By Brian Ramsey
Blue skies, golden sand, azure water and swaying coconut trees is an image etched in the minds of many when they think about the Caribbean. This image often fills the mind with a desire to visit a tropical island but then thoughts about whether it will be too expensive begin to intrude and dampen the desire. This article will look at ways to lower the cost of a Caribbean vacation so that you can visit those glorious beaches.
Getting There
Very often throughout the year there are special offers of reduced prices on airfare to various Caribbean islands. If you check regularly you can find a great deal on airfare. However that great deal may not be for the island that you want to go to or may not be at a time when you want to travel. If that is the case, one way you can reduce the cost of airfare is to be flexible on your travel days. On the major airlines flying to the Caribbean, flights on week days, especially mid-week are priced lower than flights on weekends. If you are also flexible in terms of the time of day you will find that where there are multiple flights to a destination, flights on off-peak hours are even cheaper. You will also find that multi-stop flights are priced lower than direct flights. You can achieve further savings on airfare by booking early, at least one to three months in advance of your departure date.
Accommodation
One of the major cost items in a Caribbean holiday is the cost of accommodation. One way to lower the cost of the accommodation is to consider staying in a house rather than a hotel. Throughout the Caribbean there are numerous villas, houses and cottages available for rental as holiday accommodation. By using a house, you can go on vacation with friends and share the cost of the rental, thus lowering the cost of your vacation.
There are beautiful villas in the Caribbean with all types of amenities including Jacuzzis, swimming pools, maid service, cable TV in every room. Before renting a villa, consider your activities (what do you plan to do) and therefore how much time will you spend in the vila to make use of the amenities. If you plan a very active vacation with plenty of outdoor activities, then you may find that you do not spend much time at the villa other than for sleeping. You may therefore not need a villa with all the amenities and houses with fewer amenities will cost less.
No friends who want to accompany you or maybe you desire privacy and an intimate setting then consider an apartment hotel or self catering hotel. With an apartment hotel you have the choice of eating out every day or using the hotel restaurant (if there is one). Self-catering hotels however provide another cost saving benefit, in that you can use the kitchen or kitchenette in the room to prepare some of your meals and so reduce part of the cost of your vacation. When considering a self-catering hotel you should use the Internet to examine the size of the kitchen area to see if it will allow you to prepare a decent meal.
Caribbean beaches are a major attraction on all islands and most visitors when thinking about a Caribbean vacation think about staying on the beach. Another method to save money on a Caribbean vacation is to consider a location away from the beach as such properties will cost less than accommodation that is directly on the beach. Make sure however that the house is within walking distance of the beach as you do not want to spend on transportation to get to the beach all the money you have saved on accommodation.
If you are considering a house or self-catering hotel, find out if there are any supermarkets within walking distance of the property, so that you can easily purchase items. When you visit the supermarket, buy local or regional brands rather than European or North American brands as you will generally find that local brands cost less.
Activities
Research the sights and places of interest before you travel. Very often tour guides take you to places that you could have easily gone to on your own. By researching you will know which places of interest you can easily find and so save the cost of a tour guide. The Internet has made researching sightseeing attractions much easier and one of the places you can learn about the places to visit on different Caribbean islands is at the Island Adventures Page of the Caribbean Outdoor Life web site.
On many islands there are numerous forts, historic buildings, old churches and government buildings that are very interesting to visit. While some attractions charge an entrance fee, there are many historical sites that have no entrance fee. The smaller forts and churches are usually free to visitors. As much of the early development was concentrated in the capital cities you will often find these free places in the capital.
Getting Around
If you do your advance research on your intended holiday destination at a site like Caribbean Outdoor Life, you can usually fit your sightseeing activities to places that are far from your accommodation into two or three days. This allows you to rent a car only for those days and so save on car rental fees. For the attractions that are closer to where you are staying you can use local transport such as buses to visit those attractions. Most front desk staff will be very happy to give you advice on using the local bus or taxi service.
Eating Out
Vacations allow one to do things that are out of the ordinary but pleasurable. Sampling different cuisines is definitely a pleasurable experience and on each island there is a wide range of cuisines and equally a wide range of prices. In deciding where to eat, looking for places that have a crowd is usually a good guide as to whether the food the good. If that crowd happens to be locals, you will usually find that not only is the food good but the price is lower than in the places frequented by tourists.
Street Food is a great way to get a quick meal at a low price and also experience local culture. The Caribbean has great street food, whether it is doubles in Trinidad or bar-b-cued pigtail in Barbados or jerk chicken in Jamaica. Before buying street food however, look at the cleanliness of the surrounding and of the person serving the food.
Other Costs
Although the idea of a vacation is to get away from it all, in today's world most people want to stay connected to the persons at home, even if it is to tell them how much they are enjoying themselves. One of the hidden costs on a vacation can be the cost of Internet access. Many hotels will advertise that they have internet access but this comes at an additional cost. Fortunately the number of places that are offering free Wi-Fi access is increasing. You can check sites like wifi free spot to find outlets at your destination that have free Wi-Fi, and Travel Post for a list of free Wi-Fi carrying airports in the Caribbean. If you do not have a free Wi-Fi hotspot near to where you are staying you can look for an Internet Cafe. A directory of Internet cafes can be found at cybercaptive. In choosing an Internet cafe look for places that don't seem to cater to tourists as their prices will generally be lower. Another source of low cost internet access is usually the public library. In some countries, internet access at the library is free, while at others there is a charge but it is significantly lower than at hotels of cafes.
When to go
Any time of year is a good time to visit the Caribbean, however the biggest cost saving on a Caribbean holiday is found by visiting in the summer. During the summer months, hotels and airlines significantly reduce their rates. As such you can save on the cost of your vacation and when combined with the other points in this article you will significantly lower the cost of your Caribbean vacation.
Brian Ramsey is the author of Discovering the Birds of Trinidad and Tobago and operates the web sites, Outdoors Trinidad and Caribbean Outdoor Life.
