Hi All,

This is a very last minute trip my husband and I want to take. From May 18-23rd, dates are not flexible. We live in NY and want to go somewhere in the caribbean that is fairly close and cheap! All I really want to do is sit on the beach for 5 days, anybody have any good ideas??

Thanks!!!

Bermuda is close to you. Cheap, well, not so much. The cheapest lodging options will be on www.bermudarentals.com or www.bermudaaccomodations.com You might also like Clairfont apartments which are very near although not on the beach. Go to www.bermudatourism.com and see what accomodation listings appeal to you, there are thumbnails there of all your choices. Also for your dates you might find a deal if you pair your air and lodging.

First off, nothing in the Caribbean is really "close" to NY but since that's a relative term by "close" you probably mean a relatively short flight. That means you want to go someplace you can reach non-stop from your nearest international gateway airport (you didn't say where in NY you are flying from - it's a big state). Anyway "the shorter flights from the NY area will be to the "northern islands' like the Dominican Republic (perhaps one of the more economical destinations in the Caribbean), Nassau, Jamaica and Puerto Rico. Slightly longer flights will get you to St. Thomas, St. Martin and St. Kitts. Most other destinations will have either longer non-stop flights or take a a seriers of connecting flights and/or ferries.

I just booked the other day and saw Continental has non-stops to Nassau. (I'm sure there are a lot of non-stops from NY.) You can stay there or catch a short flight to Eleuthera, Harbour Island or others.

Dominican is a beautiful place and if you like AI there are very nice resorts on pristine white beaches.

hi chic, you can get to st. thomas fairly quickly & easily from jfk. if you can get a reservation at secret harbour beach resort i would think that might be ideal for you.
shbr has it's own restaurant and rooms have kitchens, but no alternate rest's in walking distance. on site rest - the blue moon cafe has excellent food & enough options for 5 nights. in 10 mins taxi ride you can be in red hook which has a few more dining options. very relaxing resort with good snorkeling off their beach.
all inlcusive option nearby is wyndhams' sugar bay resort.
if you tell us your specific nightly hotel budget it will be easier to advise you.

You don't mention budget, but there's a great direct flight to Antigua from Newark, I think you get there by 12 noon. For a great, romantic, R & R vacation with your husband check out Galley Bay, good sales right now. Also, I think there are direct flights to Turks & Caicos from NYC and there are a ton of resort choices there (it's one long strip of beach) and a gorgeous beach and water. Personally, Bermuda in May was not beach weather to me, I suggest further South.

The Dominican Republic is a scant 3 hours from JFK on JetBlue into Santo Domingo (SDQ) or Puerto Plata (POP). I would pick the north coast (POP) because you can get excellent deals on rental condos in Cabarete.