You people are really something else...!<BR><BR>You keep on babbling about luxury here, luxury there, this is luxury..no, that is luxury...<BR><BR>Poor Kelly is just asking your opinion about different aspects of both islands so she can make up her mind !!!<BR><BR>Why don't you all just stop this time wasting argument about luxury and give her the information she needs !!<BR>You have all obviously visited the island, right?<BR>One more thing..can I understand from this thread that you all are luxury-only travelers? Wow..you must all be really great people !!<BR>I for one am a frequent traveler and like comfort, quality and beautiful sights. I don't need Donald Trump's lifestyle to have a good time...<BR><BR>Kelly, I've never been to Barbados so I can't comment. I like Aruba quite a lot. I travel there every year and enjoy myself very much. Love Eagle Beach and it's sunsets. Good people. Nice food, not on the expensive side.<BR><BR>Hope you can make up your mind

Yikes! i'm really confused now, but realize no one island is going to get a unanimous vote for "perfect" destination. I thought I had decided on Barbados for our next trip, but now I have some concern. We're not "seasoned" island travelers -- have been to Jamaica, Maui and Cancun, but that's it. Some people hate Jamaica, some love it. We loved it. Shocked at first at the poverty, but immersed ourself in our villa vacation experience and fell in love with such a different way of life. My concern with Barbados now is the complaints of expensive food and unfriendly atmosphere. We'd be at our villa most the time, but if the island itself isn't that nice, not sure we want to head there. I'm like Kelly -- I can't decide!!!

I think you will love Barbados. It is a gorgeous island and people you will be treated well by the people who live there provided you are friendly and respectful. That's true anywhere in the Caribbean. A sincere, Good morning, a smile and patience work wonders.<BR>If you loved Jamaica, you will be head over heels with Barbados!<BR>Have fun!

Aruba is classiefied as luxury destination why?<BR><BR>-Standard of living is very high.<BR>-Overall clean.<BR>-The quality of the rooms on the island are above average.<BR>-Overall safety.<BR>-High level of service and hospitality.<BR>-Minor inconvenience.<BR>-Good infrastructure.<BR><BR>Aruba is a mass tourism luxury destination according to Caribbean standards. Other islands that score above Aruba are Cayman Islands and Bermuda.

Leah,<BR> thanks for your response. I found the tips you wrote for Barbados went the same for Jamaica. We enjoy experiencing someone else's culture for a change, and are simply looking for an island vacation that won't feel like a Florida beach vacation to us (nothing against Florida -- we just like to completely "check out" once we vacation!). We haven't booked yet, so I'll keep checking this site for continued news and information.<BR> karen