Destination input please
 

We just started to planning for our 1st trip together to Caribbean in the early Nov.
It's still planning time and a lot of research need to be done. I'd very much appreciate your input.

We've easy access to both Newark NJ and/or Philly airport. A direct or less 7hr total flight hrs preferable, but not must. 5 nights in early Nov, beautiful beach to relax, enjoy some beach activities/sports, prefer quiet, less touristy. We're careless for the night-life since neither of us are into bars. Good foods - YES.

Do you have any suggestion of where to? Right now, I'm checking some info on T&C, UVI, BVI. Barbados seems wonderful but a little far? Bermuda seems a bit pricey...
How about Cayman? He has been to Aruba, I've been to Bahamas. Our passports are all set, of course :-) Thank you for any suggestion!

hi nikki, for a short trip i think turks and caicos - provo - would be a good choice. if you only have 5 days you do not want to give up your beach time for 7 hr plane ride.
st. thomas is very touristy and a busy island. st. john is extremely quiet but takes an extra couple hours to get over there on the ferry from st.t and get to your accomodation. bvi presents same challenge.
providenciales, provo (PLS) is quiet, not touristy at all, has next to no night life and loads of fabulous restaurants. grace bay beach is voted one of the 10 most beautiful on earth. has good snorkeling, outstanding diving, and parasailing, kiteboarding, kayaks, etc. you can rent a small motor boat to explore the tiny cays by yourself or take an excursion to middle caicos or just out to the barrier reef to snorkel.
you are traveling before "the season" so rates are less but still the carib is not a cheap destination. prices on provo currently range from (expedia listings) comfort suites which is not on the beach at $83 per night to amanyara at 1300 (and no i did not add a zero by accident). excellent choices might be the sands, royal west indies or either of the ocean clubs as all have great rates for nov and are directly on the beach.

Bermuda is gorgeous, but might be a little chilly in Nov.
I would pick T&C. Some of the best restaurants. There is a direct flight from Philly I think on Saturdeays. Leaves at 11, arrives 2:30. (Usairways) Even if you connect, you land by 2-2:30 range.
Stunning beach, one of the best in the world. Great relaxing destination, not much nightlife, dinner is most of it. Lots of activities on the water, such as windsurfing, sailboats, catamaran tours through cays. If you are close to JFK, AA direct daily, leave 8:20 am, arrive 11:44 am! On the beach by lunchtime!

virginia, great minds think alike! We typed almost at the same time! 8-)

Anguilla, via a direct flight to SXM from either airport with ferry to Anguilla. Fits all of the things you asked for.

I would suggest talking to a local travel agent so you really have all your options on the table.

Since you are talking about off season, you should be able to save quite a bit and a travel agent might have some deals we would not be privy to here.

Another suggestion would be some of the out islands of the Bahamas, like Abaco, Eleuthera, Harbour Island and Cat Island, all have beautiful beaches and the great food requirement would be best found on Harbour Island.

Have a GREAT time.

Thank you all so much for a great input!

Funny though, I had no clue where is Turks and Caico or Aguilla (sp?) until came to this board.
I'd continue to reaserch more but TCI sounds like a great match for us since we both love to hike, nature walk as well. Conch Farm, Flamingos, visit cave, even check those giant Iguanas sounds like fun thing to do too :-)

Another question is - Since our trip will be in Nov and you all talk about a good deal (package plans, etc), do you think we should search more & wait to book until late Aug/Sep?

Nikki62:
TCI is not really a hiking kind of place though. It's flat dry and scrubby, it is definately "all about the water" type destination.
It does meet all of your initial paragraph's description.

Contintental fly non-stop (about 3 hours) from Newark to Cayman.

If you like to relax on the beach, prefer quiet, less touristy, hiking, iguanas etc (as you had said), I can genuinely recommend the East End of Grand Cayman.

Of course I'd say The Reef is a great choice... (caveat, I run the place!), but consider the East End or North Side/Cayman Kai end of Grand Cayman to suit your needs.

For a wonderful introduction to the Caribbean, I'd suggest going to Barbados. It has some of everything any island can offer except for gambling and a volcano. Lovely people, lush green tropical setting, clean air, pure water, wide range of hotels, beaches, water sports, sightseeing such as caves, tropical gardens, animal preserves, plantation houses, submarine ride. Outstanding restaurants, both in hotels and independent. All revolves around a British/Caribbean culture so you don't feel like you're just in tropical America. Barbados is a really special place with a strong economy, not dependent only on tourism, so a visitor experiences a sense of a place which is beyond just a resort on a beach. Generally avoid August-October (hurricane season). Otherwise weather is great all year-perpetual summer with water temps over 80 deg. even in winter. Lowest hotel rates are mid-April to mid-December, with a big jump in high season. Calmest water for swimming/snorkeling is on the calm
west coast north of Bridgetown. IMO the best hotel on that stretch is Coral Reef Club. Family-owned for 50 years, low-rise and plantation cottage style hotel in tropical gardens and fine beach. Barbados is a really special place. See www.barbados.org and www.coralreefbarbados.com
American airlines flies from PHL with a change in MIA. You can get into Barbados early afternoon, which is only an hour or two later than the closer islands. You can avoid an early wakeup by flying to MIA the evening before, staying at an inexpensive place at MIA airport, flying from MIA in the morning.

There are direct flights from both Newark and Philly to St. Thomas about 3 and a half hours. You could stay there or use it as a spring board to the other islands. The Virgin Islands fit your bill in every department.