Hello.

My wife and I (in our low 30's) are planning a 5-yr anniversary vacation to the Caribbean in June. Thinking of a 6-7 night vacation. Never traveled to the Caribbean before. Think I have narrowed it down to a couple of places based on our criteria (below) but would certainly appreciate some expert advice from everyone.

-- long walking beach (wife loves to walk on the beach)
-- relatively romantic accommodations and setting
-- not overrun w/ kids (but access to activities)
-- good water activities (snorkeling and jetskis within a reasonable walk or cab ride from out hotel)
-- golf nearby for me, shopping nearby for her
-- a good number of other activities so we won't get bored (will want to explore some, maybe rent a car for a couple of days)
-- good nightlife, in case we want to get a little crazy
-- visually appealing landscape for lack of a better term (example: St Lucia is really appealing but I don't think it satisfies our criteria)
-- safe and friendly

So, I have tentatively narrowed it down to:

-- Aruba, staying at the Bucuti Beach Resort. I have heard good things about Aruba and Bucuit, but my concern here is Aruba...is it cheesy or Americanized?
-- Turk & Caicos, staying at the Ocean Club West (or maybe Ocean Club), or maybe Sibonne. Is it fair to say T&C is more visually appealing than Aruba? Rain and/or bugs a concern on T&C in June?

Any thoughts or other island/hotel recommendations? What about Grand Cayman? Aruba seems like the best fit, but there are so many options/islands out there it's overwhelming.

Thanks in advance for any help/advice.

I will try to address your concerns. I have been to both Provo, T&C, and Aruba many times. They are among my favorites, along with Grand Cayman. I don't think Provo has a golf course. Aruba has a beautiful golf course. I don't really think Provo has any "shopping"-just some t-shirt shops. Aruba has lots of shopping. Both have long beaches to walk along. Aruba has gambling casinos, Provo does not. (Provo had one at the Allegro, but I heard it was closing). Aruba is very Americanized - Provo is not. Both have decent snorkeling. There really is no night life at Provo. But both are wonderful IMHO. Both have good restaurants. The roads in Aruba are much better than the roads in Provo. If you stay away from "Beaches" you won't find too many kids in Provo. What else can I tell you?

They are two totally different Islands. T&C being moe laid back and Aruba being very commercial and busy.
As for T&C, this is the most peaceful beautiful beach or Island I have ever been to as of yet. There is no real shopping there though, just your basic souviner stuff. If you go there stay at Ocean Club WEST not Ocean Club or The Sands at Grace Bay which is where we stayed and loved it.

Aruba is just different. Beautiful. More to do....very busy...casino's, bars etc.
It Depends what you are more into, if you wnat more info on Turks let me know.....I cant say enought about it.

We've been to Aruba and Provo and given your criteria, it's a close call.

Neither has what I would call a "visually appealing landscape." I might give Aruba a slight edge here (it's hillier). On both islands, the best parts of the landscape are the ocean water and the hotels' landscaping.

Aruba has much more nightlife. Provo has better snorkeling, but there are only a couple of shore snorkels. Provo's beach is longer but Aruba's (we stayed on Eagle Beach) is long enough for a decent walk. I didn't see jetskis on Provo (OK by me!) and I don't know if they're allowed on Grace Bay.

I'm not a golfer but I have heard that Provo's course is better than Aruba's, which gets a lot of wind. We came home from a Dec. trip to Provo with numerous bug bites; saw no bugs in Aruba in Feb. Not sure about June. Weather in June should be more reliably dry in Aruba.

Aruba is maybe more "Americanized" because of fast food outlets and such, but both are places where a tourist from the US has no need to learn another language or convert currencies.
Both are safe and friendly. More shopping in Aruba. Slightly more to see with a rental car in Aruba.

In Aruba we stayed at the Manchebo, next door to the Bucuti, and the Bucuti is probably a good place to avoid crowds and kids. In Provo we stayed at Ocean Club West. We loved it, but right now there is construction in progress on both sides of the resort.

Other than the construction, Provo is a much quieter island. No cruise ships visit there, and most accommodations are condos rather than hotels. It also has clearer water, which is a big priority for us. Aruba, on the other hand, may be a better choice for the easily bored.

Good luck - it's a tough decision!

My husband and I (28 yrs old) just came back from TCI last week and loved it. We stayed at Royal West Indies and though it was the most beautiful resort....the grounds are gorgeous. Really consider this resort - there were hardly any kids. We would definitely stay there again when we return.
Grace Bay is amazing...the powder white sand and turquoise water is unbelievable.

We spoke to a couple people who now own houses in TCI and they said that RWI is one of the better resorts for the value. It is cheaper than the Sands and OC/OCW but I am not sure if that price will stay that low. We had an oceanview studio and it was perfect!

TCI is great if you just want to relax - the walk along the beach is wonderful and romantic but for activites such as shopping and hiking etc...there really aren't any. We would definitely return in a heartbeat.

Let me know if you have any questions

Thanks to all for the information...very helpful. Given our criteria, I think we are going to give Aruba a whirl...seems to fit our "mood" right now, plus we're going for 7 nights so I think Aruba will have more stuff to do. But T&C looks awesome...the water is beautiful...will definitely try T&C when we're ready for a quieter getaway vacation. Thanks again!