I can't decide!!! Which island for a honeymoon?
 

St. Kitts has been our top contender for a 5 or 6 night honeymoon in Oct. traveling from North Carolina. But the flights seems long, and I'm wondering if I should simplify and pick an island that would take less time to get to.

Barbados, St. Croix, St. Lucia and Bermuda seem easier to get to from here. We are looking to mostly relax with the opportunity to snorkel or hike or enjoy the beauty of the island or just chill at a very nice room at some very nice place.

Stick with Kitts (I have a thread going on where we should stay there too) or could we get an awesome room somewhere and have the opportunity to do the aformentioned things at another island? Help please. :)

Bermuda is less than two hours by plane from CLT or RDU if you get a direct. I don't know what your budget is, but there are some lovely resorts there. The Reefs, Cambridge Beaches, Pink Beach, all do very nice honeymoon packages (ask for a private dinner on the beach). There is some excellent walking on the Bermuda Railway trail and hikes at several of the forts. Snorkel at Church Bay. It is one of the most beautiful places in the world. Romantic, civilized, charming. Best wishes on your wedding.

I just answered your other post as well. My only question having never been there is how warm the weather is in Bermuda in October if that is signifigant to you.

Thanks. :) I wonder myself how warm Bermuda (and the snorkeling water) would be in October. It's early Oct., but still...

I take back what I said about St. Lucia being easier to get to. It's about as difficult if not moreso, vs. St. Kitts.

Cayman is about 2 hours from CLT on USAir.. and is a lot warmer than BDA in October... just another thought.

In my experience the weather in Bermuda in October is lovely. I have dived and snorkeled during October. The water is warmest from July to October. You may want to check http://www.weather.bm

perchy,
I am also from NC.:) I recommend Grand Cayman.We just returned from there and we flew US Air..it only took about 3 hours to get there.(we flew to Charotte from RDU and then straight to GC)

We love Grand Cayman island.

Christie

I have been to Bermuda in mid October and the weather was wonderful. We had warm ocean temps(If I swim it is warm!) and warm days. I have also been in May and it was much chillier in May. I think Bermuda is warm until late Nov.
It is a beautiful island and I would highly recommend it for a honeymoon!!! The food is delicious,it has great snorkeling, and it is very relaxing. Look into one of the smaller resorts like the Reefs or if you want big hotel/resort, Elbow Beach Club or the Fairmont Southampton. For a honeymoon, I think the Reefs would be wonderful.

Ooo, thank you everyone. We have been to Grand Cayman before and did enjoy our stay but wanted to try something new for our honeymoon.

Bermuda remains on the must-consider list. Thank you. Keep the posts coming. I haven't dropped St. Kitts from the consideration list, but someone in another thread didn't recommend it for a honeymoon, and I'm really wondering why. St. John I am hearing good honeymoon things about too. And we can fly non-stop to St. Thomas from Charlotte!

Keep the posts coming. They are very helpful!!

Is a full service hotel part of your honeymoon criteria? If not, Gallow's Point on St John is a very nice Condo Complex on the water within walking distance to Cruz Bay. There is not a white sand beach on the property, but there are plenty nearby. They have a small, but nice pool and jacuzzi. They discourage kids under 12 and under 5 are not allowed. We just stayed there in March and are returning this November. They also have a shuttle that will pick you up at the ferry dock when you arrive. We sayed in a harbor loft with 1 1/2 baths and loft bedroom. They have ocean view as well. You might want to check out their website, gallowspoint.com

That website should have been, gallowspointresort.com The first one I gave you is for Suite St John which owns a handful of the Gallow's Point units.

I really can't understand why St. Kitts wasn't recommended for a honeymoon, IMHO. We went last summer and met many honeymooners in St. Kitts and Nevis. We did split our time and will again betweent the two next month. They are beautiful and friendly islands.

Are you looking for a caribbean type of honeymoon or something more upscale?

Bermuda, while one of the most beautiful islands is very proper and I don't consider it to be 'islandy' in terms of the caribbean or Bahamas. Also, the weather will be similar to NC weather in October.

St. Kitts is gorgeous. I would also consider Barbados, St. Croix, and St. Lucia over Bermuda.

St John is absolutely beautiful, I have been there twice. Gallows Point recommended by brendandg looks very nice!

Christie

Hi, I just discovered this website about the Maldives this week, http://www.Holiday-Island-Maldives.com I wish I had found it sooner, I just got married in January this year. My wife and I had our honeymoon in the Philippines {Bagio} but the Maldives look more like the ideal place for a honeymoon, lots of sun, beautiful beaches, and if you stay at the right resort they will take you by boat, to an uninhabited island about 20 mins sale from the main island, there they will make your evening meal for you, no one else around, How ROMANTIC is that. Hope this info helps you find your DREAM HONEYMOON. I wish you happiness and prosperity inyour upcoming marriage.
Carltone.

I highly recommend St. Kitts. I have been going there since I was a child.

US Airways has a non-stop flight from Charlotte to St. Kitts on Saturdays.

In St. Kitts you can snorkel, hike, enjoy the breathtaking scenery, visit sister island Nevis, going on a catamaran excursion, visit Brimstone Hill Fortress and the many fun beach bars.

A website you might find helpful is www.discover-stkitts-nevis-beaches.com and www.myislands.myeyez.net

I chose Bermuda for my 5 night wedding / honeymoon in Oct 2002. It is so close for us on the east coast. I loved Bermuda for a honeymoon. The island is so pretty and the pink sand beaches are beautiful. There was plenty to do and it is a very romantic island IMO. We stayed at Pompano Beach Club and I can't say enough about this place. The weather was perfectly warm and so was the water. (Tropical Storm Kyle was dancing all around the island at the time and the weather on the island was still beautiful). Keep Bermuda in your top contenders. Yes it is a proper island but I really liked that about it. The people are soooo nice.
Hope this helps.
Annika
Let me know if you have any other questions.
Annika

hi perchy, love the name, guessing it's about the fishing??
i would like to suggest you consider turks and caicos. you can nstp from charlotte at 11:30am, land PLS 2:21 or leave at 6:50am stop in miami and be on island at 12:36. in that you have such a short trip, i would def be looking for planes that get you to your destionation as early in the day as possible and look for return flts that leave late.
t&c - providenciales - provo for short has great snorkeling. when i went in nov it was HOT and the water warm enough to stay in all day. not much hiking, great restaurants, and kind of an adults island as there is very little to do there except bonefishing, swim, snorkel and do beach time and world class scuba. not tropical - more like caymans in appearance except with spectacularly beautiful, 12 mile long grace bay beach, which has been voted one of top 10 most beautiful on earth by travel channel and i think conde nast. colors of tourquoise water that will make your jaw drop. reef in very good condition here. airport to hotels in 15 mins.
my friend has a condo on st. lucia. she really loves it but does feel 1 week is too short with the travel time included from boston. apparently travel time once on island is long as well. so maybe save that island for another vacation.
st, john has excellent snorkeling. is very romantic. hilly and lush. but it will take you a couple hours from st.t airport to get to anyplace on st.john.
well there's my 2cents. happy planning. and congrats on your wedding.

Wow. Thank you all. We had tossed Peter Island (BVI) into the mix, and that seemed PERFECT until we got the price. Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! Doesn't it figure?

Of course it would figure the closest we come to finding what we think we want, we'd have a hard time with the corresponding price tag.

perchy, by the way, is fishy indeed. :) It's a restaurant in chicago, but I'd been a tropical fish enthusiast at the time this nickname was born.

Anyhoo.... sounds like Montpelier (vs. nisbet?) on Nevis is back in the running, and that Gallows Point definitely commands looking into more.

Bermuda, the weather is warm, the weather is like NC... I am hearing both.

I love the Peter Island-style intimacy and proximity to water view. Seems cozy without being too upscale, well, vs. say, The Palms on T&C, which looks VERY upscale and just not our style. Please keep the ideas coming.

At least it's getting clearer (probably to you as well as to us) what it is we really want. Thank you, thank you for reading and posting.

Hey perchy - i am trying to send you an email about Costa Rica...from your other post...but for some reason the email you gave me on the other post didn't work. I have a long email full of info waiting for you...so check the other post and let me know if I have the right email. Thanks!

First of all, Nevis is a little difficult to get to, but it is so worth it. Montpelier is not on the water, but if you are ok with playing at a hotel that's not on a beach, it's a good choice. It's up in the hills and is surrounded by ornamental gardens. It's owner managed and we ate dinner there one night (in the sugar mill- so romantic!) four months ago although we stayed at the Four Seasons. It was wonderful! The island itself has wonderful hiking and the people are so welcoming. A very unique paradise.
Bermuda, on the other hand, has the wonderful famous pink sand beaches and as you pointed out, it is a closer flight. We spent our tenth anniversary there and it was an unforgettable experience.
So, it really comes down to what is most important thing you are looking for on your honeymoon?

Weird about my e-mail, mishi. I responded with an alternate over there. :)

Peter Island really did seem perfect. Except for price. I do like having some kind of waterview, because we do want to spend some quality time with our accommodations. :D

I also want to be able to snorkel at least once, and we need a place that isn't terribly crowded.

I haven't given up on Kitts or Nevis. Still spying St. John too.

If you want to snorkel and hike, the top three islands IMHO are St. John, St. John, and St. John in that order. Beautiful beaches and miles of hiking trails.

Thank you, rb. What I'm hearing is that St. John would be a good decision, yes? ;-) Thank you.

You are probably on information overload already, but yes St John is a great island. Even if you only had 5-6 nights, you could squeeze in a very nice day trip to the British Virgin Islands. White Bay on Jost Van Dyke is really something to see as are the Baths at Virgin Gorda. You may have read about the New Horizons II powerboat trip that makes four stops in the BVI's. Downtown Cruz Bay also has a large selection of restaurants for finer dining and you don't have to be dressed to the nines to enjoy them. Very casual island. As for the ferry/taxi situation, it will chew up a couple of hours total. Our flight got in at 2:20pm and we caught the 4:00 ferry from Red Hook. That said, we just get in island mode as soon as we arrive and enjoy the scenery. No rush. We were still able to watch the sunset having drinks with plenty of time. If you are interested, I can top my trip report for you.

brenandg, in answer to your question under another thread, I guess I've narrowed it down to St. John, St. Kitts, Nevis, Tortolla. St. John Caneel Bay might be easiest to get to.

My travel agent said of our decision to pass on Pert Island because of the money: Champagne taste on a beer budget. But I suspect there's a bottle of wine somewhere that's plenty suitable and affordable.

I started posting under Where to stay St. Kitts, but then I realized I was wandering off to other islands and created this board. I felt this one would more clearly explain my predicament but did not want to ignore anyone who posted at my original board.

My very first post was under someone else's Oct. '06 honeymoon thread. Great that the conversation continued, but I apologize if I've confused anyone. I won't post anything else about my trip under anywhere other than this thread going forward.

In response to Melissa5 on my Where to Stay on St. Kitts board, she said she didn't recommend Kitts for a honeymoon:

"There's not enough night-life on St. Kitts, for one thing. Even though I researched where to find dancing, and on which nights, I was disappointed to find that there wasn't any dancing in any of the 3 places I had hoped to find it. So we didn't get to dance. Even the locals seemed to be steering us wrong...I think maybe the dancing "scheduled" for St. Kitts is inconsistent, they try it out, then it gets cancelled (maybe not enough business?) There was even a sign at Turtle Beach about a live band, which we had come to see, but no band!!!"

Nightlife isn't an issue for us. So St. Kitts remains a consideration. Although is seems like, in terms of accommodations, we may find a more Peter Island-like place on Nevis???

Well, it's been a while since I've posted here and I'm no closer to a decision.

My attempts to reduce travel time vs. St. Kitts/St. Lucia had us looking at St. John, but I am repeatedly warned about hurricane season and early October being too risky.

Travel time aside, would St. Lucia meet our requirements, you think? Should I just skip the Caribbean and stay somewhere in the U.S.? (My fiance doesn't have a passport and doesn't really have the time to deal with the hassel of getting one right now.)

Makes me wish we should have planned our honeymoon first, and the wedding around IT. lol

Perchy, don't give up if your dream is a Caribbean honeymoon. Getting a passport isn't really much of a hassle. St Kitts is a beautiful island as are all of them. Travel time can be a problem no matter where you go in the Caribbean.

If for some reason you can't get it together I would suggest checking into St. Augustine FL. It is a romantic setting and prices are reasonable. In fact you could drive there quite easily. Restaurants, beaches and some decent nightlife to be had. The weather in October is warm nd comfortable. There are horse drawn carraiges for sightseeing around the city. Many bed and breakfasts as well as upscale hotels. The Casa Monica is beautiful. I have never stayed there but would like to even if just for one night of splurging and then the rest on my beer budget. Truthfully even the less expensive ones are nice. www.oldcity.com or a general google on St. A will give you loads of info. There are many state parks to visit for swimming, exploration, kayaking, etc. Good luck in what ever you and yours decide.

perchy: Getting a passport is not a big deal. It will take a half an hour in the post office. They mail it to you in about a month. I have to renew my kids this summer and that is more of a hassle because my husband and I both have to go.
About your honeymoon, no one knows what the weather will bring. We were married in late August almost 20 years ago and went to the bahamas. We had perfect weather. Bermuda is beautiful in October. We went two years ago and the weather was great and the ocean temps warm. If you really want st. john, then go for it. Just take insurance and have a weekend back up plan in case. You can always reschedule for a month later if bad weather rolls in. Good luck and don't be discouraged.

hmmm... thank you vinceygirl and girlonthego. We considered the west coast of Florida too, but I'd forgotten about St. Augustine.

Hmmm.... more to think about. I do believe we can get to the Caribbean without a passport through the rest of '06. I think the passport reqs. kick in in Dec. or Jan. '07...

Hmmm...

By the way, what is a plunge pool?

As one who has lived there, I would never choose St. Augustine over the Caribbean.

It is small and touristy and little natural beauty, except for the beaches.

Casa Monica is lovely but really caters to groups.

If you do decide on St. A, I suggest you look at Casuarina B&B for a romantic inn on the waterfront.

A plunge pool is a mini private pool next to your room.

It is hurricane season in Florida too. I would not go to florida over the Caribbean. If Bermuda is a short hop, that would be my first choice for nice honeymoon pretty island with good food.

How would Jalousie Plantation on St. Lucia be for a honeymoon? Say, compared with Peter Island, Caneel Bay on St. John or the Marriot on St. Kitts. Jalousie seems private, peaceful, a place we could enjoy our accommodations.

I'm confused about the two airports in St. Lucia. Fly to SLU to be closer? Or if the fares are better to UVF, go there and make the hour-plus drive?

Rent a car? Do the all-inclusive? (Bigger question is are there many other decent options nearby, or would we WANT the all-inclusive here?)

Snorkeling close? Hiking?

I for one would be extremely hard pressed to come up with a more beautiful location I've seen than the setting of the Jalousie. It's a very romantic setting, and it would give you lots of privacy for a honeymoon--most rooms are actually freestanding little cottages with private plunge pools, outdoor wetbar, and a nice-sized full bathroom.

Jalousie is pretty isolated, but you could feasibly drive to Soufriere for the Hummingbird restaurant, or to Anse Chastenet for its restaurants. Ladera and Stonefield are a little closer. The Bang, a very casual and quirky restaurant, is immediately next door to Jalousie--it's definitely worth trying, especially on their entertainment night--used to be on Wednesdays, don't know if it still is.

There is pretty good snorkeling right there on the property along the base of the Pitons. Hiking is abundant on the property, or you could go off property for even more.

Check out Luxury Link for some excellent package deals right now for Jalousie--about $1500 for 7 nights, full breakfast for two, one evening meal, taxes, service charge, and I think one "Extra" like a trip to Soufriere or a sunset cruise. Food and drinks are expensive here, typical of a large "got-you-hostage" resort. Even so, my husband and I would never have eaten our way through their AI offerings. You may be different. You can sign up for AI at any point in your vacation, but once you sign up for it, it's for the remainder of your stay.

As for the airports, one (the northern one) only accommodates small regional jets and prop planes. The one in the south is the main international airport. Not all airlines fly into both airports. If you can find a substantial price difference at one or the other, just take it. I'm not sure what the difference in driving time is for either one. The southern airport is closer to the Jalousie as the crow flies, but I think I've read that it's still a good long taxi ride away. I took the helicopter from the northern (SLU) airport to the helipad at Jalousie when I went, so I'm afraid I can't help with driving times.

Perchy, If you are interested, click on my name and read my report from our trip in May to Jalouise. It is an absolutely beautiful setting. Any questions, just ask. Owa

Oh my josh, your trip review was very helpful, owa. Thanks! And thanks for the tip on Luxury Link, too, ejcrowe.

I'm liking Jalousie. :)

Meals or no meals, Luxury Link or travel agent, that is the question...

Argh! The flights from GSO, RDU or CLT to SLU or UVF stink! GSO seems about the best but also the most expensive. Second best would have us flying into SLU and out of UVF. Any issues I should be aware about there?

Jalousie OR
Long Bay Resort on Tortolla

Caneel on St. John seems to be pricing out higher than Jalousie. :(

Maybe we should just go to the Biltmore...