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Post by tallgirl on Jun 20, 2022 20:09:35 GMT
We've done several locations around the Caribbean and Central America and I find that I prefer mainland Central America. For me, it's the Latin American culture that I love, and the Spanish/Mayan architecture and historical sites, and they're accessible via a relatively short (direct if you're lucky) flight. In Panama, Belize and Costa Rica we stayed in small, independent boutique-type hotels from which we could arrange excursions or simply sit back and enjoy doing nothing in beautiful surroundings.
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Post by stormsts on Jun 20, 2022 20:35:59 GMT
As others have said, Belize is not an island but you have that island feel. I want to get back there some day.
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Post by catmom on Jun 21, 2022 1:27:39 GMT
I've vacationed on the Bahamas, Antigua and Barbuda (x3), Aruba (x3), St. Lucia (x2), Jamaica (x3), Cuba, Dominican Republic (x3), Grand Cayman (x3)
I've visited Bonaire, Curacao, Grenada, St. Maarten, St. Thomas, St. John, Dominica, Turks and Caicos
I'm not sure if I'll be much help since there is no end to the amount of time I can spend sitting at the beach and I confess I always go to the Caribbean for the beaches, snorkelling and sun and have no idea of the culture or history of any of the islands. Embarrassing but true.
In general, food at all-inclusives is not meant for foodies, but there is a wide range of quality. In my experience, Mexico has been the most mediocre food at resorts. The Sandals and Secrets resort chain tend to have good food. In general, if you look for a 4.5-5 star resort that is adults only and ideally on one of the more well-off islands the food will be better. But better still to not stay at an all-inclusive. I would recommend Antigua, Aruba, St. Lucia and Grand Cayman as good islands for staying off a resort, with St. Lucia being the best food that I experienced.
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Post by SockMonkey on Jun 21, 2022 13:51:08 GMT
Based on what you described, I'd recommend Puerto Rico for you. You can spend time in multiple places (Old San Juan for a bit, , there are plenty of historical, cultural, and natural sites to see, and you can eat very well.
St. Thomas would be another good option, because there are some historical sites, but you can also visit St. John by boat (or split your time).
If you are into nature Costa Rica would be another option. This is not an island, obvs, but the natural beauty is amazing, there are volcanoes, beaches, jungle. We even did a day trip into Nicaragua. We did stay at an all-inclusive for our "home base," though.
In terms of "activities," most of the Caribbean involves water sports like snorkel and diving, but if you're not into that you can definitely do catamaran sails/sunset cruises, etc.
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cakediva
Drama Llama
Making the world a sweeter place one cake at a time!
Posts: 7,472
Location: Fergus, Ontario
Jun 26, 2014 11:53:40 GMT
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Post by cakediva on Jun 26, 2022 22:47:38 GMT
We are currently looking at St Lucia - the Coconut Bay resort. We’ve done Cuba and Dominican once each, lower budget at the time. So we are upping the budget and going just the two of us, no friends/family along. We want to relax for a week. Our last vacation was 11 days in California - Disney, Hollywood, cruise up:the coast - lots of walking and sight seeing. So this time is a sit and chill. We will likely do an excursion and some activities at the resort like kayaking. So looking forward to getting away! We are staying at Coconut Bay in October! We are going to do the Dolphin/Whale cruise, Sunset cruise, and then one land excursion. We booked! we go in February. And we are staying Splash, concierge ocean view. It was less expensive than the Harmony side - but we can use all the adults only parts of the resort. I’m so looking forward to a drink and an afternoon on the lazy river!!
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Post by littlemama on Jun 26, 2022 22:56:26 GMT
We are staying at Coconut Bay in October! We are going to do the Dolphin/Whale cruise, Sunset cruise, and then one land excursion. We booked! we go in February. And we are staying Splash, concierge ocean view. It was less expensive than the Harmony side - but we can use all the adults only parts of the resort. I’m so looking forward to a drink and an afternoon on the lazy river!! We also went concierge ocean view, but on the Harmony side!
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