November is one of our favorite times of year to travel to the Caribbean. The weather is glorious, the crowds are less and the deals are plenty. But it’s also close enough to peak season that you’ll still get much of the same energy and activity as you will during high season. 

The latest edition of Places to Visit takes you across the Caribbean from the tony enclave of St Barth to the booming tourism hub of Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic. 

St Barth November is a sublime time to travel to this French Caribbean gem; the must-visit eateries and boutiques are open, but there’s an extra degree of calm and serenity — not to mention more available rooms and villas (the latter being one of the most wonderful ways to stay on the island). But this is a particularly exciting November in St Barth, thanks to the debut on island of CJ’s Caribbean Rum Awards, starting Nov. 6. The four-day event is the region’s leading celebration of Caribbean rum, with a focus on ultra-premium expressions and on the diverse world of rhum agricole. Even better? The event is timed perfectly with the St Barth Gourmet Festival, the gastronomic dinner series that’s chock full of Michelin-starred culinary adventures. 

The BVI The Caribbean’s coolest culinary festival is a great reason to plan your trip to the BVI this month, with the month-long BVI Food Fete. The series of events is, uniquely, held across a number of different islands and cays, making it a full-fledged island-hopping food festival. And even if you’re on a diet, the BVI is back and better than ever, from private-island getaways like Cooper Island and Guana to the resurgent scene in Tortola. 

Guadeloupe While it still remains an under-the-radar destination, Guadeloupe is set for a big lift next year with the launch of its first-ever JetBlue flights from New York. But for those in the know, Guadeloupe is one of the more fascinating, sophisticated and romantic places to visit in the Caribbean, and it just got a whole lot more interesting this week with the debut of its first-ever five-star resort, the transformed La Toubana in Sainte Anne. 

Bonaire Travelers are increasingly falling in love with this action-packed jewel of the Dutch Caribbean. It’s got a remarkable adventure offering, from some of the Caribbean’s best diving to windsurfing, snorkeling and even more exotic sports like landsailing — married with a quietly booming food scene and a diverse selection of hotels that remains arguably the best-value hotel product in the Caribbean. 

Punta Cana What was already the most popular hotel investment destination in the Caribbean is getting even hotter this year, with the imminent launch of Hyatt’s highly-anticipated new all-inclusive properties in Punta Cana’s chic corner of Cap Cana later this week. They’re a breath of fresh air for the destination and a reminder that the Dominican Republic is a force to be reckoned with when it comes to the beach resort experience. 

The post From St Barth to Punta Cana, 5 Caribbean Places to Visit in November appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

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There’s a moment on this trip when you take it all in, when you look around at the glory of this place and stop to savor it. 

We have been fortunate enough to have made the journey around the British Virgin Islands on a number of occasions, a privileged pilgrimage through one of the most resoundingly beautiful places in the Caribbean. 

But each time the BVI’s immense beauty reminds you of why so many make this journey, of why it remains a bucket-list box to tick for Caribbean aficionados. 

And yet each time it feels new; each time it hits you, again for the first time. 

On this voyage it wasn’t until the final day on the water, when we moored at The Indians and spent several hours in the golden glow of the late afternoon in the British Virgin Islands. 

By a mix of fate and the quiet of early October in the Caribbean, there was no other boat for what seemed like miles, a rare thing at one of the greatest snorkeling spots in the West Indies. 

And the light on the jagged rocks, the varying hues of blue and the power of the setting sun did a number, turning a tiny corner of 50-some-odd islands and cays into a shrine. 

Because when you’re on a power catamaran in these waters, in this case the new MarineMax Vacations 443, the combination of pure exhilaration, beauty and adventure means you don’t often pause. 

There’s always another reef, another island, another stop for the dinghy. 

But here at The Indians, we could stop and reflect, not just on how beautiful a destination this continued to be, but on how far the BVI had come in a short time since the storms of 2017. 

The Baths are brilliant, the street food scene in Tortola is hopping; the lobsters are abundant in Anegada and the Willy T is once again waving its Jolly Roger in The Bight. 

The BVI has overcome quite a lot in two years, a testament to its endlessly inspiring people. And while certain things have changed, what hasn’t is the wonder, the marvel. 

The BVI is a destination for adventurers, for those who’ve fallen in love with the feeling of discovering a place for themselves for the first time — or the 100th. 

Because for every golden hour at The Indians, there are a thousand moments just like it. 

And that was true on this journey, from a sandy afternoon at Norman Island to a festive night at CocoMaya to a circuit of the North Sound. 

And that brings us to the boat itself. 

There are many ways to do a charter vacation in the BVI: bareboat or crewed, monohull or cat, sail or power. 

But one of the newest additions to the BVI’s charter fleet is a rather special thing indeed. 

The new 443 by Aquila is a beautiful, crisply designed boat that’s equally adept at leisure and adventure, with a host of wonderful amenities, from the 360-degree galley and living area to a particularly welcome feature: direct access from the flybridge to the bow. 

But what’s most staggering about the new 443 isn’t just its remarkable fit and finish — it’s the sheer speed. 

The thing just flies, and that means that you can really island hop to your heart’s content, packing in as much of this glorious archipelago as you wish and putting a premium on the time you spend at each stop — not on the time you spend getting there. 

And it means more late afternoons moments on the sea in the British Virgin Islands. 

For more, visit MarineMax Vacations. 

See more in the latest CJ Video at the top of the page.

— CJ

The post A New Way to Vacation in the British Virgin Islands appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

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