My wife and two of our friends are planning a trip to the Caribbean this coming spring or summer. We have been to Maui and Cancun and loved both places. I would like some suggestions to which of the Caribbean islands would be a great choice. I know it is hard to pick just one, but I would like a general idea of which ones are better than most. We really enjoy snorkeling and would prefer a more lush tropical island.

What do you want to do? Do you want to dive, snorkel, is night life important or just a beach and a book?

Maui and Cancun don't have any poverty, so if you don't choose wisely you're in for a RUDE awakening (poverty-wise and crime-wise), and, unfortunately, your choices are quite limited! Grand Cayman (not lush but VERY SAFE and quite nice, beautiful 7-mile beach) and St. Barts (very tiny but the safest!) would be my top choices. Then perhaps St. Martin on the French side (have to be very careful on that island as well and most of the accommodations are unimpressive!). My last choice would be Aruba (very dry, dessert-like island, sort of like Arizona meets the sea, not beautiful at all, in my opinion, pretty safe, but I would NOT go back!) Although St. Lucia and Jamaica are very lush, they are very poverty stricken, full of crime and VERY DANGEROUS, in spite of what anyone tells you on this Board, so don't listen to any of them!!!

Now that was an uplifting response!

I think that there should be more responses like Mike's response. I went to St. Lucia for my honeymoon and I also heard how safe St. Lucia was. We were almost mugged and it took another local to chase the person away (and our NY instincts). People have to go to the islands with their eyes open and there should be more responses like that one.

If there were more responses like Mike's, most people would stay home. There are many inlands to choose from, for snorkling and "safe," the BVI rates pretty high. However, no matter where you travel, there is an increasing element of "crime" especially in any impoverished area and many islands may be, by our standards, rustic, primative and have a lower standard of living while we expect it to be "Paradise." No matter where you travel, exercise caution and good sense. Don't be dumb and do dumb things ... doubt you would at home so why would you expect it to be different away from home?

Hi, John <BR> <BR>Check out St. Martin. I've been to St. Lucia, and Jamaica, as well, but St. Martin was just lovely. Check out the possibility of renting one of the villas, since you're travelling with others. You'll save money in the long run by cooking at home. Take a look at my response to Mary under the message she posted under the title (though I can't remember correctly) "We Decided on St. Martin." Something like that. But, this island is safe and will suit a lot of different interests. I'm already booked to go back again this coming April. Good luck!

Hi John- <BR>Although you specified "carribean", have you considered Bermuda? Particularly if you're leaning closer to summer than spring the weather will be delightful...it is a lovely and lush island. Relatively safe - - a high standard of living among the islanders though there has been controversy on this board and others about crime increasing and so forth. Have fun whatever you decide

St. Lucia is fantastic and fits your description perfectly -- it's very lush and tropical, with dramatic volcanic peaks and gorgeous rainforest. I suspect that anyone who has been there and wasn't enamored of it probably stayed on the northern, overdeveloped, more "touristy" end of the island near where the cruise ships dock. The southwestern part of the island around Soufriere is impossibly beautiful, and the beach at Anse Chastanet offers excellent snorkeling. I was there exactly one year ago and highly recommend it. Check out these websites if you want to take a peek: www.ladera-resort.com, www.ansechastanet.com, and www.jalousie-hilton.com. All three of these resorts are beautifully situated and have a lot to recommend them. We stayed at Ladera and it was incredible. Open-air rooms facing the Pitons and the Caribbean -- the most beautiful view you can imagine, right from your bed. And the food is top-notch. By the way, we found St. Lucia very safe, and the people warm and friendly.

I think St. Thomas would be perfect.This island is built up like the islands you have visited. It is mountainous and lush. There are many restaurants and hotels.You can also take a quick,cheap ferry ride over to a more remote,quite island,St. John and snorkel at the many beaches. Let me know if you need any details,we visited in July and stayed at the Wyndam Sugar bay, which I highly recommend.

The British Virgin Islands are supposed to be quite beautiful and are considered one of the safest places in teh Caribbean. <BR> <BR>Other islands you should probably consider are Bermuda, Anguilla and St. Barthelemy. <BR> <BR>See my list of Caribbean url's.

The Cayman Islands are FANTASTIC!

Hi John: <BR> <BR>I am not a well-traveled person (and don't pretend to be) but my husband and I just returned from St. Croix and we liked it very much...we had heard that the crime was bad there but we found it to be perfectly safe...we stayed at the Buccaneer (www.thebuccaneer.com) and absolutely loved it (had an oceanfront suite) the snorkeling was great at Buck Island and in front of the Buccaneer, and St. Croix has some nice restaurants, but the best part was that it was not crowded or "touristy" at all...I have only been to Nassau and Cancun, so as I said, I am not well-traveled, but we would go back to St. Croix in a heartbeat!

Jane, your post reminded me of the conversation I had with a cousin of mine about her trip to the Virgin Islands. She stayed at Little Dix Bay and enjoyed it very much but I was shocked when I asked her if she had been to Buck Island and she hadn't even heard of it! <BR> <BR>I think it was in a Fodor's Caribbean guide that I had read that Buck Island is one of the top attractions in the Caribbean.

Just because someone went to Little Dix on Virgin Gorda doesn't mean they would know about Buck Island off St. Croix. If you have been there you know there are many islands around the BVI for exploring long before you would ever take off for Buck Island.

Okay, I appreciate your point but they chartered a yacht and sailed around the the Virgin Islands and as I said, I saw Buck Island listed as one of the top attractions in the Caribbean.