Just curious about this, because I've heard that some places like St Lucia and St Vincent do not have really clear water, whereas other places like the BVI do. What are the best islands for clear water? Thanks for your help!

Tortola has beautifully clear water where you can see straight down to the bottom. From all my travels in the Caribbean, I have found the water in Puerto Rico the least clear.

The Bahamas and Turks and Caicos (part of the same archipelago) have some of the clearest water on the planet. You can easily see the bottom and count the starfish in 20 feet or more. The water in the BVI is no match (though it's pretty darned nice...especially around Anegada).

It's not that the water in St. Vincent and St. Lucia is not clear -- it's just that the bottom makes it look less clear. A white sandy bottom makes all the difference. Run-off from the islands, especially lush, mountainous islands like St. Lucia and St. Vincent, can cloud the water as well. Limestone-based islands tend to have clearer water, as they are more likely to have white sandy bottoms and little or no run-off -- compare Anguilla to nearby St. Maarten.

I would add the Cayman Islands to the list of islands with clear blue water.

Ditto for Anguilla.

Definitely Grace Bay Turks and Caicos.

I agree with all of the above.but would add Virgin Gorda in the BVI I especially like the West end of Tortola where Smugglers Cove is locatd as that beach also has extremely clear water.

I have to agree with the Bahamas!

Here's another vote for Anguilla. Many islands have clear water, but Shoal Bay is literally like being in a bath tub.

Water color is determined by current conditions, bottom conditions, and depth. The islands with reefs and sandy beaches usually have clear light blue water; islands with mountains going down to rocks or volcanoes typically have dark blue water.
Therefore search for islands with shallow beaches, low current (to stir up water), reefs for clear light blue. Anguilla, Turks and Caicos, Bahamas, and many beaches on other islands where there are reefs.
The islands that are predominantly mountains have darker water. St Vincent, St Lucia, St Kitts, parts of St Thomas and St John and BVIs. That is why Hawaii does not have the number of great beaches as the Caribbean.
Puerto Rico has strong winds and currents and the water is murky.

John T-- Ocho Rios and Mobay do not have clear water,while Negril supposedly has beautiful calm clear water ?If so how do you explain differences in clarity on the same island?Also is it true that Negril's beaches are superior to OR and MoBay?

I don't know Jamaica that well but MoBay and Ocho Rios are on the North and Negril is on the West. Currents, tides, winds not to mention river/polution runoff probably have something to do with it.

Turks and Caicos - amazingly clear turquoise blue water

The clearest, bluest water I have ever experienced was in the Exuma Cays in the Bahamas - absolutely wonderful!

Great responses! Thanks so much!

Grace bay Turks & Caicos

The Bahamian archipelago, as well as many other flat, limestone islands have gin-colored waters. The Bahamas are nothing but thousands of feet of limestone caked with newer live and recently dead coral formations, which took millions of years to accumulate. All the 700 islands in the Bahamas are pure limestone and coral rock formations, the flattened tops of underseas mountains and deep valleys. No sedimentation and plentiful sun with warm currents to carry food to the live and growing coral, resulted in what we see and enjoy now. That's why projects such as the development of Bakers Bay on Great Guana Cay, Abaco is so hard to understand. The coral reefs lying just offshore will be dredged for a boat marina on the private golf course. Definately not progress. Robert

turks and caicos

#1 St Barth, #2 Turks