We have only been to Aruba and did not see any rodents here (although we did hear there are bats in the Tunnel of Love... thank god my wife did not see them) <BR> <BR>She is really afraid, has anyone had any encounters with rats, mice on any of the islands/ specific resorts... I am not naive, I know they are out there but at some places these critters are more prominant, thanks!

SAW CONCESSION STAND GUY CHASING A RAT BY THE PALM BEACH WITH A SHOVEL.ALSO SAW RATS BY DUMPSTERS BY RESTERAUNTS.ENJOY YOUR STAY AND SAY HELLO TO THE RATS.

There is a wave of slinky six legged <BR>creatures taking over the Caribbean! <BR>Word is they are slowly working north <BR>toward the U.S.A.---Caution is the word!

Some resorts in the Carribean have silver metal bands around the palm trees to keep the rats out of the trees.

Come on people. This person asked an honest and reasonable question--has anyone seen rats/mice while staying at a Caribbean resort (I haven't personally) and if so which ones. Some people have real phobias about this. Anyone besides the trolls care to help this person out?

I would assume all islands have a rodent problem with ships coming and going. I don't know of any seaport that is exempt!

I have never seen a rat or a mouse on any of the islands I have visited but I am sure there were some. Most restaurants and resorts have resident cats that keep them at bay! If your are traveling to St. John, you will contend with dem mongoose that were brought to the island to kill all the rats and snakes that were eating the sugar cane. Not sure if any other islands have them or if they do, they certainly are not as large a population.

Hi Cain! I have not seen any rats in resorts in Puerto Rico (Westin, Ritz Carlton, Copamarina, paradores) nor St. John (Westin). In fact both places looked to be very clean. However, anywhere where there's a kitchen, there's always the possibility of a rodent! I live in NYC and have seen rats in buildings, the subway, even restaurants!

I haven't seen a rat in Jamaica, Dominican Republic, Barabados, Paradise Island, Or St. John. There are Iguanas in St.John but they are wary of people unless you have a red hibiscus. They will eat it right from your hand. In the Islands I have mostly seen chickens, roosters. goats, and lots of cats. <BR> <BR>Go, Enjoy and Relax!!

<BR>Sorry to say we've seen the occassional rat over the years, both out & about & on hotel grounds. West Coast of Barbados, USVI & Nassau. Mostly near trash cans, beach concessions, piles of debris or palm fronds. We've seen more mongoose than rats though. <BR> <BR>

Saw MANY iguanas & geckos on St. Thomas - no rodents. I think the mongoose take care of the rodents, snakes, etc. <BR> <BR>It took me a few days to get used to shooing the geckos off our deck in order to get into our room, and I have to admit, I was a tad bit squeamish at the thought of finding one in our bed or running about the room at night! By the end of the week, we got along fine, but none of them would sell me any car insurance They aren't afraid of people and tend to stand their ground, so your wife may also find that a bit intimidating at first. <BR> <BR>Saw nothing but goats on St. Martin! <BR> <BR>

I saw a little mouse run across the floor at a restaurant in St. Croix. I'm sure there's mice just about everywhere there's food and a place to hide!

Did see a small family of rats while in Bermuda. They were coming out of a Grotto. I would assume this is a natural way of life here as it is very dark, damp and humid inside of the caves.Also...be aware of Palmetto bugs.THIS is the TROPICS!

<BR> <BR>Look, you may not see them, but they're there. They're not going to come knocking on your door but they're there. They're EVERYWHERE -- I'll bet they were even in the basement of the restaurant you ate in last night in the good ole US of A!

While living on ST Croix, I met a rat by the name of Jim. And I ended up marrying the SOB.<BR><BR>When the Europeans began colonizing the Caribbean they unfortunately brought along rats in their ships. The sugar cane plantations soon followed and the rat population exploded as a result. The Planters attempted to eradicate the rats by importing mongoose. But, no one stopped to think. You see, rats are nocturnal creatures while mongoose prefer the daylight. AND, the mongoose like to eat snakes who eat the rats. So now there are large populations of both.<BR><BR>Will yo see them? Maybe. I sure did. But thats another story. Seriously tho at the more upscale resorts they shouldnt be much of a problem.

I didn’t even see any bugs during my stay in northern St. Lucia in late November, let alone any rats or mice. There were some resident cats which were quite friendly. That may be a reason but I didn’t see any rodents off the resort either. Like a previous poster mentioned, there were silver bands around the trees so they must be present but probably rarely ever seen. I wouldn’t worry about it (where we were anyway). I’m a total spider phobic and I didn’t see any of them either, thank God, so I know where she’s coming from.

There was SOMETHING stealing our food at night when we stayed on the island of Culebra (between St. Thomas and PR) several years ago, but the accommodation WAS very rustic, so that is to be expected. We never saw whatever it was, but it didn’t bother us. Hubby said it was probably a rat. Still, I wasn’t too happy about that.<BR><BR>On St. John last year we saw no mice, no rats, but the occasional mongoose—usually near picnic areas. They are, by the way, extremely shy, and I wouldn’t consider them a problem at all. In fact, they are kinda cute. The only downside with critters on the island happened to be mosquitoes on St. John, but we were staying just above a salt pond, which was the source of the problem (basically stagnant, shallow water). Any place on St. John -- other than our villa -- presented absolutely no mosquito problem and we went all over the island. Solution? When we go next year, it will probably be a different villa. Try not to worry – most critters (with the exception of those nasty mosquitoes) want to stay as far away from you as they can! I understand your wife’s phobias, just check out your villa / hotel carefully and don’t be afraid to ask questions, especially on the forum.<BR>

The largest rat I have ever seen was in<BR>Nassau walking down the sidewalk right<BR>outside the Radisson Hotel. At first I<BR>thought it was a cat, but after closer<BR>examination, it could have eaten a cat.<BR>Later on that night, we saw the same rat<BR>dead on the sidewalk - and couldn't<BR>understand why it hadn't been removed.

I thought the metal bands around the trees were to keep the cats out of them.........

Hey,
where did my post go? I am the one who actually topped this about 45 minutes ago??