This fabled sea, covering more than a million square miles and 7,000 islands with diverse languages, cultures, and ecosystems, has become probably the planet's premier vacation playground. Here it's all about its regional issues and allures. And yes, the (Plus) means we're including the Bahamas and Bermuda along with the Caribbean coasts of Colombia, Costa Rica, French Guiana, Guatemala, Guayana, Honduras, Nicaragua, Suriname, and Panama.

For other individual island forums, check out Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, Barbados, Bonaire, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Cuba, Curaçao, Dominican Republic, Guadeloupe, Haiti, Jamaica, Martinique, Montserrat, Puerto Rico, Saba, Statia (St. Eustatius), St. Barth, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Maarten/Martin, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

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5 highlights of Dutch Sint Maarten

Dave Senior Taking up 40 percent of the island of St. Martin and with a population of around 58,000, this territory of the Kingdom of the Netherlands packs a whole lot of fun, flavor, and personality into a petite package. Whereas French St. Martin leans elegant and relaxed, the multicultural, largely English-speaking Dutch side offers its share of quiet corners, but also a livelier menu of casinos, nightlife, beach bars, waterfront dining – along some of the most photographed aircraft landings…

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Started by Helen Brown
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Chilling on Tortola and Jost Van Dyke in the British Virgin Islands

  Victor Block My husband Victor and I are travel writers. Which means when we get to a destination, we explore every aspect, constantly seeking out stories. Until we got to Tortola, capital of the British Virgin Islands, with a population around 15,000. That didn’t happen. And it was almost like — dare I say the word? — a vacation. But let’s back up a bit. We are a lot older than our last trip here 30 years ago when my husband had the temerity to actually hazard driving. To put the roads in…

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Started by Tripatini
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Rum and much more in Barbados

  Victor Block Most travelers know that most Caribbean islands are soaked in rum, but Barbados goes the rest one better because here, locals say, is where rum was discovered. In capital Bridgetown one early-17th-century day, the story goes, a tavern owner was searching for an empty shipping barrel when he inadvertently stumbled across one filled with a concoction worth selling -- a barrel of sugar cane fermented over time. Well, Mr. Rumball -- the tavern owner -- knew a good thing when he…

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Started by Tripatini
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  • Wendy Capra October 7, 2009 at 10:32pm
    thanks guys, your advice is great and has cetrainly opened up a lot of possibilities. personally i've been to jamaica and thought it was nice but they speak english like we do (with ap rettier accent!!) so i think a more foreign island like curacao will be fun, tho i'm still up in the air!! i was readin gabout that keshi yena and that sounds YUMMMMMY!
  • Cathy A. Preece October 7, 2009 at 6:06pm
    One of St. Kitts' newest attractions is Sky Safari's ziplining, which lets you soar above the rainforest canopy on a variety of lines at different speeds. I tried it on my most recent trip to the island and thoroughly enjoyed the experience!
  • Cathy A. Preece October 7, 2009 at 6:03pm
    Wendy, have you been to St. Kitts? It also fits the "all-around" bill, yet it has only recently been focusing on tourism so it's relatively uncrowded. Among the things to see and do are touring historic Brimstone Hill fortress, rainforest hikes, riding the Caribbean's only scenic passenger train, visiting charming plantation inns, enjoying authentic and cool beach bars, and more. Another plus is that Nevis (see Cheryl's comment) is the sister island to St. Kitts, separated by only a 2-mile channel, so you can do a day trip or even a twin-island getaway.
  • Chelle Koster Walton October 7, 2009 at 2:07am
    That said, Jamaica is my favorite island. SO much culture, SO much variety. And one of the Caribbean's most affordable.
  • Chelle Koster Walton October 7, 2009 at 2:05am
    Iguana Stew. What can I saw, it tastes like guess-what. Better - keshi yena. Stuffed baked gouda. A melding of its Dutch and West Indian culture.
  • Ruth Kuehn October 3, 2009 at 3:30am
    I have a Destination Specialist Certification in the Caribbean, Bahamas and Bermuda and have travelled extensively in those areas. Would be happy to help in any way I can.
  • Wendy Capra October 2, 2009 at 6:26pm
    Funny you should say Curacao, I was doing some reading online last night, and Curacao jumped out at me... Those pictures of the little dutch houses are sooo cute! read there's a place i can get iguana stew, too.......... um i'll get back 2 u on that one!
  • Cheryl Andrews September 29, 2009 at 11:53pm
    Culture and museums? Go to Curacao. curacao.com Lots of interesting museums, a downtown that looks European, terrific restaurants. Some good deals out there now too. If you can hold off till January, there's a cool new Hyatt resort opening....
  • Tony King September 29, 2009 at 11:00pm
    It's got a nice volcano - Soufriere, and quite a few eathquakes. Other than than that it's very green and almost reminds people of Ireland. Not much to do, but good for lazing about.
  • Wendy Capra September 29, 2009 at 5:53am
    Hey, thanks to both, those are great answers and certainly food for thought. Here's the thing: I want to get away from my rainy hometown and go somewhere tropical and I have 2 weeks off coming up, but I'm not the kind to lie on a beach for 2 weeks either............. so maybe I need to find an island with lots to do culture-wise. I mean I'd love to go to Paris or back to my good ol' Italy, but I need sun and warm weather and culture and great food......... What's unusual about Montserrat, anyway?
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