lily83

Hello,
My fiance and I will be taking our 12 day honeymoon in mid-November and have some issues.
- we are U.S. but only have birth certificates, no passports.
- want to go somewhere w/ amazing beaches and want to have a semi-luxurious time.
- Have to mayble rule out U.S. Virgin Islands, he's already been there.

I think we can go Turks & Caicos w/out passport but I've read that the snorkeling is hard to get to and there's alot of cactus everywhere. We don't want a desert looking island. What do you think? Any advice? THAnkyou!

What about St. Lucia, do I need a passport there? And on T&C is it more affordable to rent a nice villa? THanks!!

ksmith

You can snorkel right off the beach at a couple of different spots in T&C. The beach is absolutely gorgeous. In land there isn't much to see, but if you're going for the water why would you care? We have been with birth certs, but that was a few years ago. Accomodations are great at all of the beach front resorts. If you are on a budget I recommend RWI or the Sands.

ccrosner

Why not get your passports now? I would think with a month to go that you could find a service that would get it done for you....it would make it easier for travelling.

Promethia

I recommend having a passport when traveling anywhere out of the US (especially these days!). I agree that it's worth getting your passport. You can even expedite the delivery of your passport and get it pretty quickly. I just sent mine out yesterday to get it renewed (expires in November). I've been to St. Lucia and loved Anse Chastanet. It was very romantic! I'm also looking into going to Turks & Caicos in November and I'm considering Parrot Cay.

mnag

I agree its very convinient to travel places with a passport. Turks and Caicos has amazing beaches but the island is dry/scrubby. The British Virgin Islands may suit you better if you are looking for a combination of nice beaches and hilly/island feel. Virgin Gorda is really nice. Biras creek or little dix bay resort are luxurious/high end type resorts in the BVI.

A_Traveller

The T&C's have fabulous beaches but they are flat, arid & scrubby with litte natural vegetation so if you are seeking a lush island they may not be for you.

If you are travelling in mid-November you have plenty of time to get your passports. Anyone travelling out of the country nowadays would be wise to have a passport. Although you can visit many islands (the T&C's and St. Lucia among them) now with only an original raised seal birth certificate and a government issued photo I.D. if you plan on travelling to the Caribbean anytime after December 31, 2006 you will need a Passport to get back into the US.

It's difficult to answer your question about renting a villa in the T&C's since you don't say what you mean by more affordable. More afordable than what - a hotel room, a luxury resort, a condo, a bigger villa, a villa on another island ????? Also, what does affordable mean to you in terms of actual dollars - $100/night, $200/night, $500/night, more????

Angler973

Turks and Caicos is a fine choice with truly spectacular beaches. For luxury, I'd recommend Coral Gardens Resort. In addition to spacious, all-suite accomodations right on the beach, it has imo the best restaurant on the island. Also, the beach grill is just fine for lunch or snacks. Most importantly, it has wonderful off-the-beach snorkeling. The reef, which is in very good condition, begins about 10' off the shoreline. You will see lots of reef fishes plus beautiful hard and soft corals. A bonus, just off to the side of the reef, is a large area of turtle grass beds, which attract huge hawksbill turtles. (We saw 8 on one trip.) We've traveled to lots of Caribbean islands, and this is one of our favorites.

mah1980

While it is of course a good idea to get a passport, be advised that a November honeymoon would be before the new law req'ing passports for U.S travelers to the Caribbean takes effect. Once you posted that fact, it is hard for some posters (not me) to get over the fact that you don't have a passport.

I went to Turks and Caicos last May w/original birth certificate and photo i.d. and there was no problem.

12 days would be way too long IMHO for Turks and Caicos. It is beautiful for its beaches, but there is not much else going on in ways of activities beyond water related activities.

I would recommend somewhere else for a honeymoon. I liked Turks and Caicos but it was missing that certain quality. It was too much like Florida for me.

brenandg

Did anyone notice that this post began in October of 2005? Honeymoon is long over for this post at least.