Caribbean (Plus) Corner

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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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…

Started by Tripatini

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In the British Virgin Islands, Anegada and its Lobster Festival

Photos: Victor Block Most travelers have heard of the U.S. Virgin Islands; some of the British Virgin Islands. Those familiar with the BVI usually know Tortola, and maybe even Virgin Gorda and Jost Van Dyke. But it seems that few have ever heard of Anegada. Which is a shame because it has so much to recommend it.

Started by Tripatini

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7 cool things to see/do on Saba

Richie Diesterheft Never heard of it? You´re far from alone – last year just 5,700 flights – by one of the Caribbean´s lowest arrivals figures – landed on its third smallest island (just five square miles/13 sq. kilometers sitting on an dormant volcano Mount Scenery, with a population of just under 2,000). But those in the know realize that the self-styled "unspoiled queen," part of the Caribbean Netherlands (along with Bonaire and Sint Eustatius, aka Statia) and first settled in the 1640s,…

Started by David Paul Appell

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The top 8 musts in gracious, beautiful Bermuda

Craig Stanfill A British Overseas Territory with a land area of just 21 square miles – the size of a middling city anywhere in the world – and a population of 73,000, Bermuda is named after its original discoverer, Spanish explorer Juan de Bermúdez. It has been settled for 412 years and has been a popular tourist destination – especially for those in the United States, for whom it´s a flight of just over two hours from the East Coast – since the 1880´s, when the Hamilton Hotel (now the…

Started by David Paul Appell

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Debbra Dunning Brouillette January 25, 2011 at 8:06am

Doug,

Sounds like you are doing a Royal Clippers cruise next week. I can tell by the itinerary... I will be doing the same cruise mid-February. I've been to St. Lucia and St. Kitts; the others will be new to me so I'm excited to add four islands to my list. St. Lucia is the place for spice shopping. Lots of photo opps on both. The Botanical Gardens, Waterfall, and of course, the Pitons are musts to photograph on St. Lucia. Tour the Brimstone Hill Fort on St. Kitts, the Batik Factory and Romney Manor. My favorite island, Nevis, is a short ferry ride across the 2-mile channel, so I may go there instead to check out the newly opened Four Seasons and have a lobster salad at Sunshine's. I would love to hear all about your cruise upon your return, so perhaps you can help ME with tips and must-dos for my mid-February trip! Feel free to email me privately at debbra@wordjourneys.net.
Doug Bardwell January 25, 2011 at 6:12am

Heading to the Windward Islands next week. Arriving and departing from Barbados, we will also spend a day each on St. Lucia, St. Kitts, Martinique, Dominica, Antigua, and Iles des Saintes. Looking for "not to be missed" activities or adventures, as well as "off the beaten track" places for spice shopping, drinks and photography. Thanks in advance for any suggestions.
Hal Peat January 23, 2011 at 2:09am

@Lynne - if you're still reading this, a belated thank you to you also for that time we were on a press trip together in the USVI and you gave me such helpful insights on compiling a travel book during my early days in travel writing. I've used your books as a reference guide since and that day and your kindness are remembered with gratitude.
Lynne Sullivan January 21, 2011 at 2:18am

David and Hal, thanks for the interesting chat on Cuba and tourism. I understand both points of view and both totally make sense. It will be interesting to watch the impact on Cuba when US citizens have "full freedom" to vacation there.
David Paul Appell January 20, 2011 at 8:55pm

Well, my point is partly that all that is not going to happen for another bit of a while. Barring a Tunisia- or Romania-style revolution, it's clear that true free enterprise is not going to be fully unleashed in Cuba as long as the Castros are around, and that is compounded by the fact that as long as the Miami mafia lobby keeps its the larger embargo going, it will just be a matter of a larger trickle of US travelers, but still a relative trickle. And the infrastructure issue on the island itself will in the near and possibly medium term still not be equipped to handle a much bigger influx anyway.
Hal Peat January 20, 2011 at 8:32pm

@David - I think once the freedom to travel is totally there as far as both U.S. and Cuban citizens going in and out, then you may see some phenomenal changes. Cubana for instance could really become a regional Caribbean airline, and Havana itself a real airline hub alternative to San Juan. I think costs geographically make it a little cheaper to fly in/out and that will stay - but the ground incidental expenses - transport, food, hotels, activities - a traveler faces will shoot up, up up as soon as free enterprise arrives there.
David Paul Appell January 20, 2011 at 6:44pm

Interesting piece in today's Miami Herald from astute Latin America (and especially Cuba) pundit Andrés Oppenheimer on how increased U.S. travel to the island may or may not affect the rest of the Caribbean. Some say it will be a hard hit, others say not so much -- and may even grow the overall pie. Yes, there will be novelty value and some pent-up demand, but on the other hand this is not exactly an unprecedented opening. And I can tell you first off that it's hardly going to be a flood, at least for the foreseeable future, at least in part because capacity is still pretty limited, and what capacity there is, is being amply used by Europeans, Latin Americans, and the other visitors Cuba already gets. So we'll see how big a move this actually turns out to be...
David Lawrence December 28, 2010 at 4:19pm

Hey Victor this video is a lot of fun. Where'd you find that lighthouse that's smiling.
Victor Balbin December 28, 2010 at 12:25pm

Hell "visitors to the Caribbean".

Throughout the years one song has become like a symbol for the islands.

We just created a promotional link with that song. Hope you like it.

Do you know which one it is??????

any guesses????

okay here it is, from COUNTRYSIDE TOUR . Dont worry be happy>
Victor Balbin December 13, 2010 at 2:22pm

If you are visiting San Juan Puerto Rico in the Caribbean, ask me about anything.

I have the answer

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