STEWART COPELAND

I'm interested in taking a little trip to the Caribbean, never been before. Montserrat is probably a no-go since the volano did its thing. Who can recommend a good spot, hotel, etc? Just starting looking into this, and may not get to go until next year, but it's not too early to start gathering information. We tend to look for quiet vacation spots and avoid the big tourist areas. After this winter that nearly wore me out, I just want to go lie on a beach somewhere and soak up some sun.

My kind of vacation is the kind where you do a whole lot of nothing on a beautiful beach that is not too crowded. Two places I like quite a bit are Grand Cayman and Turks and Caicos. If you want to be left alone for the most part in Grand Cayman, stay at the Westin in Provincales. Right on the beach and usually not too crowded. For Turks and Caicos, if you have the money, rent a house at Taylor Bay. Also, I've stayed at the Windsong Resort, and they really treated me right.

An associate of mine swears by French Polynesia/Bora Bora. While these are great places, they are a heck of a lot more expensive than the Cayman Islands or Turks and Caicos, and I am not sure they are better if you just want to do nothing. However, the food is better in French Polynesia/Bora Bora, though the restaurant at the Ritz Carlton in Grand Cayman is about as good as you get.

I'd recommend checking out St. Kitts and Nevis. My mother and I used to go to St. Kitts every year for about 20 years; granted it's been about 5 years since we've last been back (due to real life complications and the loss of a few close friends we had on the island) but we really loved it and especially the people there. St. Kitts has a number of really lovely, quiet beaches all along its lengthy peninsula, good for swimming and snorkeling. The main town Basseterre is beautiful, lots of historic British architecture. It's really a fascinating place as SK & N are an independent nation, released from British rule in the early 80s -- and they are extremely proud of that fact! There's a great music festival in June that draws a lot of people but otherwise it is very quiet. We usually stay at the Marriott; even though it's a big resort, it's still got a lot of island charm. Otherwise I recommend the Ocean Terrace Inn on the cliffside of Basseterre. We also used to sometimes rent a condo at the Horizons in Frigate Bay which had some great units a short walk to the beach, but the management was always a little flaky. I'm not sure how it is today.

(Shameless promotion time: I've written a number of pieces about St. Kitts and you can find them all linked/brought together here: http://sockii.squidoo.com/visiting-st-kitts-a-guide-for-tourists

St. Kitts' sister island Nevis is also well worth considering. It's smaller but has the most incredible Caribbean beach, Pinney's Beach, one of the most beautiful I've ever seen. It's so long that you can find several beach bars along it but also plenty of stretches that are very quiet with no people around. There is a swanky Four Seasons resort right on Pinneys but also several lovely hotels up in the volcano hills on former plantation grounds. I've stayed at Nisbet in the past and we loved it there. (Montpelier Plantation is where all the rich & famous stay.)

I think you can also get Montserrat volcano tours out of St. Kitts, either by ferry or helicopter? If you're interested in that sort of adventure. There actually are operating hotels on Montserrat now, on the side of the island that was not touched by the eruptions and is considered "safe" today. I would love to go back at some point myself (I went twice before first the hurricane and then the volcano activity really hurt the island community.)

Thanks for the replies, lots of good info. St Kitts and Nevis sound pretty nice. I like the idea of staying at an old plantation up in the hills. My wife was agreeable to a trip, maybe late this year or early next. We'll keep looking into making a nice island journey asap.

drummike wrote:Thanks for the replies, lots of good info. St Kitts and Nevis sound pretty nice. I like the idea of staying at an old plantation up in the hills. My wife was agreeable to a trip, maybe late this year or early next. We'll keep looking into making a nice island journey asap.

Cool. Let me know if you decide on or want more info on St Kitts & Nevis, I could provide a lot more specific tips and such if you're interested.

I just booked a trip to St. Kitts with my wife and two boys over Thanksgiving week for eight nights. A big change from our normal annual summer week in South Haven, Michigan. We're getting very excited about the Caribbean! Let us know your decision, good luck!!

I'm going to have to research this St. Kitts place.

years and years ago I went to Barbados...not bad at all!
I also got the chance to see the Reggae Festival !

Pezish wrote:I just booked a trip to St. Kitts with my wife and two boys over Thanksgiving week for eight nights. A big change from our normal annual summer week in South Haven, Michigan. We're getting very excited about the Caribbean! Let us know your decision, good luck!!

Hey Pezish, let me know where you're staying, I can probably hook you up with some good recs for dining and other excursions!

Just a vote for Cozumel - which is not technically Caribbean but isn't far and is out of the hurricane belt. It's cheap as can be for Americans and the flight is only about two hours from Miami, IIRC. Can't wait to get back there, come to think.

If you're a snorkeler, try Bonaire. Also out of the hurricane path. There's tons of reefs right near land, so you can walk out your hotel's back door and jump in. I like the Divi Flamingo.

http://www.diviresorts.com/DiviFlamingo/