What island should I go to?
 

I'm looking to go on vacation next year, and it could be anytime of the year. Ideally, it would be for 5 to 6 days. We went to Turks and Caicos for our honeymoon, and we loved it.

I'm looking to stay somewhere on a beautiful beach that's pretty quiet but within walking distance of some restaurants and bars. THere doesn't need to be too many.

My husband will be interested in fishing and other different activities. If there's wildlife, that'd be pretty nice to see on tours as well. We would be leaving from NY. Any suggestions?

Topping.

Christine, I think you need to give some more details about what you are looking for.
I will give you some ideas of where we went. I love Bermuda. Best time to go is in the spring, summer or fall. Watch for the hurricanes in the fall though. It is pretty and has nice beaches and good food. It is probably my favorite island so far. Have been 5 or 6 times.

Aruba. Aruba has white sandy beaches with the turquoise waters. The food is excellent. The island is very arid and desert like outside of the resorts. There is gambling and some nightlife. There are lots of watersports. We enjoyed our vacation here very much. It is not as pretty as a Bermuda.

Puerto Rico. We went years ago and are returning this spring. It has gambling nightlife and good food. The waters aren't as pretty. There is a rain forest, and historical places to visit.

Grand Cayman. This is an island we are going early next summer. I can't wait to go. Supposed to have beautiful beaches and the light blue waters. Great snorkeling/diving and a friendly atmosphere. We are looking forward to our trip.

Have heard many things about different islands and have also read a lot about them. With only 5/6 days, you would probably want a direct flight and not too long.
Hope this helped.

You might look into the British Virgin Islands. There's not a lot of activities (like parasailing or jetskiing), so to speak, but you can get in some fishing, snorkeling, daysails, and on Jost van Dyke, they rent ATVs. Not much wildlife (wonderful mongooses - or is mongeese?), but on the whole, gorgeous beaches, walking distance to great bars and good casual restaurants from many places, and yes, quiet and romantic.

Well, for more info, I'm really just looking for a spot where I can come out of my room, lay on the beach that is ideal for swimming as well, read, have a few cocktails. Book some fishing trips or go kayaking or maybe a few interesting tours. Somewhere not crowded but with maybe a couple restaurants/bars in walking or cab distance. I mean, I loved Turks and Caicos with the friendly locals and everything, so something similar to that?

I was unsure about Aruba because I thought it would be crowded and touristy.

I was looking into Grand Cayman and British Virgin Islands. Also St. Kitts, but I've read the water isn't as nice, but I have no idea if this means it's just not beautiful beaches compared to other places or what. I like the idea of monkeys being seen in St. Kitts.

Most people who like Turks & Caicos for its beach and restaurants like Anguilla for the same reasons. I can't offer personal experience, but I would suggest Ku for a place on a great place in a moderate price range (moderate for Anguilla, that is). Cuisinart frequently offers great deals. Cap Juluca and Malliouhana are the two most upscale resorts on the island.

St. Kitts has beaches that are beautiful in my opinion, but they're not long stretches of blinding white sand with brilliant turquoise water. The sand and water are both darker, which is typical of most volanically formed islands. I find them beautiful and lush, but others strongly prefer the other kind of beach found on T&C or Anguilla. However, I don't believe there are any beaches in T&C or Anguilla that have a resident pig and lots of monkeys for great photo ops, unlike St. Kitts!

The BVI offer an in between option, with some lushness, some rolling hills and "mountains" and very light colored sand beaches with beautiful blue waters. Maybe the Long Bay Beach Resort might be good for you, or possibly Sebastian's for a lesser budget.

Thanks for all that info. What is your opinion of St. Lucia? I was thinking of that also.

I've also been looking into certain places in Costa Rica. It's so hard to make a decision with all these choices!

If you want the water of T&C, you're not going to find it in St. Lucia. We enjoyed St. Lucia but it definitely does not have that crystal clear blue water.

A lot of people who enjoy Turks & Caicos seem to love Anguilla. You might try that route.

Here's my trip report of Grand Cayman (with pics) if you haven't see it...but the Georgetown area might be a bit too crowded for you. However, lots of good restaurants and really friendly islanders.
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34790307

Good luck.

Yeah, I was looking into Anguilla, but my delta sky miles don't have any flights to there. I will check out if I can find anything with a decent price though. I certainly won't be staying at Cap Juluca or anything.

We're going to Anguilla next April. I ended up booking the Rendezvous Bay Hotel & Villas (I couldn't stomach paying the Cap Juluca rates in April!). We're doing oceanfront villa room and the rates are really reasonable I think. Anyway, it's not a luxury hotel but have you seen the beach it's on?! Now that's luxury right there! :-)

I believe that you could use your Delta miles and fly into Sint Maarten and then either take the ferry over to Anguilla or a small local carrier.

ejcrowe: Hi..Did you book St. Kitts?

Thanks, I am checking out reviews to Rendezvous right at this moment. That's great that I could fly into St. Maarten. How is that island? Also a reviewer for a hotel on Anguilla said they went to St. Maarten since Anguilla is not the prettiest place to linger. I don't understand, isn't it supposed to be beautiful?

I am looking into Mal Pais in Costa Rica also. Look at the reviews for Casa Chameleon. They are really good. I wonder about their availability though. I'm just a little concerned as it seems like a little trek to get to that area or if the area is a little too quiet.

Wow, Rendezvous does look beautiful. I'm thinking about it!

christine, I think many people love Anguilla's beaches and water but find the flat, arid island to be unattractive on the interior.

Caribtraveler, I didn't realize you had definitely booked Anguilla. Is this one of those "book it now, then wait & see" trips, or do you think you'll actually go there? ;)

We made a deposit with AAVacations for St. Kitts that is fully refundable before a certain date in October, so we don't have much time left to wait & see. I think we'll probably end up going, as the price was so right and my DH has his medical reasons for longing to get back to the Caribbean. I'm longing to get back to, but not for medicinal purposes! :D

To describe Anguilla, it's very similar to Turks, which you love. Flat dry, stunning beaches. Fly into St. Martin, take the ferry over.
If your tastes run like Turks, then you will enjoy Anguilla. I've been to all the above mentioned except for St. Lucia, but while St. Lucia I'm sure is beautiful, I'm all about the beach. If you loved Turks, Costa Rica will definately dissapoint. CR is about rainforest, hiking, surfing, searching for exotic animals. (The zip lines through the jungle are a blast.)You will definately get the wildlife there, and good fishing trips. But by no means are the beaches as nice as other Caribbean destinations.
Another cool option, fly into St. Thomas and stay in St. John, a great all around kind of island.
Continental is partnered with Delta I think. You can also look into Exumas Bahamas. Great bonefishing, stunning beaches. Check out Club Peace and Plenty. If your there on a Sunday, everyone goes over to Stocking Island for a pig roast, it's a blast!

Christine79: If you do decide on Rendezvous Bay, don't do the gardenview rooms. They seem to be the older rooms and not very nice. If you're looking at the reviews on Trip Advisor, then I'm sure you'll come to that conclusion as well. Happy researching!

ejcrowe: Oh it's a done deal. I booked the flights so we HAVE to go. :-D My husband actually said that's where he wanted to go. He usually lets me pick the vacation spots so the least I could do is go with him for once. ;)
Have a great time in St. Kitts if you don't change your mind!

You've made a great choice with Rendezvous Bay Hotel ! I spent three weeks there in 2003 and it was one of my best vacations ever. Jeremiah Gumbs was still alive then and his wisdom lives on in my heart.

Bart and his staff are among the best in the Caribbean :-)

RBH retains a true Caribbean feel that is important to me.

I spent a week at CJ in 2002 and contrary to popular opinion, found it over-rated...to say nothing of over-priced.

You have a treat to look foward to at RBH :-)

Marion

What kind of room did you get? The problem is that when I went on expedia and looked at the days I wanted, garden view was the only choice.

MarionCK: Thanks! We are very happy/excited about our choice. But then again, I'm an easy gal and am always happy/excited about all my vacations! LOL.

Christine79: I see you're in NY. I live in NJ. Rendezvous Bay has a booking office in NJ. Just call them and book through them like I did. 1-732-442-1968. They might not be open on the weekend but you can leave a message. You can also e-mail them via their site to inquire about availability for your dates.
We booked a 1st floor oceanfront villa room. Someone on Trip Advisor posted a photo from their 1st floor doorway looking out onto the beach/water. Sold me right there. Sure looked like paradise to me. :-)

I read your response and I don't think you would like Aruba. It is noisy and busy. It sounds like you want quiet.
Anguilla would be very nice, but you only have 5 or 6 days. I would pick a more direct travel destination.

Thanks caribtraveler! I will check through their booking office on Monday if I decide this for sure.

I have ruled out Mal Pais in Costa Rica. The place I liked would come out to $265 a night because they add 16% tax. That's okay because Anguilla looks gorgeous, and as long as my husband can fish, he'll be happy.

I don't mind the non-direct flight too much. If it's 6 or 7 hours, that's certainly okay with me if we leave early and get there in the afternoon.

christine, I think you made a really good choice and I hope you're able to book the room you want.

Marion, I had no idea that you had ever vacationed in anguilla. You don't mention it much. How did your 3 weeks at Rendezvous compare with your time in Treasure Beach? Are you counting down the days until your next visit when you can apply rum punch therapy to your back?

Caribtraveler, you must be coming up on your T&C trip soon. How nice for you to be able to do a firsthand comparison of the legendary Grace Bay with the other beaches of Anguilla!

I'll have to wait until Monday to call about booking. Plus I hope my husband can make sure that it's okay to take that week off next year beforehand. May is a good time to go, right? I always worry about places being crowded in April with spring break, but then again, it's not exactly a party area for spring breakers, is it?

I do love T&C so much. We went for our honeymoon in November 2 years ago and stayed at The Sands. It was so beautiful and the locals so friendly.

christine79: We're flying non-stop from Newark to St. Maarten. We leave at 8:40am and arrive at 1pm. I know there are non-stops from the NY airports too. I've read that it takes on average 1 hour 30 minutes after landing to arrive to hotel (taking the ferry). So it's not bad at all. You can get some beach time that day. ;)

ejcrowe: We leave Thursday morning for T&C. Yeah!

Thanks, that's not bad. I don't think I can use my delta miles even to go to St. Maarten because there are no Skysaver options where it'd only be 30,000 miles. I had checked.

Well, I certainly have a decision to make. It is either Anguilla or, now I am back to the place in Costa Rica which is http://www.hotelcasachameleon.com

I did some calculating and my miles would cover one ticket, so as much as this place is a little expensive, it would cost the same as going to Anguilla. So I have a hard decision before me!

Well whatever you pick, have a great time. I had never heard of that place in Costa Rica. I just looked at photos on Trip Advisor. Nice! Oh my, ANOTHER place added to my already too long list of places to go! :-)

Yeah I know, the Costa Rica trip would have more wildlife to see. I still have not made my decision yet. I can't go wrong with either choice though.

You made the right choice in choosing Anguilla.
The beauty of the island is not in it's scrubby terrain. It's in the gorgeous, pristine beaches, the sweet, shy but gentle locals, the privacy and the one-after-another great dining experiences from casual to casual-chic.
Simply take an AA non-stop from JFK to Sint Maarten and then either take a taxi to the public ferry or a shared boat (a bit pricier) or the 7 minute plane ride over to Anguilla.
Enjoy!

Another question I have is about food/restaurants. Are there any restaurants in Anguilla that are a bit more affordable than the expensive ones? I looked at the menu for one of the restaurants at Rendezvous Bay, and the prices were crazy. I can eat there, but spending that much every day might kill my wallet. Are there other places that are so not expensive? Like under $25 for an entree? I mean, cereal for breakfast was priced at $4! That seems a little steep for just cereal.