Caribbean Travel Guide- Best Caribbean Islands To Visit 2024 4K

On everybody, this is Island Hopper TV and today we're coming to you from the Caribbean Sea. Here we've got 25 of the best islands for you to explore. Let's do this. First up is Curacao, one of three of the ABC islands that include Bonaire, Aruba, and Curacao. Unlike many of the Caribbean islands, this is actually a drier savanna type climate. They do speak the language of Dutch as well as a Creole English and considered the little brother to Aruba. Aruba is considered to have better beaches. We'll be showing you that a little bit later on in the video, but Curacao is really known as a dive paradise. So if you like going underneath the water, you've got to go to Curacao. And this is a look at Grote Nipp. This is actually one of the best beaches on the island. Also the capital and a colorful place at that this year is Willemstad. Now we're on to the next one. Next up here is Jamaica, located in the Southern Caribbean, just south of Cuba, next to the Grand Cayman Islands. Some of the most popular places in Jamaica include Ocho Rios, Montego Bay, and they grill all on the West Coast. Then if you go to the capital of Kingston, thriving metropolis, big city, actually one of the largest cities in all of the Caribbean. And then towards the North, you have places like Port Antonio, very beautiful. And as we mentioned, Ocho Rios. Now here we are at the largest island in the Caribbean. This year is Cuba, home to Havana in the North. And then towards the South, they have many beautiful beaches like the beautiful Varadero Beach, one of the best beaches in all of the Caribbean. Be sure to check out Old Havana while here. Go along the Malecón, the old square in Havana, and then maybe even checking out Playa Paraiso. Many different beaches here in Cuba, full of culture and Cuban sandwiches. Now here we are at St. Vincent, in particular St. Vincent and the Grenadines. Now there are several different islands around here, 32 to be exact. Now St. Vincent and the Grenadines have actually turned into the Billionaire's Playground. So if you're into hanging out with people with a lot of money, you'll find that out there in the St. Vincent and Grenadine Islands. And we're going to stay out here in the West Antilles, and we're here at Granada, another beautiful island. This one is just North of Trinidad and Tobago, and just South of St. Vincent and the Grenadines. A lot of people like to go to St. George, that's where they'll originate, but then they go all around the island. It only takes about 5 hours to go around the whole island. Now from Granada, we're actually headed over to Antigua. Now this is where you're going to find those turquoise blue waters, around English Harbor, Jolly Harbor, Palmetto Point, Coco Point, so many places to see here. You may also know Antigua and Barbuda, which is actually the name of the country, and an island just North of here. Most people who've been all around the Caribbean say Antigua has some of the prettiest beaches and the most abundance of beaches, although I'll tell you later, my favorite. Island for beautiful, calming beaches in all of the Caribbean. Now here we are in Honduras. This here is Roatan, very popular with people on cruise, known for its white sand beaches, blue waters, and very lush forests and jungle. It's the world's second largest barrier reef, the Mesoamerican Reef right there. For those of you who've been to Belize, we will be showing you some of those islands, but this one's just a little bit further South, so maybe consider a trip to Coxon Hole, which is actually the largest city that you'll arrive at. Now here we are at Barbados, which has a lot more to it than just being the home and birthplace of Rihanna. Now when I was in Barbados, I went out to Bathsheba on the East side of the island. The North side of the island has attractions, and then the best beaches are going to be on the South side of the island, so definitely consider getting out here and exploring around Barbados. It is actually the Eastern-most island in the Caribbean, right here in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies. The good news is they speak English and they don't get a lot of hurricanes, very rare to hit Barbados. So get ready to soak up some sun when in Barbados. Now we're here at St. Lucia, famously known for the Piton Mountains, known as a honeymoon paradise. It is an English-speaking island, and they also have jungles and mud baths because of the sulfur baths, known as Soufriere, where the volcano is right here on St. Lucia. So very volcanic out here in the Caribbean, in particular the West Indies. And I just want to let you guys know that we do have full videos for most of these destinations, so if you want to check the comments and the link description below, you can click on some of those tour guides. Let's keep this tour moving. Now we're here in Martinique. This is actually a French-speaking island, and it really feels like you're in the EU even though you're in the Caribbean when you're here on Martinique. It's actually a pretty big island compared to most of the islands in the West Indies area. For me, I really enjoyed the south part of the island where they have Plage des Salines. You can also go to the north where they have the large mountain summits that you can hike to the top of, like Mount Pele, or just walk around the old Fort de France. Now here we are at Aruba. This is also part of the ABC Islands right next to Curaçao. I would say the beaches are a bit better here. They do speak Dutch, English, and a bit of Spanish, so it's got an interesting blend like that. But Aruba has some beautiful beaches. Eagle Beach. Also, the desert to the north is very interesting. You can do off-roading. So don't expect much jungle atmosphere here in the ABC Islands like I said earlier. There are some palm trees, but really a lot of white sand and crystal clear beaches, especially to the south in the area around Oranjestad, which is where the airport is. Now here we are at Grand Turk, part of Turks and Caicos. Caicos is also an amazing island. Now interestingly enough, Turks and Caicos, as well as the Bahamas, are actually considered Atlantic islands, but for the sake of making this video, I would consider it a Caribbean island. Now Grand Turk is going to have great food if you like conch, ceviche, and good vibes. Definitely come check out Grand Turk. It's flat, not many mountains, so it makes it easy to drive around. If you wanted to be in the main city area, do check out Grace Bay. That seems to be the most popular place for people to go on Grand Turk. Or Providenciales. Now also, I would recommend going to the Caribbean outside of the summer months because that's hurricane season, preferably in the winter. Now we're here at San Pedro here in Belize, also known as Ambergis Cay. And you will see lots of islands around the area here in Belize, but San Pedro seems to be one of the most popular islands. We'll show you another one here in a little bit, but if you haven't been to Belize, check out those islands. Great vibes, riding golf carts everywhere, decent beaches, and just overall awesome. Secret Beach is also a laid back spot. You can see these tables out there in the ocean. And then right down the way, about 30 minutes away by ferry boat, and it'll cost you around $20, is Cay Cawker. Now this is also in Belize, so you have Ambergis Cay, San Pedro, and then you have Cay Cawker. And they're side by side, but both islands are really cool. It's kind of like what you got in Mexico with Cozumel or Isla Mujeres, which we'll be talking about a little bit later. But yes, these are Caribbean islands. And of course, popular with the golf carts on both of these islands, and I would recommend getting a full day. It usually costs you about $65. Speaking of Mexico, here we are at Cozumel finally. So Cozumel is another one of those places you'll want to get a buggy or some sort of vehicle to go around the island, because for me, Cozumel is actually better on the east side of the island than it is on the west side, although most people arrive on the west side because it faces Playa del Carmen. In Mexico, they do speak Spanish, obviously, as their primary language. But most of the time, you can get by with a little bit of English and Google Translate. By the way, in Belize, they do speak English. It's an English-speaking country. From Cozumel, we're headed back out to the Lower Antilles, and we're here at St. Kitts, also known as St. Kitts and Nevis. Now, St. Kitts is not going to have the best beaches, but it's got a laid-back vibe. It's actually one of the more historical islands. They do have a big British fort there. So this was a major area for the British during the era of the 1700s and 1800s, during the sugar trade. And for those of you who don't already know, the sugar trade is what built out most of the infrastructure. Now, here we are at St. Martin. This one is a French-speaking island. Again, you're going to get that EU-type feel. So in the Caribbean, you have Dutch, French, Spanish, English, and a little bit of Portuguese and Danish influence. Now, on St. Martin, there is a beach where you can watch airplanes land. That's called Maho Bay. Wherever you go around St. Martin, the cool thing is they do have ferries to Anguilla or St. Barts, which we'll be talking about in a little bit. So you can get three islands' countries for one trip. Now, one side of the island is actually Dutch. The other side is French. So it's important to point that out. To the north side, you have the French. To the south side, you have the Dutch. Very interesting, right? The good news is because they're both Schengen zone countries in the EU, you don't actually have to go through any sort of border patrol, so you just cross the border freely like you would in Europe. Next, here we are at the Dominican Republic side of Hispanola. Haiti is currently off-limits right now, but the island of Hispanola is the second largest in the actual Caribbean. And obviously, popular places in Dominican Republic are Punta Cana. You have the capital of Santo Domingo, one of the oldest established Spanish colonies in the New World. And then you have in the north, Puerto Plata, Semana, so lots to see in Dominican. And right next to Dominican Republic is Puerto Rico. The capital is San Juan, the second oldest city in the Americas, number one in the United States, older than even St. Augustine, but not as old as Santo Domingo in Dominican Republic, so take note of that. But here you have the Spanish Virgin Islands like Culebra, and then you have on the west coast, you have places like Cabo Rojo, and a super lush rainforest known as El Yunque National Park, so you have lots to do on this beautiful island of Puerto Rico, a must-see. They do speak English and Spanish here. Next up, here we are at Grand Cayman. This is the largest of the three Cayman Islands, located about 150 miles south of Cuba. The official language here is English and tropical. Consider checking out Seven Mile Beach, also some of the other beaches like Rum Point, Smith's Barricade, and then it's known for its diving and snorkeling. They also have Stingray City, and you can check out Georgetown, which is where the cruise ships arrive. Now here we are at Virgin Gorda. This is in the British Virgin Islands. This is one of my favorite islands in the BVI, of course. You also have Tortola and Jose Van Dyck, but Virgin Gorda is in a league of its own for any of you who've ever been there. You know what I'm talking about. They have the baths. Just a very beautiful, tranquil, quiet, peaceful place to be, and it's a bit arid, but also a little bit tropical, and you can go to the summit of Virgin Gorda, which you can see right here, so that's about a 35- to 40-minute hike. Also check out Sabah Rock. Now here we are at St. Thomas. This is part of the USVI. It's about two islands over from Virgin Gorda, so you can easily do Virgin Gorda and St. Thomas in the same trip, but you will need a passport to go between the two territories. The main town on St. Thomas is called Charlotte Amali. That's typically where people arrive by airplane, and then you can easily hop over to other islands like St. John, which we'll show you in a moment here, but getting around here, check out Maggins Bay, also going to the botanical gardens and just really relaxing at the beautiful beaches. This here is St. John. This one is known for being a national park in the US, so it's a lot more calm than St. Thomas, more peaceful. All the beaches are on the north side of the island facing towards Tortola, and if you wanted to go from St. John to Tortola BVI, the trip takes about 30 minutes. Some of my favorites are going to be Maho Bay. They have Cinnamon Bay, Trunk Bay, so many different beaches to explore here. If you can get a rental car, that's ideal, but if not, don't worry. They have plenty of collective taxis that will pick you up and take you around to various beaches. Now here we are at Anguilla. This one was probably one of my favorite islands that I recently discovered along with Virgin Gorda. This one is absolutely spectacular, and I like it because it's laid back. You can have the island to yourself. It feels like it's not overly congested like many of the Caribbean destinations. It's very easy to drive around because it's flat. So Anguilla has some spectacular beaches. You can easily island hop from St. Martin to Anguilla. They do have an airport on Anguilla, but it's kind of small, so I would suggest just going to St. Martin, doing that island, and then coming over to Anguilla on a day trip or maybe for an overnight stay. And speaking of overnight stays, you can also do St. Barts. Now this is probably one of the most high-end islands in all of the Caribbean, along with some of the islands in the Grenadines. This here is where you're going to get that luxury experience. St. Barts truly is special. The island is small, but picturesque and luxurious. The capital here is Gustavia. It is its own country. They speak French here. You do feel like you're in France at times. Also known as St. Bartholomew. Now as far as all of these islands go, let me tell you my top five. Virgin Gorda, St. Barts, Anguilla, Grand Canyon, St. Martin, St. Martin, St. Martin, Cayman, and Barbados. Those are the islands that I would go back to again and again. And if you guys enjoyed this episode of the best Caribbean islands, you can also watch our best islands in the world video next by clicking here or our top 50 destinations around the world. See you on the next one.