Agree with all the positive comments about Aruba! (By the way, it is definitely NORTH of the equator, 12 degrees or so I believe - why do you think Equador, which is in South Amrica, is called Equador? Right, because the equator runs through it...)<BR>We have been a number of times in the past and are planning to return in January. We will be staying at the Bucuti Beach hotel, which is a very quiet, fairly small hotel on a huge beautiful beach. Geared mainly to couples who want peace and quiet. We hardly ever go to casinos, nightclubs and fastfood places - just like to relax, sit on the beach, swim in the pool, have a nice meal now and then.. So you see Mo, you can't generalize about the sort of people that go to Aruba...

Good afternoon Beth,<BR> I own a beautiful condo right on the beach situated in a beautiful private cove in St.Thomas. The property is Point pleasant resort and has one of the most romantic restaurants overlooking the ocean called Agave. Excellent snorkeling and scuba diving. You can also go to The BVI or St.Johns on a beautiful sailboat for the day and snorkel, have lunch, rum punches, this is very nice. <BR>Sincerely,<BR>Lisa

I stand corrected. My apoligies to all. Had a bad day thinking Aruba was south of the equater but north of it about 12 degrees. I meant to say it is out of the hurrican belt and is why a lot of vacationers go there. Although Aruba has had some hurricans in the past years it usually dosn't get the blunt of any of them. Thank you &quot;Mo&quot; and &quot;Sally&quot; for correcting me. One other point, rain in Aruba is welcome, dosn't happen to often and the rain is usually last about 5 minutes or so but not in the rainy season.

How about any Sandals? Millions of people can't be wrong! hmmmmm. or maybe they can...

Lisa why don't you get lost - can't you see no one is taking you on? And you know full well that advertising is not allowed on this site...you have &quot;played&quot; your ad at least ten times for the day on this forum - no one is listening...so go pay some money to someone to set you up a website and take a hike from here!

<BR>I absolutely must agree with Mo on this one. If you re-read Beth's post, she actually states:<BR><BR>&quot;We want to go somewhere warm, where we can swim, dive/snorkel, hike, etc. We are not too concerned with nightlife, but good food is a plus. We don't need luxurious accomodations, but want something moderately nice.&quot; <BR><BR>Notice how she says she's not too concerned with nightlife? Doesn't that mean that Aruba may not be the place for her? Why is everyone getting so defensive? <BR>Maybe Aruba is good for those who prefer to travel miles and miles away from home yet have the same ameneties readily available.<BR>Maybe these people actually enjoy looking at monstrous cruise ships and fast food joints. <BR><BR>I personally think Beth would enjoy something a little more &quot;ethnic&quot;.<BR><BR>Beth - go find your paradise. Do some research on the islands that Mo recommended. I bet you won't want to leave.<BR>

I agree with Ann completely. When anyone asks for suggestions the Aruba nuts come out of the woodwork as though it's the only place on the planet worth going to. <BR>There are beautiful things about Aruba but it's not the ideal vacation spot for everyone. Some people like off the beaten path, some people don't want a mass marketed destination with hordes of cruise ship visitors. Why does that make us less than you Aruba lovers?<BR>You should all be happy some of us don't like Aruba, there's more room for you that way.

I thought I was the only one who was with Mo on this so I am glad to see there are others who are not afraid to try something a little different. I guess the average tourist flocks to Aruba because they want an average vacation and a place that reminds them in some ways of home - with the fast food joints, the large hotels etc. It must be a comfort zone thing. Places such as Grenada, Dominica, Nevis, St Kitts, the Grenadines etc may not be appreciated by most right off the bat because of the absence of the skyscraper hotels, and shopping malls, the white sand beaches in some instances and KFC! But charming they are indeed, in their own unique way - for what Beth is looking for, I would suggest Barbados (good beaches, snorkeling/diving, great resturants, a wide range of accomodations to choose from, lots of history and good sightseeing) or Grenada (some good beaches, a bit of hiking in the mountains, good local food, and charming smaller hotels). Nevis or Dominica are also interesting choices - the latter does not have such great beaches but I understand the diving there is quite good and the local food is delicious, there is plenty of hiking and if Beth is a nature lover, she will be in paradise there.

I stayed most of the month of October 2002 at the Villas of the Galleon on Grand Cayman in apartment # 35. This is at the south end of the &quot;Villas&quot; complex right next to the Ritz Carlton. There was very little noise from the construction and it diminished daily so by now there is probably little or none as the building is closed in at the north end and construction is moving to the south. Apartment #35 is a 2 bedroom (one king and one queen) 2 full bathroom apartment with a dining room, living room and balcony;fully equipped kitchen with washer/dryer. It's clean and modern and bright. The living room, balcony and master bedroom face the sea. I recommend apartment #35 to anyone who wants to be sure of a clean, completely furnished and equipped apartment in Grand Cayman, that is less than a five minute walk to shopping and restaurants.