Honeymoon: Anguilla or Turks & Caicos?
 

My fiance and I have been searching the internet for honeymoon ideas in the Caribbean and we have come across a ton of resorts that are amazing, but we need to keep our 7 day trip under $5k. We are not big on the Sandals idea but we prefer adults only (we are in our late 20s, should probably mention that)! More than anything, we want a beautiful beach and yummy food/drinks without breaking the bank. We have been to Aruba and loved the beautiful turquoise water and beautiful beaches, but we want to try somewhere new! Turks & Caicos and Anguilla look amazing: Point Bay resort, Galley Bay resort, Cap Juluca and a few others got great reviews but would love feedback from anyone who has vacationed at either island. We will be flying from the east coast and our honeymoon is set for May 2012. I being too high-maintenance? Are there any islands I may have missed that would offer us a mix of romance, beautiful beaches without a ton of kids, good food and drinks, etc? Help! Thank you for any advice you can provide!

Two pieces of good news: (1) you'll get low season rates in May, and (2) most kids are still in school in May. So you won't necessarily need to go all-inclusive unless you want to.

I've been to both Turks & Caicos and to Anguilla and I agree that they both have beautiful beaches. Anguilla is also known for its food. Unfortunately, Anguilla is pretty expensive and Cap Juluca is one of the more expensive places to stay on the island.

The downside to Provo (I'm assuming you are interested in Provo and not one of the smaller islands?) is that most of the accommodations are condo-style hotels which appeal to families although again, most kids aren't out of school yet. There are a lot of T & C experts here so perhaps one of them can chime in with an accommodation likely to have few children.

My experience has been that you can find good food on any island. But obviously some islands have a preponderance of good restaurants, e.g., Anguilla, St. Martin, St. Barts. Most of the good restaurants on those islands are expensive.

I'm not familiar with Point Bay resort. Is it on Provo? Galley Bay resort is on Antigua and not Anguilla. My husband and I stayed there last year. It's a favorite of a couple of posters here but we didn't love it. We wouldn't go back. I've also stayed at Cap Juluca. It's a beautiful resort on a spectacular beach. I think it's a great honeymoon destination although it may be out of your budget.

Getting back to all-inclusives.... You say you don't want something like Sandals but maybe Couples or Couples Swept Away in Negril, Jamaica would work for you. We tried to go to either of those resorts in March but they were both sold out. So even though I can't personally recommend them, in my research I think they may work for you. We ended up at Iberostar Grand Rose Hall in Montego Bay and loved it. That's another place you may want to look into. Fabulous service, very nice accommodations and really good food. My guess is the beach in Negril is better than the beach in Montego Bay however. The nice thing about Jamaica is there are lots of things to do off of the resorts plus Jamaica itself is a little less expensive than some other islands.

The turquoise water of T and C and Anguilla aree far superior than Aruba, but you should know both are fairly quiet islands. Both have excellent restaurants, but they are costly.

Does $5k cover air too? Or is that just for hotel. Excursions? Food?

Overall , both your tags would make awesome honeymoons, I got to tell you though, Cap Jaluca might be out of your price range. (unless budget is just hotel)

You might find in your budget that T and C works better for you, but both are more expensive islands than most in Caribbean.

At both you should budget for car rental. (usually around $45 daily)

Tell us more of what your budget includes, we can help better.

<Are there any islands I may have missed that would offer us a mix of romance, beautiful beaches without a ton of kids, good food and drinks, etc?>

Negril Jamaica

luxurylink.com bookit.com

Have a look at Couples Swept Away Negril

Rockhousehotel.com awesome for Non AI

Fly first class down cheaply on Sprit.com to save.

Excellence PuntaCana.com

Anguilla is flat hot great beaches expensive not a lot to do.

Provo Grace Bay is hilly green fairly small and expensive

for decent stuff Jamaica and DR will be less of a budget

buster... I will throw in www.jademountain.com for a splurge

Private Plunge Pools VERY romantic views and HM worthy.

I like islands with green mountains and variety...

Congrats!

Have a look at myturksnadcaicos.com or myaguillavacation.com
They are experts in travel to those areas.

Also, check out
www.turksandcaicosreservations.tc

If you're looking for romance, quiet, beautiful beaches you have pretty much nailed it with Anguilla and T&C. I personally prefer Anguilla but T&C as Blamona says may be better budget wise. I would add Harbor Island in the bahamas to the list (check out Pink Sands resort) although the restaurants are not as nice as the ones on T&C or Anguilla.

Have you consider a romantic cruise to the Caribbean? It can be done with your 5K budget if you do not consume too much alchol.

A 10 day southern caribbean cruise could be had for less than $1000 per person. Add on tips and beverage expenses of $500 per person (that would be good for 3 to 4 drinks or glass of wine a day or better) and all the food is free.

Depending on where you are from, fly to Florida at $400 each (and that's a high estimate). The total so far would be only $3800 and you still ahve $1200 extra to spend on shore excursions, spas, souvenirs etc.

The entertainment on baord is free. There are lots to do on the modern mega ships. You will vsiit 5 or 6 islands, well looked afterby the crew while on board, food is better than most all inclusive, maybe that's not a bad way to go?

Age and activity appropriate cruise lines to consider would be Princess, RCL, Carnival and Celebrity.

I am actually at Cap Juluca right now, and the place if full of honeymooners. Another young couple I know are having a destination wedding here at the end of the month. They have terrific deals in off season (including May). I know that they recently had a Flash Sale on Jetsetter.

Ashunc....where did you decide on your honeymoon. Would love to hear as we are in the middle of planning ours and your criteria fits ours....having a hard time deciding between Anguilla/St Marten or T&C or Barbados. Thanks!!!

Check out Turks and Caicos and The Somerset resort ...very romantic. www.thesomerset.com

I do love Negril and Couples might be a good choice, but if you would possibly consider Mexico, look at LIVE AQUA in Cancun. It's a newer hotel that's landed on many of the world's best hotel lists.

It is AI, so if that's of no interest, keep looking. The hotel is adults-only, has gorgeous suites ( look at The AQUA Suite which has an enormous terrace fronting the beach and separate living room), a good spa, health club, 7 pools, and a wide uncrowded beachfront with private cabanas.

The hotel is very close to downtown Cancun, so plenty of nightlife, plus just down the road from some really excellent restaurants ( an Argentinian steakhouse) in case you want to take a night off from what's on site.

In May, you should find some decent rates, although LIVE AQUA has become quite popular. Lastly, Jetblue flies to Cancun from JFK. Good luck!