Discussions

My husband and I are planning a Caribbean vacation this winter!  
Having some trouble deciding on where to go! We are looking for a place that has a little bit of everything. A beach for relaxing shopping, history great places to tour and some adventure and would like to possibly deep sea fishing?  
What are your experiences?  
Where have you traveled?  
Thanks everyone!!!

We have been to the Bahamas and Dominican Republic. Loved them both!!  
 
Bahamas we explored the town (Nassau) it has a long history, there was lots of shopping and we took a day trip to a private island and swam/snorkelled with sting rays and nurse sharks. Beaches are beautiful!  
 
Dominican was beautiful. We didn't leave the resort because the beach and service was so amazing.  
 
I would recommend both!

I have been to Cuba twice and love it. The Varadero beaches are amazing, the locals are friendly and I feel totally safe. Havana is stunning and very historic. The one downside is the food. It's fine and we never had an issue but it's not like you would find somewhere like Mexico.

In our resort in both the Dominican and Bahamas there were agents to book adventures that were reliable and reputable. It helps not booking until you get there so your schedule can be more flexible (in my experience).  
 
We went parasailing in Dominican which was very fun. We didnt do deep sea fishing because it was an all day adventure that we weren't sure we would love. Others on the resort went and enjoyed it!

It sounds like you're describing the Mayan Riviera. Mayan ruins to explore, plenty of beachy coast-line, Playa Del Carmen has shops galore and there's some cool eco-parks in the area(Xel-Ha comes to mind). When I went some of my friends did go deep sea fishing. It's far enough away from Cancun that it isn't party central, though there's lots of crazy fun to be had. I stayed at the Barceló Maya complex which has 4 resorts in it (I think unless they've expanded again) almost 10 years ago and me and my huge group are all going back this year because we've never been able to match or top the experience anywhere else in the Caribbean.

Do you have a budget? If you are looking for budget friendly vacations then Cuba is the spot and has everything you are looking for minus the shopping unless you are looking for 5 tshirts for $8. Mexico is also fairly budget friendly. Cancun/Mayan is fairly North Americanized. You can eat Big Macs and have Dairy Queen if you really want to.  
 
If you have a bit of cash to spend then there are some really great Caribbean spots to try. So far my favorite vacation has been Providenciales, Turks and Caicos, simply stunning. Malcolm Beach is one of the nicest I've been to.  
Antigua and Aruba are also up on the top of my favs. The beaches in Antigua are amazing. You can rent a Villa for under $200 a night double occ. right on the beach.

Some great advice and ideas!!!  
Thank you  
As for budget..... Don't really have one but would like to keep it reasonable of coarse!  
Did any of you go through a travel agent?  
Or book on line?  
I think it's wise not to book any outings until we r there as you never know day to day what you might want to do!  
I will definitely be googling all the destinations mentioned  
Thanks again!!

Punta Cana Dominican....love the people, the beaches are awesome, all-inclusive resorts are great and the tourism is also awesome. We went on a catamaran cruise to Saona Island....a must do!!! The food is so much better than Cuba...Cuba's beaches are comparable to Punta Cana beaches and I also find the all-inclusive resorts are so outdated. There was nothing to buy in Cuba unless of course you wanted a t-shirt that had the president's face on it. Been to the Mayan Riviera a few times....beaches were washed up with allot of sea weed and 5th. ave. just wasn't the same like it was a few years back. We wanted to take a taxi back to our resort and asked one driver to take us but he refused because we didn't speak spanish and then looked at the other driver's laughing about it...so needless to say I have had enough of Mexico.

I would say the best way to see many islands is to go on a cruise. We have been on many cruises and love it. We have cruised the caribbean many times, done the Panama Canal cruise 3 times, done a Hawaiian islands cruise and even done a couple of Mediterranean cruises. It is an excellent way to see a lot of places and do a lot of different things, yet have the same room every night. You can do a bargain, family friendly line like Carnival or Norwegian. You can go more elegant with Royal Caribbean, Princess or Celebrity. And you can go even more extravagant with Azamara, Oceana or Crystal. We usually book either directly with the cruise line or go through an online agency where we can get extra perks like on board credit or gratuities included.

Bird13 said "Some great advice and ideas!!!   Thank you   As for budget..... Don't really have one but would like to keep it reasonable of coarse!   Did any of you go through a travel agent?   Or book on line?   I think it's wise not to book any outings until we r there as you never know day to day what you might want to do!   I will definitely be googling all the destinations mentioned   Thanks again!! "

If you want to save money it is always cheaper to do it on your own. If you don't want to be bothered looking for deals and want to pay a little more a travel agent may help. But if you have lots of time do some searching, read reviews and book what you want. Use Google Flights ( https://www.google.ca/flights ) for searching when airfare is cheapest. Don't waste a lot of time searching for "discount" sites such as SellOff, iTravel200, RedTag as they all get their prices from the same central hub and will be practically identical. If you want to book a package together try Nolitours, AirCanada Vacations, WestJet Vacations, Signature, Sunwing as they are the ones that set the prices.