Hello,

We are looking for a medium priced hotel for a honeymoon in July that is on a soft sandy beach with calm clear water. We dont want a lot of kids and we would like to avoid a hurricane. We really want that calm clear caribbean water and soft sandy beach. We would rather the beach not be insanely crowded. Dont care if it is AI or not. We would love a little bit of a honeymoon feel to the place. Any suggestions?

I would suggest either the Radisson or Bucuti Beach Club in Aruba. The watre on Plam Beach is ALWAYS calm.

Another thought would be Shal Bay Anguilla.

Aruba you dont have to really worry about hurricanes and the weather is almost always great. The water may not be as clear as some islands, but it's still pretty clear and a gorgeous turquosie color.

Another though is 7 Mile Beach Grand Cayman...the Westin.

I'd suggest CocoDiMama on Eleuthera as a wonderful location for your honeymoon. Eleuthera is not far from Nassau. Fly into Nassau, and either take a short flight from there on Bahamas Air or take the ferry the BoHengy.

The website is www.cocodimama.com or try www.eleu.net.

Congrats and have a WONDERFUL time.

couples swept away on jamaica is on a nice beach. is adults only and very romantic.
on st.thomas look at www.secretharbourvi.com condo resort. not ai, but they have a good restaurant and beach bar. sh is in as beautiful small bay, that is virtually always calm with very good snorkeling off to one side, and a dive shop on site. the beach is never crowded and has ample shade if desired.
almost any resort on grace bay beach - provo, turks & caicos. the sand is blindingly white, oh so soft and the water is an amazing tourquoise. this beach is 11 miles long so there are always plenty of quiet spots.
in the bvi maybe long bay beach resort on tortola.
my ultimate would be maroma beach hotel on coast of mex south of cancun but it's pretty pricey.
it depends a lot on what you want to do while on your trip. shopping, water sports, reading/beach time, great restaurants, diving/snorkeling, casino's, fishing, zip lines, ....
re hurricanes. it's impossible to say. 2 years ago was bad, last year no storms. some say abc's are storm proof, but there have in fact been hurricanes there. plan your trip and get trip insurance if it will make you feel better.

THis might be a little pricey but Caneel Bay in St. John is awesome.

Definitely not crowded because it is not over-developed. It is also a matter of how remote you want to be.

As a rule, the easier to get to you are going to see more people.

My husband and I have traveled extensively all over the caribbean. My number 1 suggestion would be where we went this April. Country Country in Negril, Jamaica is awesome!! We had our own cottage, room #515, that is literally the front cottage on the beach! The sand is white and soft. We walked by couples on Negril beach and it had the same nice beach - but I'm sure it did not have the same atmosphere as Country Country. The water is crystal clear and not a wave in sight!! This is the ultimate honeymoon destination in my opinion. Margaritaville is only 2 doors down and Norma's restaurant 2 doors up the beach was excellent. The price was so reasonable we couldn't believe it.

Great Exuma on Emerald Bay is where I would go, the Grand Isle Resort & Spa.

http://www.grandislevillas.com/default.asp

The beaches and water there are mind blowing beautiful:

http://tinyurl.com/322wrx

I read that these are for rent and includes a golf cart for getting around. You can arrange for a chef to serve you dinner in your flat. I don't see rental prices on their website now but they were listed before. They are a bit high but considering the quality of the place not really that bad compared to the price of some resorts that are just for a room. I would email them for a pricelist of the 1 bedroom flats.

Holy cow! What amazing responses. The people who have recommended Jamaica - I hear there are people that go all over the beach trying to sell you stuff and that it is really annoying. Did you find that to be true? The person who recommended Aruba - i hear that the water can be very rough? We have thought about staying at the Bucuti but we both want that calm clear water.

I really appreciate all the feedback. Trying to pick a honeymoon spot is hard.

You don't say what your budget is for this trip.

Generically, you'll want to stick with more of the coral-based islands for calm clear water and a soft sandy beach. Consider Providenciales (Provo), Anguilla, Grand Cayman, Aruba, Barbuda, and Barbados.

Of those, Barbados is the most southerly and probably has the lowest statistics in terms of hurricanes. But remember that a hurricane can hit any place. regardless of statistics, and also consider that the chances of a hurricane or tropical storm hitting any given island on a specific week in July are *extremely* low.

Jamaica has a number of vendors in Negril, and while some may be a little aggressive, they really are just trying to earn a living. And it's likely that at least one of them will have something you'll want to buy--Red Stripe beer, or a beef patty, or a pretty shell necklace, or ice cream, perhaps.

Most (if not all) islands in the Caribbean have strictly public beaches, not private ones. You are very likely to encounter beach vendors on nearly every island. Usually a polite "no, thank you" works just fine if you don't want to buy anything. If you've not experienced anything like that before, it can certainly be intimidating. And sometimes if you've got your nose deep into a book it can be annoying to face various interruptions. However, beach vendors also have a wealth of information they can share with you about the island you're visiting and most of them are respectful of you if you're respectful of them. I've had fascinating conversations with beach vendors on various islands.

If you really want romantic seclusion, with a premium beach and not much vendor action, take a look at the Beach House on Barbuda. It doesn't have a great reputation for meals, but it does offer everything else you're looking for. You can also find this place on auction at LuxuryLink.com.

St. John, Antigua, the British Virgin Islands, Jamaica, Grenada and St. Maarten/Martin also offer nice beaches and clear water, but with a more mountainous terrain. It's possible that the other French islands do too, but I don't know enough about them to say. The beaches won't have the whitest sand (offwhite to light golden in color) but many people (including me) consider that a more than fair trade-off for the more interesting island interior.

Please post your price range and where you're traveling from and how long you'd like to honeymoon and we can give you more ideas. What do you mean specifically by "honeymoon feel"?

We want to honeymoon for 10 nights. We would like the hotel and airfare to hover around the 5 grand area. We went to St. John and loved it. That is exactly the type of beach we are looking for. I saw a website for Barbuda. That is one beautiful place. I think, however, that the Beach House might be a little steep for us.

Sandcastle Hotel on Jost van dyke, the BVI hasn't had a Hurricane since the year 2000.

If you liked St.John, you will love Virgen Gorda in the BVI. Many beach choices, mostly bays. If you want upscale, Little Dix Bay is fantastic. Check out their website. Because it is just a little harder to reach, you won't find crowds. The cruise ships send the masses to the Baths, but when they aren't around, the whole island is yours. Also check out The Bitter End and Biras Creek- also upscale with restaurants. Good luck!! JKR

Hi,

The water on the beaches by the hotels is always calm. It is almost protected. The rough water is on the other side of the island where no one would want to swim. That is the desert side, and there are no hotels there. Aruba is absolutely beautiful and I would absolutely recommend it.

Have a great time.

daisygirl48