NCgalMRF

Hi,

We have been trying to decide where we want to go on our honeymoon for weeks! Please help!

We want to go to the Caribbean somewhere. Our budget is about 4-5 for 7 nights
Here are our priorities:
1. clear water and beaches
2. Room service
3. good food
4. clean and nice hotel (with AC)
5. decent snorkeling
6. Spa/able to get a massage

I know its a long list. We are foodies and love great food! I want relaxation and drinks by the pool and beach integrating with some snorkeling and walks on the beach and garden areas.

We really like St. Lucia, but cannot afford a lot of the luxury hotels and the others are missing something.

Please help us!! I want this honeymoon to be great!

pgill26

Can I ask you where you are flying out from?

NCgalMRF

We are flying out of North carolina either from Greensboro or Raleigh. I also forgot to mention our honeymoon will be in April, 2013!

virginia

hi NC, welcome to fodors & congratulations.
if you want to snorkel eliminate jamaica & dom rep.
st lucia is a bit difficult. roads are not good. honestly i'd save it for a future trip when you have more caribbean experience.
grand cayman would be a great choice. seven mile beach is beautiful & great for walking. there is lots of good walkin snorkeling. plenty of good dining options. some of the clearest water in the caribbean. american will fly you from gso or rdu for $510 through miami using 4/6 to 4/13
westin casaurina or gc marriot will fit your budget. westin is well reviewed by fodorites (we rented a villa when we went so no personal recommendation) has ac, room service, is on really good part of the beach & has a nice spa. as you mentioned a walk through garden area you should check out the botanical gardens. another tourist highlight is stingray city where you can swim with & pet the rays.

NCgalMRF

Thanks so much! I'm looking into those hotels! I am curious about the romantic feel of the hotels? They definitely are not couples only. I'm thinking private dinners and outdoor spas. I think I have expectations, but I do want our honeymoon to be romantic!

TurtleTagger

Also consider the Caribbean Club on Grand Cayman's Seven Mile Beach. Doesn't have a Spa , but they can arrange for a masseuse or you can patronize the Ritz or Westin's Spas. The on-site restaurant, Luca, is one of the better on the island, the beach is phenomenal and the rooms are better than any hotel's.
http://www.caribclub.com/Pages/Default.aspx

Odin

For St Lucia, I would suggest Anse Chastenet Hotel which is on a beautiful dark sand beach with incredibly clear water and good snorkelling right off the beach. It's in a very romantic location. It's rather hilly though but the scenery is amazing. Also Ti Kaye, again in a gorgeous setting with (lots of )steps down to beach which has good snorkelling and the food is very good here.

The diving in GCM was great & some of the best anywhere that I have done & was the sole reason for me going, food was great, very very hot dry & arid & crowded/busy.

ghutch

I've really been tracking on Anguilla lately. Looks like the perfect location for everything you've mentioned.

Grenada's not the "sexy pick" on this thread. But, I just got back. It was my 7th island and by far the best I've been to. It is, however, the "True Caribbean" experience. Incredible food. Wonderful people. It is not that developed, but they have some nice resorts for people that are on a honeymoon. Depends on the budget, but check out Spice Island, LaSource or La Luna. I use Trip Advisor all the time, so it's a great place for research as well.

Good luck.

virginia

trip advisor has it's place i suppose, but it's so impersonal & has lots of onetime only posters, not to mention no attempt to keep advertisers off it's boards. really, fodor's is the only place you can have a real conversation with real people about your travel plans.

ghutch

Virginia: I like Fodors for the interaction and sense of community, but you're selling TA short. They have forums similar to this that can be quite lively and helpful (depending upon the island and topic), not to mention if you email people you get responses back in a very "user friendly" format in your mail box, a feature I don't see here. Plus the rating systems and reviews, and how they group them by restaurants, hotels etc., are very useful.

I find both useful for what they're intended to do.

beachykeen

I absolutely love Anguilla. Check CuisinArt, Viceroy and Frangipani. A lot of people like Anacoana. If you want a more lush island, look at Nevis (Four Seasons or Nisbet Plantation), or the BVI's.
And the tripadvisor forum is very helpful when you have narrowed down the islands

NCgalMRF

Virgina, where did you rent a Villa in Grand Cayman?

NCgalMRF

Odin Have you been Tikaye Village or Calabash Cove resort? I'm curious about the beaches. I know they are small, but will we still get the same affect?

Knowing

Grand Cayman will fit your bill, although we are not Westin fans down there. Awesome restaurants, nice beaches, beautiful water and fantastic snorkeling. My recommendation is Cheeseburger Reef. The coral formations are not that far out and you will see turtles. The fish are not afraid of people so they will not run for cover.

eastenderusvi

nc: This wasn't on your list, but you might consider the USVI. USAir flies directly to St Thomas and all your other priorities can easily be met either on St Thomas or St John.

Odin

I've been to Ti Kaye but not Calabash. Ti Kaye is on Anse Cochon which is quite long, down alot of steps, far end is the best spot for snorkelling. It's fairly remote.
Although I love Anguilla (& all the islands for that matter) I don't remember how good snorkelling was and Grenada was not that great for snorkelling. GC was very good for snorkelling/scuba but the island itself was not beautiful. St Lucia & Grenada are beautiful but not as developed as GC however they have much more Caribbean flavour.

ghutch

I would echo Odin's comments, but you wouldn't go to Grenada for snorkeling alone. It was ok, not great. You'd go there if you wanted an adventure. Lush mountains. Beautiful beaches. Incredible food. I've read many, many comments from very seasoned travelers who have been to many islands (this was my 7th) who've said it was their most enjoyable trip ever.

suze

virginia, There are *forums* on Trip Advisor, just exactly like here at Fodor's. Only broken down into smaller specific destinations. Also there is a PM feature, so you can privately email other contributors for more detailed discussions off-line.

Lots of people don't realize that TA isn't just the "reviews" section.

gmoney

NCgal,

Just a suggestion but you might want to include the Caribbean coast of Mexico (Mayan Riviera) in your search. There are many places that offer everything you are looking for for less money than an island. assuming you mean $4-$5000 for your budget you can definitely do luxury in Mexico for that amount. Here is a good list of some of the choices.

http://www.fivestaralliance.com/luxu...ds=&facet=true

Hope you find the perfect place.

virginia

ncgal, we rented 2 br/2bath near rum point http://www.grandcaymanvillarentals.c...ng/thatch-hill
the pool was nice to have. the interior colors are not as crazy as they look in pics. is approx 2 mins drive to rum point. is maybe 45 mins to georgetown/seven mile. snorkeling was pretty good from our beach. we were very happy with our location on the quiet end of gc.