR 10, Children (5-11) EUR 7. [2025]
Classification:	Gorge
Light:	n/a
Dimension:
Guided tours:	D=1 h, L=1,000 m, VR=80 m, MinAge=5.
Photography:	allowed
Accessibility:	no
Bibliography:
Address:	Gorges de la Falaise, Chem. de Semaine, L'Ajoupa-Bouillon 97216, Martinique, Tel: +596-696-16-75-22. Restaurant de la Cascade, Chem. de Semaine, L'Ajoupa-Bouillon 97216, Martinique, Tel: +596-596-53-35-61.
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then. Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info.

History

Description

The Gorges de la Falaise (Cliff Gorges) is a rather weird site which is not comparable to most other gorges we have listed. Let’s start with the geology. There is a small river named Falaise flowing down from Mont Pelée which cut its bed deep into the rock forming a narrow gorge, which is quite spectacular and has numerous waterfalls. This gorge was developed as a tourist site and so there is now a parking lot, a restaurant and a ticket office. You have to go with a guide, it’s not allowed to visit the site self-guided. Like other gorges there is a trail with many stairs to the gorge, and some equipment inside the gorge including some ladders. But actually the gorge is not developed, the tour is a sort of rather easy canyoning tour.

We actually had problems listing this site, because despite the well developed access path, the restaurant, the car park, the guided tours, after all this is canyoning. We normally do not list canyoning tours on showcaves.com. On the other side this is the only site we have listed for the whole island, because it’s the only site of some geological interest.

The site is private and there is an operator named société d’exploitation des gorges de la falaise, which is actually a little funny. They have built the trails and organize the guides, and they look for the weather, because rainfall on the slopes above causes floods in the gorge. So the site is actually closed when there is rainfall locally, which is obviously hard to know if you are tourist on the island. Quite easy to understand is that the number of closed days increases during the rainy season. Unfortunately this means that people come to the site, and it is closed with no apparent reason. Another problem is that they closed the site for some time in 2025 for renovation without even putting a sign at the entrance. So if you drive a long distance just to get here, you should definitely call ahead and make sure its actually open. They do not have a website, but they have a phone.

The main goal of this tour is to get wet. We can't really understand it: climbing and sweating, then showering in a river with questionable hygienic properties, only to walk back again and be sweaty once more upon our return. So you should at least be prepared, bring shoes for walking in water, bring a towel and clothes to change, and be prepared to get wet. Also, its necessary to climb ladders while the water rushes by, so a little physical fitness and surefootedness is also necessary. Be careful if you take a camera with you, it should be waterproof.

There are website talking about a way to see the waterfall without a guide and paying the necessary fee, obviously. That’s obviously wrong, the site ins private property and managed, going there without a guide is trespassing. However, the gorge is several kilometers long and there is another part which seems to be visited by canyoning fans. We can only tell you to respect nature and follow the basic security rules when doing this, which are actually the same as for caving. Never go alone, tell somebody where you are and when you will be back so he can organize a rescue if you do not return, and keep an eye on the weather. Having said this, the other trip is actually quite easy to find. After the roundabout follow D3 for 800 m, turn right on D21 Démare. After 800 m park at the road, there is no trail you have to find a way down into the gorge on the left side of the road, and then you simply follow the river upstream to the Cascade Dany.