Caribbean Vacations

DoitCaribbean is from the Caribbean Tourism Organisation. This is a good place to start to get inspiration and information about a trip to the Caribbean. Choose an island of interest from the “Places to go” pull down menu or pick an activity or special occasion (such as “golfing” or “honeymoon”) from the “Things to do” pull down menu to find information to help you start planning your trip.

Segisys’ Caribbean Guide is an excellent source for general information about the Caribbean, detailing its history, food, art and entertainment, and more. Start by clicking on a topic of interest, often you’ll get only a few paragraphs to introduce you to each topic (such as attractions). Make sure to take a look at the menu to the left side of the page to get more specifics (in the “Attractions” section this would be beaches by region, casinos, and more). You’ll learn what sorts of vacations are available to you, and what attractions are worth visiting. This site also gives practical information, such as typical weather, and advice on how to get around.

Bookit.com focuses on the Caribbean as a whole, and has less information on individual islands. The site, which is run by a travel agency, is organized by topic, such as nightlife, attractions, restaurants, and shopping. Under each topic, various articles and personal reviews appear, with an emphasis on the specific islands that excel in each category. This is beneficial if you are not sure where you want to go in the Caribbean, but do know which activities are most important to you.

ParisandJohn.com is a good place to begin learning about the Caribbean. Produced by guidebook writers, the site is full of first-hand advice. This short passage gives you an overview of how to decide which Caribbean island to visit. Use the “Pick an Island” tool in the left-hand sidebar to discover general information and features of each, and to link to each island’s official tourism site. Also see “Our Travel Websites” to link to www.CaribbeanFamilyTripper.com, among others.

Lonely Planet is the popular travel-guide publisher, with a great introductory travel guide to the Caribbean. The interactive map on the homepage lights up whenever you click on an island, which makes learning the geography of the region easy. This site shows you every island in the Caribbean, and offers an overview of each one, providing information on culture, money, and transportation. There are beautiful images of the islands throughout the site as well.

The New York Times travel section recently featured "Affordable Caribbean," an extensive resource for 13 of the islands. The feature includes several articles touting hotels, restaurants, and activities on the selected islands; an interactive map linking to locations and corresponding amenities; and swoon-worthy photos.

Definitive Caribbean is an online travel guide specifically for the region. Click on an island of interest, and you’ll find details of to everything you’ll need or want to know, including key features, beaches, what to pack, and more. There is even a “Caribbean Island Search” that lets you select the qualities that are most important to you, such as “Large, sandy beaches.” The site then ranks Caribbean islands for you based on your preferences.

Fodor’s excels in its descriptions of places to go on each island and the clean design of the site to help you navigate. In addition to standard restaurant and hotel information, the site offers a few unique details. Click on an individual island and Fodor’s tells you when to go, the top four reasons to go, the best beaches on the island as well as other features specific to the region. 

Caribbean.com caters to many of your Caribbean island needs through customized searches. The design of this site isn’t pretty, but you can find hotels, restaurants, shopping, entertainment, and press releases for whichever island you choose. You can also specify your price range, along with additional personal preferences. Each island has an interactive map that allows you to explore beaches or entertainment centers through a panoramic view of the area.

RealTravel depends on traveler input for its vast amount of content. Users upload travel photos, create blogs chronicling their journeys, review accommodations, and generally aide their Web-surfing peers in achieving a better understanding of the locations they’ve visited. Visit the “Central America/Caribbean Blogs” section and choose the countries that interest you to view illustrated diaries of others’ experiences.

The U.S. Department of State presents a comprehensive guide called “Background Notes” that covers every country in the world for the benefit of travelers. These guides are updated frequently, and offer an encyclopedic rundown of a country with basic background information. After exploring the link above, take a look at the “Consular Information Sheets” page, which explains the foreign entry requirements for every country, including vaccination and visa specifications.

Segisy's discusses customs requirements to keep in mind when traveling to the Caribbean. For example, you “may bring up to two liters of alcohol and two cartons of cigarettes to the Caribbean islands,” and “You are allowed to bring home up to 200 cigarettes and 100 non-Cuban cigars from a CBI country.”

The National Archives of the UK offers a concise, general history of the Caribbean with a focus on the British Caribbean. Despite the British focus, this is a comprehensive run-down, with plenty of information on the region as a whole. The history covers the British takeover of the islands through slavery, and details the development of 20th century transitions.

CaribbeanTravel.com provides a Travelocity-powered hotel search tool and detailed information on hotels in each of the islands. Click on the island you’re visiting to learn which airlines fly there, what airports are available, what the entry requirements are, and more. Be advised that the site is hosted by the Caribbean Hotel Association's (CHA) publishing division, and that of the 1,103 properties reviewed, 865 are CHA members

Caribbean-on-line.com has a plethora of information on getting to the Caribbean, and lets you book hotels, flights, cars, activities, and packages directly through the site. You’ll also find maps, forums, and traveler reviews.

Expedia is a huge travel agent with similar services to those previously mentioned, and an emphasis on finding inexpensive flights. A simple interface shows all of your flight route options, and a convenient "flexible date" option helps find the lowest prices on flights. Expedia also provides a hotel search, including detailed descriptions of amenities, rooms, dining facilities, and policies, accompanied by user reviews, ratings, and photos. The substantial "Deals by Destination" section is definitely worth a look.

Kayak is a U.K.-based site with a clean design and fresh approach to flight, hotel, and car rental search. The site trawls more than 140 airline providers and airline search engines to compile its data. Kayak includes large airlines and small airlines to ensure the best rates and flight availabilities.

RealAdventures.com allows you to search by individual island, or through the entire Caribbean for accommodations. The site gives a brief description of each place as well as pricing information. You can search by accommodation type: for example, look for bed and breakfasts, campgrounds, retreats, hotels and resorts, timeshares, vacation rentals, or youth hostels.

Leading Hotels of the World offers listings for five-star hotels and spas from around the world. The site includes photos, brief descriptions, and, in most cases, booking options. You can also plan a luxury vacation using their online vacation planner. Be advised that not all Caribbean islands host a Leading Hotel of the World, so not all islands are covered on the site.

Hostelz is a large database of hostel room listings worldwide, with a section devoted to Mexico and Caribbean hostels. Head to one of those pages for a clean, uncluttered index of the cities and towns in which hostel listings can be found. The site also benefits from “brutally honest” comments and reviews from users.

WarmIslands.com as you would expect, specializes in the “warm islands,” the majority of which are found in the Caribbean. The islands are separated into different regions: Eastern, Southern, and Western Caribbean. The site helps visitors maximize their island vacation through forums detailing personal experiences, and reviews. There is also information available for each island and for certain parts of each island.

Caribbean Magazine offers helpful forums and reviews of accommodations throughout the Caribbean. The site lists all the Caribbean islands and includes subsections for each island such as “hotel review” or “travel tips.” Don’t be put off by the rudimentary design here: it makes the site easy to navigate.

HotelChatter provides reviews and stories for a number of Caribbean accommodations. While user comments are sporadic, you’ll occasionally stumble upon invaluable pieces of first-hand advice. You’ll also see photographs of the hotels, the average price of a room, and in many cases, “Stories” accompanying the hotel’s page, written by former guests.

TravellersPoint is a relatively new site specializing in destination guides developed by a hired staff of travel writers. The site has an accommodation section that’s very useful for last-minute hotel and hostel deals. Browse the “Forum” section to discuss travel ideas and experiences with other users. You have to register to use the site, but the service is free. You can use this site to share information about travels worldwide.

Caribbean Airlines serves a number of destinations throughout the Caribbean, in addition to its international flights, which travel to New York and London. Click “Plan My Trip” in the top toolbar to access a route map, as well as a timetable showing which routes are available on each day of the week. The airline touts a 92% “On Time Performance” rate, and offers a tool to help you calculate your carbon output for your flight.

LIAT LTD. only handles travel within the Caribbean. This regional airline has flights to 22 eastern Caribbean destinations, with service stretching from Santo Domingo to Guyana, and advertises special offers and clearance sales on its site.

Bahamasair is the official national airline of the Bahamas, and services numerous locations in the Caribbean. Consult the Route Map (in the top toolbar) to see your options; this airline should cover your bases if you are planning to spend your Caribbean vacation in the area of the Bahamas, Turks and Caicos, and Florida.

GORP provides up-front, quick descriptions and pricing for travel tours, with listings available in dozens of Caribbean destinations. You can book your tour directly through the site. We recommend that you surf around GORP, as this is one of the best specialty adventure travel sites available, offering user reviews of equipment, accommodation, and transportation, much of which is relevant to travel in the Caribbean. Be sure to check out “Top Caribbean Trips,” which lists many adventures, not just bicycle-bound trips.

CruiseDirect is a cruise search engine that covers several major cruise lines including Holland America Line, Carnival, and Royal Caribbean, all of which operate Caribbean-specific cruises out of ports such as Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, and San Juan. Use the search engine on the right-hand side of the page to find cruises based on your desired locations. Take note of other areas of the site, such as “Group Cruises” and “Last Minute Cruises,” both listed at the top of the page.
 

CruiseCritic gives you advice from the traveler’s point of view, with written reviews and ratings of cruises worldwide. Visit the “All About Caribbean” section to learn more about potential cruise routes and regions. The “Find a Cruise” option allows you to book through the site. Be sure to check out the “Features” section, with tools like “Ask the Editor” and special articles on cruise-related safety issues, particularly weather.

CaribbeanMag.com can be particularly helpful because it indicates exactly which car companies are listed on each island, and links you to each company’s site to make a booking. This site reveals the laws and regulations of each country, and provides some tips for navigating the terrain of each island.

Caribbean-on-line.com supplies rental car services for each island in the Caribbean. Try the “online car rental” tool to find and book a vehicle in the island you’ll visit. The site feels a bit disorganized, but does offer useful suggestions for each island, including driving and rental rules.

Definitive Caribbean is a great resource if you simply want advice on which car rental company to use. Unlike the previous sites, Definitive Caribbean suggests which rental service you should use for each island (though not every island is listed). In most cases, the site links you to whichever car rental company it recommends.