We are planning a couple trip to the caribbean for next otober and are searching for the perfect island for us. We are looking for an uncrowded islland. it needs to have beautiful, turquoise-water and sandy beaches. we are travelling on a budget, so a destination with extreme travel costs would not be possible for us.
Ww fly from Nice (France) and found two good fares to Guadaloupe or Martinique., Jamaica,. How do these islands compare in the fields of genuine atmosphere, beaches, and budget-friendly travel?
Thanks so much in advance for the help!
Guadaloupe or Martinica?
Recent Activity
View all Caribbean Islands activity »
- 1 Which island to visit???
- 2 Looking for cheap place to stay during augustus-oktober 2013
- 3 May 2013 Honeymoon
- 4 San Juan airport (SJU) public bus
- 5 Seven Seas on T&C, what to do and what to see?
- 6 Verandah Resort on Antigua
- 7 DR vs Riviera Maya - Which Resort?
- 8 Best place for a massage in Anguilla?
- 9
It's Excellent in the Exumas ~ A week on Staniel Cay (+ Atlantis)
- 10 Bermuda Trip
- 11 quiet and relaxing
- 12 Spirit Airlines to Caribbean - Need help w/carryon question.
- 13 Meditation and yoga Retreat in Caribbean or Costa Rica
- 14 St.Thomas St. John
- 15 Need some guidance with my Puerto Rican vacation!
- 16 Suggestions on Good Restaurants in Grand Cayman
- 17 Four Seasons Nevis or Four Seasons Punta Mita, Mexico?
- 18 June vacation trip for guys
- 19
HONEYMOONERS on BUDGET...HELP
- 20 Multi Family Vacation- Caribbean
- 21 Honeymoon Help!
- 22 Search Engines for Any Caribbean destination?
- 23 Anyone drive a rental car in Dominican Republic?
- 24 Grand Cayman
- 25 Sandals La Source Grenada
weather2travel.com Climate guides
October peak storm season...
Personally would head for Sharm/Petra in Egypt then
for best diving less rain quite exotic
Guadeloupe my fav sort of looks like a butterfly
Good beaches on the flat island Grand Terre
and mountains rain forest greener on Basse Terre
nice islands... Martinique Jamaica nice too
www.rockhousehotel.com is quite special pretty cheap too
Good enough for Marley and Jagger good enough for me.
insuremytrip.com for storms if you do the Carib in fall
Happy Hunting,
The beaches vary on all those islands; Martinique in the north has beautiful dark sand volcanic beaches but in the south eg Les Salines, Anse Noir etc the sand is a lighter colour. With Guadeloupe, Basse-Terre has beautiful beaches but the sand is not light but on Grand Terre which is the flat lesser interesting part of the sand is lighter and the sea is more turquoise. Basse-Terre is extremely beautiful with lush rainforests, national park, volcano etc.
Good thing about both these French islands and if you are already in a Euro country, budget accommodation is plentiful and you use the Euro and shop in the same supermarkets as in France, the road system is the same as in France.
http://www.antilles-info-tourisme.com/index-us.htm
Have only been to Negril, Jamaica and the beach there is certainly stunning and you can stay on a budget. It is a long beach with hotel after hotel and very touristy although this means there is plenty of choice for accommodation and restaurants.
Downside to all options is the time of year and the risk of hurricanes/storms.
We've never been to Martinique, but have been lucky enough to visit Guadeloupe twice. Odin is right - the flat side (Grand Terre) has white sand beaches, while the mountainous side (Basse Terre) is more volcanic and has black sand beaches, forests, waterfalls, etc. One of the best things about Guadeloupe is the fact that there are several out-islands that are great for day trips (definitely take at least a day to visit Les Saintes, where you will find one of the most beautiful beaches you have ever seen in your life). We found that most of the visitors on Guadeloupe were French or French Canadian, and we really loved the fact that almost no one spoke English (we did a lot of pointing and pantomiming when our limited French failed us). We love Guadeloupe!