Visit Caribbean Travel

Summers are the best time for a holiday. Both the families and individuals want to get free of the daily routine and have some fun. Travel companies take complete benefit out of this trend and offer a number of holiday packages. Unfortunately, some of them are not affordable.

People want a great holiday that is enjoyable as well as affordable. Caribbean has become the most exotic holiday destination in the world. The huge swath of Atlantic Ocean has many great islands that invite the tourists from all over the world. Saint Lucia is one of the most beautiful islands in the Caribbean.

Located in the eastern part of Caribbean, St. Lucia forms the southern border with the Atlantic Ocean. That is the reason behind the island’s beautiful beaches that represent a mix of blue and green waters and lagoons. Being at the heart of the Caribbean, St. Lucia attracts a large number of tourists.

Every year, hundreds of thousands of tourists throng the beaches of this paradise island. Thanks to this massive inflow, the island has developed many tourist attractions. There are dozens of hotels, resorts, tourist trails, amusement parks, and a vibrant nightlife attractions and activities. The island also boasts of a diverse culture and traditions despite its small size.

The Native Americans, Africans, and Europeans all contribute to the vibrant culture of St Lucia. If you are planning a luxury holiday to St. Lucia, there are plenty of options. A luxury holiday essentially means a great holiday at high-end hotels or resorts. It also means a comfortable and vibrant exposure to local life and customs.

The most important factor, of course, is to enjoy all the tourist attractions available. A holidays to St Lucia can be very expensive if you have not done any planning. During the peak tourist season, rents go up to 10 times higher than the off-peak season. Similarly, airfares get a surge during the peak season.

The peak season in St Lucia runs from December to March as people want to escape from the cold winters of Europe and North America. While you can enjoy a great holiday during the peak season, it can surely make a dent in your savings. If you want to save some money and still enjoy a luxury holiday, try to visit St Lucia in the off peak season.

You can find plenty of discounts and promotional packages. Flights are available at cheaper rates and even free tickets are available on some promotions. As for the hotel rents, you can get some big discounts. You can enjoy a best luxury holiday in St Lucia if you are able to find an affordable travel package. Most travel agencies offer holiday packages in different budget denominations that cater to all income groups. You can select one that is most affordable to you. You can also try to find discounts and promotional packages that best suit your travelling needs.

Package holidays back in the 70′s normally included meals and soft drinks. Having been on holiday numerous times during the 70′s I regarded these holidays as ‘all inclusive’. During the early 80′s I lived and worked in Spain for a couple of years, and after returning to the UK I got to like arranging my travel, accommodation and meals independently. From that time I had mainly taken ‘independent’ family holidays in Spain and the Balearic Islands.

Until good friends, who had been to Antigua, persuaded us to join them in 2004 for a summer holiday at a resort they had been to before, which was Coco Bay in Antigua. The holiday arranged was an ‘all inclusive’ holiday with Virgin, but I had visions of the 70′s type of ‘all inclusive’. My fears were unfounded and I would thoroughly recommend ‘all inclusive’ holidays.

The down side to travelling to the Caribbean or the United States is that, from where we live in Hertfordshire, the flights go from London Gatwick. This means an early morning start to reach Gatwick for a late morning flight or travelling down to stay over night at a hotel local to Gatwick. We have tried both options over the years but you should be aware that either option will add a couple of hundred pounds to your holiday.

Apart from this additional cost we would recommend ‘all inclusive’ holidays for a number of reasons, especially at this time as the exchange rates are not to our advantage. A true ‘all inclusive’ booked with one of the major travel companies will include, all meals, breakfast, lunch and dinner at their buffet restaurants. There are normally other ‘themed’ restaurants you can visit within the resort as a way of change from the buffet. All soft and alcoholic drinks are included. Room service is daily. The staff, without exception, are very polite and friendly.

Coco Bay in Antigua is a small resort with accommodation only for about 80 couples, no children allowed. Your accommodation is a small independent ‘hut’, it literally has a tin roof, basic, no TV, but wonderfully comfortable. Bathrooms open out onto the verandas as does the bedrooms. All have sea views because the resort is located on a hillside. There is only one restaurant but serves fabulous food for breakfast, lunch and dinner. There is only one bar but no shortage of drinks and never a queue. There is only one swimming pool but there are two small bays of golden sand and warm Caribbean Sea that are almost exclusive to the hotel guests. We are holidaying there this year with the same life long friends for both of our 40′Th wedding anniversaries.

In 2005 my wife and I had the opportunity to take a two week holiday in January. Knowing that January in the Mediterranean isn’t as warm as I would like, we decided to try the Caribbean again. With a limited budget we decided from brochures that the Dominican Republic was the place we would take our two week, January holiday and we choose a resort in Puerto Plata with an ‘all inclusive’ package. The hotel was right on the beach with sea views from the buffet restaurant. A larger resort, with themed restaurants and again plenty of food and unlimited non-alcoholic and alcoholic drinks.

In July 2007 we booked another ‘all inclusive’ holiday to the Dominican Republic. This time we choose a resort call Punta Cana. We were meeting up with a Canadian couple we had met in the Dominican Republic the first time in 2005. The hotel was part of the Bahia Principe chain and the complex was large but very good. There was even a ‘car train’ to take you the length of the complex. Again, excellent accommodation with daily room service, good food and unlimited drinks. A resort hotel I so recommend to the point we booked the same hotel chain in Tenerife for January 2009 which was excellent value for money.