Help me choose island for quick November trip -- weather??
 

I am looking to plan a quick getaway from NYC mid November for my husband's bday. We have young kids and can only get away for 4 nights, Therefore, we would like to find a place in the Caribbean or Mexican Caribbean with nonstops from EWR or JFK for our trip. We prefer relaxing, quiet low key place to party/gambling cruise ship places. I was most interested in St John (where I have always wanted to go) or St Lucia. My other considerations are Barbados and PDC in Mexico. Went to Cancun area two years ago for a similar trip (for our anniversary in October) and had torrential rain and couldn't leave the room, so that is giving my pause as I plan this, as I hope to avoid that experience again, as best as I can!
Any advice or experiences would be most welcome.

?? are the kids going with? if yes, how old are they?
is this trip to be over thanksgiving break?

if you go to mexico i'd go 20 mins further south (from PDC) to Akumal. much smaller, more quaint, much more low key - lots of condos & villas or akumal beach resort is ai on a super beach in walking distance to town - there are a couple other resorts nearby
st. john is wonderful - small, lush and very laid back. if you can afford caneel bay you will love it. options are the westin, gallows point & there are tons of villas. unless you stayed at westin or caneel you would probably need a car to go to the beaches.
st. lucia is wonderful but is a large island and not easy to get around particularly with just 4 days.
barbados is also large but much more manageable. nice beaches & loads of resorts in every style & price range. most reasonable bet for good weather although hurricane season is pretty much over in nov.
hope this helps.

Sorry, no kids. Just a time limitation. Don't mind some rain, but just trying to avoid a second total washout trip.

i know the feeling. we were in a villa near tulum in oct 3 years ago. we had almost a week of hard rain & thunderstorms. we didn't get to do a lot of what we had planned. thankfully we were there for 2 weeks and the other week was outstanding.
with no kids i would suggest st. john even more strongly. there are plenty of 1 br villas available or caneel with its 7 beaches - you'd never have to leave the property.

You might luck out with the weather, but we've had too many November visits marred by clouds and rain, so have given up going at that time. Is there any way you can go later in the season when the weather is (usually) better?

If not, try to go as far south as you can. While Aruba isn't my favorite island, it does offer some of the most consistently decent weather in the islands.

Yes, it's impossible to predict what the weather will be for any given week in November. I can tell you this, St. Lucia is a very lush mountainous island with plenty of rain forests - it doesn't get that way without it's share of rainfall. If you want to lessen your chances of seeing rain stick to the flatter coral/limestone based island like Aruba, Curacao, Bonaire, Anguilla and Barbuda (not to be confused with Barbados) as they tend to be quite arid.

Thanks everyone, you have confirmed my suspicions...mother nature rules. For now, we are going to forego this trip and will try to go later in the season.

lsinden,

I just wanted to add that after many trips to several islands in the Caribbean, we've almost always had great weather on vacations that occurred from the end of February-mid April. Of course, I haven't done a scientific study on this,(!) but I usually return home with no sun tan lotion left, which is a pretty good sign! Anyway, have a great time whatever you decide.

Have you considered Bermuda? We had a wonderful a few years ago around the same time of the year.

The ABC islands normally dont have weather problems. I was in Curacao last november and the weather was perfect....

You may want to re-think it...Aruba will be beautiful mid- Nov. Out of hurricane zone, hardly ever rains, beautiful beaches, direct flights, great restaurants....aaaahhh...

We have traveled the end of November for 6 of the last 7 years. It is shoulder season so it is cheaper and the risk of a major hurricane is lower. Other than peak hurricane season, I believe that traveling to the Caribbean is somewhat of a crapshoot anyway. There is always something whether it be ash from Monserrat, freakish rain for whatever season or bad skeeters. The Christmas winds start picking up in December and the water temps get cooler. Sorry your trip got rained out in October, but bad things sometimes happen to good people. I would go for it.

Forgot to add, my island of choice is St John. We are addicted :).

brenandg,

Where in St. John do you stay? We are considering it as a destination ourselves this November.

i was considering a trip in november or early december. was hoping to use my marriott points if possible. out of the carribean islands, anyone have a good marriott loocation? i hear st thomas was just ok, but st croix looks nice.

bradykp - Check out the Marriott on St. Kitts.

COBeachGirl,
We are sort of unusual in that we like to stay near Cruz bay town where it is a little "busier". We stayed at Gallow's Point several times and loved it, but it was just getting too expensive. Last trip and this November, we will be at The Grande Bay Resort. This is a newly finished bunch of condos right in town. Easy walking distance to dinner and pubs. We still rent a vehicle the entire time, just really don't use it at night.

There are many, many options on St John for lodging but only 2 real resorts, The Westin and Caneel Bay. If you like it quieter, look at the Coral Bay side.

Marriot Curacao maybe? or perhaps any of the Marriots in Aruba..

Since you are limited to only 4 nights....you may want to consider Turks and Caicos as it's much closer than say St. Lucia or Barbados. You get to T&C much faster and your day isn't eaten up traveling to get there...and American offers non-stop flights from JFK. T&C has some of the most beautiful beaches you will ever see in the Caribbean and has great restaurants. T&C is super relaxing and low-key. Cruise ships do not go to Providenciales (only to Grand Turk). Check out places like Point Grace for a super relaxing vacay. You won't find any kids at this resort..it's more of an adults only kind of place....super serene and a great place to unwind. Other resorts on T&C worth looking into are: Somerset, Regent Palm, West Bay Club, Gansevoort, Windsong (just to name a few). Been there in November and weather was PERFECT! Celebrated my birthday and 25th wedding anniversary there last year and we couldn't have picked a better place!

Cheap and easy from NY is Puerto Rico.