areinert

My wife and I are going on a 7 day cruise in Jan 06 to the caribbean. Our ports of call are:
- San Juan
- St. Maarten
- Roseau, Dominica
- St. Lucia
- Margarita Island, Venezuela
- Aruba

In the past we have brought back two bottles of Rum from each island, but we still have all the rum from the last cruise. Is there something special from each island that we should look for in the sense of wines or spirits? For example, when I was in Ireland I only brought back one thing, and that was the best bottle of Irish wiskey I could afford.

Thanks for your thoughts and opinions.

Statia

St. Maarten is known for its Guavaberry Liquer. You can purchase it right there on Front Street where the ships passengers disembark.

travelatte

Try Wild Guavaberry Liqueur from St. Maarten. It's made from Rum and wild Guavaberries. We loved it and have even ordered some and had it shipped here after we ran out. I think it will soon be time to restock.

Have a great trip!
Travelatte

areinert

Thanks for the ideas for St. Maarten

Does anyone have ideas for the other islands? Also, any recomendations for the best places to buy Cuban cigars?

Diana

If you live in the US, you CANNOT bring back Cuban cigars into the States, and a good way to get into much bigger trouble than you think you could would be to try to do so anyway.

That having been said, if you want to get some to enjoy while you're on your cruise, we have been able to find them in almost any sizebale city in the Caribbean in tobacco shops.

You will definitely be able to find them in San Juan and St Lucia and Aruba.

On St Lucia, buy their beautiful hand-woven straw baskets. On St Lucia, there is a shop that makes the most beautiful batiks - I think it's called Caribelle. Beautiful vibrant silks in tropical colors. On Dominica, it is one of the VERY last islands that has any Carib Indians left, so you could find out if they have any indigenous crafts and get something made by them.

Have fun!

christiegr

We had no problems bringing back Cuban cigars from Aruba.We were informed to remove the band of the cigar and you will be fine.Then we found out later that we could have brought back up to 1 box of cigars.

Diana

No offense, but it's not smart to attempt it - especially these days...

We were detained in Miami about 10 years ago after a Caribbean trip due to two cigars my husband had that drew a custom official's attention.

He was grilled for about ten minutes, and they were clearly intending to let him know it is not acceptable. I was visualizing our luggage getting hand-searched for an extended enough period enough time for us to miss our connection, but we were patient and courteous, and they let us leave - sans the cigars.

Here is more info from the govt.

http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/travel/al...ban_cigars.xml

"Contrary to what many people may believe, it is illegal for travelers to bring into the United States Cuban cigars acquired in third countries, such as Canada, United Kingdom, or Mexico."

And from another source:

http://www.ehow.com/how_110840_purch...an-cigars.html

baylady

In the rain forest in Dominica we bought woven baskets made by the Carib Indians. Also had pretty purses and hats. These people lead a poor and simple life and the money is appreciated. Hot sauces from the islands are also good. Coffee is good present too. Can't believe you have rum left!