Visitors can also explore Martinique’s rich history and cultural heritage through an extensive network of museums scattered throughout the island and a more recent multi-artist installation of totem poles in the city of Saint-Pierre.

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Martinique's culture and history have a deep influence on the arts.

In the fine arts, a group of painters founded the Caribbean Negro School during the 1970s to explore Martinique’s African heritage. A decade later, the artist group Fromajé sought to develop “a Caribbean aesthetic” that would convey “the strength of our roots, the memory of our people.”

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Martinique’s history also resonates in the island’s mix of European, African, and Caribbean music. The quadrille originated in eighteenth-century France, whereas chouval bwa, bèlè, and zouk music all have Afro-Caribbean roots. Biguine is a form of ballroom music whose bèlè roots are evident in the drums and tibwas, but whose use of clarinets, trombones, and banjos recalls New Orleans jazz.