I'm planning our honeymoon June 2002. We currently have two reservations held - One at the Cuisinart/Anguilla, and the other at Sofitel Christopher/St. Barths. I'm looking for a romantic getaway, relaxing vacation, and great food. I know that Christopher is not on the beach... which is what may make me choose Cuisinart. If you've stayed at either of the two places above, could you tell me your thoughts??? It's hard trying to pick a hotel without ever seeing it, or knowing someone who's been there. THANKS!<BR>

Although I have not stayed at Cuisinart, I did honeymoon at Cap Juluca in Anguilla (which I believe is next to Cuisinart) and continue to rave about it even years later. The beaches are absolutely beautiful (the particular one on Cap Juluca has been written up for best beach in Carribean) and the food at all of the resorts we went to was excellent. The pro's of Anguilla are its beaches, the food, and pampering and relaxation with St. Martin a ferry ride away if you want more to do. The downside is it is very quiet without much nightlife- that was fine for us so it didn't matter. I recently met someone who went to Cuisinart and said it was beautiful but incredibly expensive for even lunch, etc. Feel free to email me if I can be of any help.

Hi Laura-Anguilla is my favorite place and I have been there many many times. My favorite hotel is Cap Juluca, but I did stay at CuisinArt while CJ was closed after huricane Lenny. CuisinArt is a new hotel and is very nice. It sits on Renedevous Bay, a vey long almost empty beach, were you can take nice walks. The hotel has a nice view of St. Martin too! It has a hydroponic green house with the best lettuce and cherry tomatoes I have ever tasted. The spa is great too. I thought the food at Santorini was excellent and enjoyed dining on the patio!<BR>I would suggest you stay a way from a meal plan -as Anguilla has lots of excellent restaurants! Pimms, Altamer,<BR>Mangos, Blanchards, Straw Hat, CoveCastles, Malliouhana, Trattoria! These are just a few!<BR>Have not been to St. Barts, but its suppose to be fantastic! Relax-it sounds like a wonderful honeymoon.<BR><BR>It is also fun to explore different beaches, as all are open to everyone, visit Meads Bay, Maundays Bay, Cove Bay, Shoal Bay West and Shoal Bay East! Anguilla has some of the best beaches in the caribbean!!!

Hi Laura,<BR>We've been going to St. Barths twice a year for 15 years and I think I can tell you pretty much everything you'd ever want to know. I certainly can tell you that the Christopher Hotel is NOT one of the nicest and I don't recommend it. Your best bet is to rent a villa. We've been doing this for about 10 years and wouldn't think of any other way. If you're interested, email me ([email protected]) and I can give you more info. If on the other hand you are set on a hotel then I'd recommend, in this order: Isle de France (on a gorgeous stretch of beach), great food, great service, beautiful rooms; Le Toiny or Eden Rock. These are my top hotel picks. St. Barth's is the best -- very European.

Love your choices of islands! Sounds absolutely ideal. I have stayed at CuisinArt and Cap on Anguilla and would return in a heartbeat to Anguilla and Cap. CuisinArt was lovely no doubt and enjoyable but there were a couple of shortcoming that made it just miss the mark in my book. Others would disagree and maybe they would be insignifigant to you but for me, it made a bit of a difference. I enjoy beachfront waterside dining and CuisinArt doesn't offer either but you do have a great view of the beach/water from the Hydroponic Cafe for lunch and I understand that the restaurants are tucked in the resort because of the wind that can buffet the property. But, since you will be dining out at the many wonderful spots on the island with better views, that is easily surmounted. I found the food not up to par with most of the dining choices for dinner and it was expensive compared to many of the other high end spots - but you go out to eat and solve that small inconvenience. Walking to Bankie's along the beach is an advantage. We stayed in a junior suite and I was disappointed with the furnishing. A lumpy futon was the option for casual seating. Other than a desk chair, there was no comfortable spot to sit, read and relax other than the bed or on the chaises on the balcony. The rooms are decorated lovely but a bit spartan for luxury accomodations but spacious and comfortable. The highlite is the bathrooms! The staff did get a clip-on light for me so that I could have adequate lighting for reading. There is a TV which Cap doesn't have - but I didn't turn it on and it is hidden in a cabinet. I prefer a room that takes advantage of the breezes which I didn't find CuisinArt did but looking across at the lights of St. Martin is a great sight. It is a beautifully manicured property and the grounds are stunning. The spa services are truly extraordinary. If you need/want a pool it is a lovely one. The artwork and furnishings of the public areas, the lobby bar, etc are stunning and the staff is definitely a strength of the resort - very accomodating and genuinely friendly. The hydroponic garden is interesting as are the cooking lessons that are offered to guests - you get to sample everything! Unfortunately when we were there it was breezy and there was a lot of chop in the water so we didn't get to float hours away nor swim but did travel to other beaches that were more condusive to that. CuisinArt is a nice destination and I think more "hotel" rather than comfy resort-style but Anguilla is the resort and you will want to be out and about on those other wonderful beaches too! Cap does sit on its own beach and has a more "spacious" feel to the whole resort. Having just returned from there recently, I can highly recommend it and am probably still basking in the magic. But, I certainly would have no problem returning to either nor recommending either but I certainly did find Cap much more to my liking because of the beach, the lushness/comfort of the furnishings, the choice of restaurants on site - on the water and on the beach, those fantastic louvered screened door across the front of the units that could be "open" all times and the fantastic staff. That's one great thing about Anguilla - everyone is wonderful! Enjoy! I am sure you will! FYI St. Barth's remains on my "to do" list ... so can't help there at all but hear such good things - just couldn't tear myself away from the Anguilla beaches tho to check it out!

We were in St. Barts last May and stayed at Carl Gustaf. I cannot say enough good things about the resort and the island. It was our absolute favorite trip to the Caribbean! Liked it so much we are returning next May and are thinking of renting a villa based on so many people recommending this. While there we rented a yacht for the day and went to Anguilla. We anchored on the beach at Cap Juluca. While swimming around we met some people staying there and they took us to see their room, right on the beach. It was really nice. So, I am sure whichever you choose, you will have a great time

If you're going to pick a St. Barts hotel that's not on the beach, it might as well be Le Toiny - best place on the island! If you want a good place on the beach, try either Guanahani or Isle de France.