The best islands in the Caribbean to visit in 2025
With some 30 islands and territories to choose from, it's hard to know where to find your ideal place in the Caribbean sun. From scenic mountains and World Heritage Sites to dream beaches and private islands, there's plenty to enjoy in this balmy region – and some destinations are just an eight-a-bit hours' flight away. Travel expert and frequent visitor Nigel Tisdall, who has sampled the welcome rum punches in nearly all of them, picks his ten best escapes for the coming year.
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The Caribbean islands for every type of holiday
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Anguilla
Looking for the best beaches in the Caribbean? This tiny British Overseas Territory, easily reached flying via Antigua, has 33 of them that won't disappoint. Never crowded, with brilliant white sands and gentle, turquoise waters, they're the prime reason Anguilla has long had an A-list following, which is reflected in its wealth of upscale resorts, villas and restaurants. Low-lying and arid, the island is only 35 square miles and has a thriving culinary scene that ranges from sophisticated venues serving Moroccan-spiced shrimp cigars to food trucks dishing up hearty cups of fish chowder for a few bucks. Boat trips are the best way to appreciate the peace and beauty. Head for nearby Sandy Island for a boozy lobster lunch or sail to Prickly Pear Cays aboard Tradition, a classic West Indian sloop once used for smuggling.
Where to stay:
- Malliouhana (doubles from £875 per night room only).
- Cap Juluca, a Belmond Hotel (doubles from £989 per night with breakfast).
- Zemi Beach House (doubles from £720 per night room only with transfers).
© Marco Arduino/4Corners Images2/10Barbados
The British love affair with the easternmost island in the Caribbean dates back to 1625 when the adventurer Captain John Powell claimed Barbados for King James I. There's plenty to make us feel at home here, from cricket and horse racing to sweet little parish churches and the not-to-be-missed stately home, St Nicholas Abbey. This is a good pick for first-time visitors to the region or those with young children, but be aware that the island is only 12 miles by 14, and you'll find traffic jams and overdevelopment in parts.
The best hotels are on the west coast while the south is the party zone. Don't miss the World Heritage-listed capital, Bridgetown, with over a hundred landmark buildings including a restored Jewish district. When it's time to chill, head to the windy east coast, popular with surfers, where the 300-acre Walkers Reserve, a former sand quarry, has peaceful oceanside trails.
Where to stay:
- Coral Reef Club (doubles from £664 per night with breakfast).
- The Sandpiper (doubles from £664 per night with breakfast).
- Cobblers Cove (doubles from £605 per night with breakfast).
© Tim Mannakee/4Corners Images3/10Grenada
Choose this lush and mountainous 'Spice Isle' if you want an authentic Caribbean island that hasn't sold its soul to tourism. It's best to stay near the well-kept mile-and-a-half-long sands of Grande Anse, in the south-west, then go exploring by hire car or excursion. Top sights include Belmont Estate, which produces high quality organic chocolate, the Nutmeg Processing Station in Gouyave, barely changed since opening in 1952, and the waterwheel-powered River Antoine rum distillery dating from 1785. Tours can also be arranged to gardens and nurseries where prizewinning blooms for the RHS Chelsea Flower Show are grown, while for a civilised cup of tea made with butterfly pea flowers seek out the Tower Estate, a grand 1913 house filled with family treasures. The picturesque capital, St George's, is also worth some exploring – make time for a fish lunch in one of the waterfront restaurants overlooking its historic inner harbour, the Carenage.
Where to stay:
- Calabash (doubles from £645 per night with breakfast and transfers).
- Spice Island Beach Resort (doubles from £1,026 per night all-inclusive).
- Silversands Grand Anse (doubles from £753 per night with breakfast).
© Danielle Devaux/4Corners Images4/10Saint Lucia
This super-scenic island is a good choice if you are an active sort, with plenty of outdoor adventures available from hiking and mountain biking to wallowing in mud springs and taking a lazy float downriver on a bamboo raft. The best hotels are clustered around its World Heritage-listed twin peaks, the Pitons – some have a lofty view, others are by the beach and Soufriere marine reserve which has rewarding snorkelling and diving.
Some visitors take up the challenge of a guided ascent of the 2,619ft Gros Piton (four hours return) and it's fun to go for a drive along the winding, mountainous roads admiring the rampant rainforest and colourful fishing villages. Don't miss the cacao cuisine at Hotel Chocolat's Rabot Restaurant and bring home some Chairman's Reserve rum from St Lucia Distillers, which is in the Roseau Valley and can be toured.
Where to stay:
- Jade Mountain Resort (doubles from £1,413 per night room only).
- Sugar Beach, A Viceroy Resort (doubles from £1,328 per night with breakfast).
- Rabot Hotel from Hotel Chocolat (doubles from £452 per night with breakfast).
© Friedmar Damm/4Corners Images5/10Mustique, St Vincent and the Grenadines
Like to sit in the sun and read? This idyllic private island that can be reached via Barbados comes with a fascinating backstory, brilliantly told in Nicholas Courtney's Lord of the Isle. It relates how the flamboyant Scottish aristocrat Colin Tennant purchased Mustique in 1958 for £45,000 and turned it into an exclusive hideaway much loved by rock stars and royalty. The island has superb beaches, hiking trails, tennis, a new spa and an equestrian centre plus one hotel and around 120 villas with many available for rent. These include several designed by stage designer Oliver Messel (1904-78) that are much admired for their graceful proportions and indoor-outdoor vistas. Further recommended reading is Murder on Mustique by Anne Glenconner (Tennant's wife) and the recently published Mustique Icon by Assouline with over 200 photos that celebrate its glamour and heritage.
Where to stay:
- The Cotton House, Mustique (doubles from £550 per night with breakfast).
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Harbour Island, The Bahamas
Just a five minute water-taxi ride from North Eleuthera airport, Harbour Island is a small, moneyed escape with one spectacular sight that makes it worth the trip. This is the magnificent Pink Sands Beach – one of the best in the Caribbean – which is a broad, three-mile long swathe of soft, pinkish sand that is commendably free of bars, vendors and watersports. The island is a favourite getaway for family groups and sporty couples and fills up fast at holiday times so it's best to make restaurant reservations in advance. Everyone gets around by golf cart and there's a fun scene with yachts coming and going and the option to dance the night away at casual night spots like Daddy D's and Gusty's Bar with its sand-covered floor.
Where to stay:
- Valentines Resort & Marina (doubles from £380 per night room only).
- Coral Sands (doubles from £976 per night with breakfast).
- Ocean View Club (doubles from £390 per night with breakfast).
© Douglas Pearson/4Corners Images7/10Jamaica
Jamaica is one of our favourite Caribbean islands for good reason. We love its lilting music, spicy jerk dishes, party vibe and charismatic people. Then there's the mellow Blue Mountain coffee, plentiful beaches and a verdant interior soaring to over 7,000ft with thundering waterfalls. Stretching for 146 miles, the island suits a multi-centre trip ideally centred on the Island Outpost properties created by Chris Blackwell, the Jamaican record producer who brought Bob Marley to the world's attention. These are GoldenEye, based around the north coast villa where Ian Fleming wrote his James Bond novels, The Caves, close to the fabulous western beach of Negril, and Strawberry Hill high up in the Blue Mountains. The last is well-placed for visiting the capital, Kingston, where a key sight is the Bob Marley Museum with the wood-lined studio where the reggae star recorded Buffalo Soldier.
Where to stay:
- Strawberry Hill (doubles from £329 per night room only).
- Jamaica Inn (doubles from £390 per night with breakfast)
- The Caves (doubles from £459 per night all-inclusive).
© Günter Gräfenhain/4Corners Images8/10Nevis
Reached by flying to St Kitts then taking a short speedboat transfer, Nevis is a bastion of old school charm and one of the most laidback Caribbean isles you could disappear to. Horatio Nelson got married here and Diana, Princess of Wales, liked to visit with the young princes. Blissfully free of mega-cruise ships and brash all-inclusive resorts, its specialty is small, family-owned hotels lost in the hills that have bags of character be it an affable golden labrador padding around, flamboyant gardens or definitive rum punches made with sour orange and grated nutmeg. It takes all of 45 minutes to drive around the island and while it's possible to climb the majestic 3,232ft Nevis Peak most visitors are content to take it easy in the rum bars that dot the three mile-long sands of Pinney's Beach.
Where to stay:
- Montpelier Nevis (doubles from £226 per night with breakfast).
- Four Seasons Resort Nevis (doubles from £1,100 per night with breakfast).
- Golden Rock Inn (doubles from £289 per night with breakfast).
© Stefano Amantini/4Corners Images9/10Virgin Gorda, British Virgin Islands
Lying at the eastern end of this compact archipelago of 60 islands, best reached via Antigua, Virgin Gorda looks like a lost piece from a jigsaw puzzle, its coastline edged with tranquil beaches and secluded bays that are delightful stop for swimmers, divers and yachties. Part of a prosperous British Overseas Territory with just 30,000 residents, it is a favourite getaway for wealthy and discerning North Americans and offers a fine choice of luxury resorts and villas that will suit romancing couples, families and multigenerational parties. The star attraction is the Baths National Park with its massive granite boulders tumbling into the sea (go early) but there is also rewarding hiking including to the 1,370ft summit, Gorda Peak. The tiny capital, Spanish Town, has some inviting restaurants and when you want to explore further there are 30-minute ferry connections to the main island, Tortola.
Where to stay:
- Rosewood Little Dix Bay (doubles from £1,324 per night with breakfast).
- Bitter End Yacht Club (doubles from £570 per night room only).
- Oil Nut Bay (doubles from £517 per night with breakfast).
© Günter Gräfenhain/4Corners Images10/10Dominica
Reached via Antigua or Barbados, Dominica is a spectacularly green and mountainous isle that rises to 4,747ft with steep winding roads, dense rainforest and few beaches. It's a place for hiking, birdwatching and bathing in waterfalls with the bonus that it is the only country where sperm whales reside year-round (November to March is the best time for sightings). Divers will appreciate the Soufriere-Scott's Head Marine Reserve while Champagne Reef is a fun place to snorkel because the water is enlivened by bubbles emanating from subterranean geothermal springs. The island is home to the Caribbean's last remaining indigenous people, the Kalinago, who have a welcome centre at Barana Autê, and there is good holiday reading – Jean Rhys was born here and you can also discover the insightful works of Phyllis Shand Allfrey and Elma Napier (Papillotte Press).
Where to stay:
- Secret Bay (doubles from £1,190 per night with breakfast, welcome dinner, river tour and airport transfers).
- Jungle Bay Dominica (doubles from £312 per person per night full board with daily activities, spa treatment and airport transfers).
- Fort Young Hotel & Dive Resort (doubles from £213 per night room only).
