Four of the best Caribbean holiday destinations

These often-overlooked escapes set a new standard for elevated, responsible tourism – while still delivering luxurious, laid-back vibes.

The Caribbean remains a favourite travel destination for good reason – or, rather, many reasons. Whether you're aiming to snorkel in the crystal-clear waters of Turks and Caicos, wander through Antigua's Unesco-inscribed dockyard, or simply get some good sleep, the region offers something for everyone.

Who picked the list?

Amelia Edelman is a journalist and family travel expert living in the US who has been to 40 countries and 49 states, most of them with her two kids. In addition to BBC Travel, she has written for NPR, Travel + Leisure, Lonely Planet, US News and World Travel and others. As a single mother, she launched a series of city guides for families called Mom Voyage.

As a journalist and family travel expert, I've been venturing to the Caribbean for 20 years. In 2025, many of the region's countries have been innovating while preserving their own unique charms. From cutting-edge new hotel designs to interactive reef preservation efforts, our list of top Caribbean destinations sets a new standard for elevated, responsible tourism – while still delivering the laid-back vibes so often sought there.

There is no bad time to travel to the Caribbean, with its 24-29C (75-84F) year-round temperatures and warm waters. Rainy season (June-November) will sometimes bring hurricanes, but crowds are at their lowest.

If a warm-weather holiday is on your mind, consider strolling through the markets of Dominica or digging into jerk chicken on Grenada, which is affectionately known as the "Spice Isle". Learn more about these and more, on the list below.

1. Dominica

There are few places in the world where I have felt so "away from it all" as in the jungles of Dominica. Known as "The Nature Island", it's one of the least developed and most forested Caribbean destinations and is on a mission to become the world's first climate-resilient nation. Located south of Guadeloupe and north of Martinique in the eastern Caribbean, it's home to rainforests and volcanic landscapes, including hot springs, as well as the vibrant culture of the Kalinago people, originally known as the Caribs.

Once difficult to get to, Dominica became more easily reachable in 2025 with non-stop flights from Miami International Airport on American Airlines and a new weekly United Airlines flight from Newark Liberty International Airport. The country is also expanding its accessibility for travellers with disabilities, including adding a cable car system to reach the famous Boiling Lake in the Unesco-inscribed Morne Trois Pitons National Park.

Seasoned trekkers can spend a few weeks tackling the 185km Waitukubuli National Trail, the Caribbean's longest hiking trail. Alternatively, at the world's first sperm whale reserve, a protected 800 sq km marine area off Dominica's western coast, travellers can visit as many as 500 sperm whales as they feed and nurse (November-March).

Dominica has also been revamping its eco-resorts in 2025. Secret Bay is one standout, with 10 luxury villas home to two different microclimates. Its Cliffside villas emphasise open-air living – and are part of what makes this a favourite romantic escape. But my personal favourite is Jungle Bay. The seven nights I spent drifting off to sleep in my open-air (with mosquito netting), bay leaf-scented jungle hut here constituted some of the best rest of my life.

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2. St John

I'll never forget arriving on St John for the first time by boat and feeling instantly transported by Virgin Islands National Park. Since nearly two-thirds of the island is protected by the national park – which covers roughly 7,200 acres of subtropical forests and mangroves – St John is somewhat synonymous with eco-tourism.

"Unlike other, more heavily developed Caribbean destinations, St John remains largely untouched and is considered by many naturalists to be the most striking and beautiful of the Virgin Islands," said Andrew Macafee, Caribbean Specialist at WhereToStay, a villa rental provider with a large presence in the Caribbean. "The island's emphasis on the preservation of its landscapes and wildlife makes it a really rewarding and relevant destination to visit."

Beach cleanups, sea turtle monitoring and restoring coral reefs provide opportunity for travellers to get involved in preservation efforts while enjoying the island's unique off-grid-but-accessible feeling.

St John's beautiful beaches are now more accessible, too. In August 2024, the island reopened Caneel Beach to the public, which had previously been cordoned off as part of Caneel Bay, the largest private resort on the island. There's no airport on St John, but 25 airports offer direct flights to its neighbouring isle, St Thomas. From there, it's just a 45-minute ferry to St John.

3. Turks and Caicos

Located north of the Dominican Republic and east of Cuba, Turks and Caicos is a British Overseas Territory comprising 40 islands. A series of new developments on the nation's nine inhabited islands make now a great time to visit. At the end of 2024, beachfront resort South Bank opened in Providenciales, featuring the islands' first ocean-water swimming lagoon, a protected area for swimming free from boats. The Palms, which underwent an $17.8m (£13.64m) renovation, added among other upgrades a feature classic to many high-end island getaways – a swim-up bar.

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South Caicos, a secluded 47 sq km island with that's home to eagle rays and sea turtles, also became more accessible in 2025. The first-ever direct flight from the US to South Caicos, an American Airlines route from Miami, launched in March 2025. Grand Turk, the country's second-most populated island, is known for excellent scuba and wildlife-spotting options along its shallow, underwater plateau, making it a great place for beginner divers.

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Known as the Caribbean capital of chocolate, Grenada's abundant nutmeg trees and wafting ginger, vanilla and cinnamon scents have earned it the nickname "Spice Island".

Susan Blechschmidt is a Caribbean specialist at Andrew Harper, a members-only travel organisation based in the US that researches and plans trips to Grenada every year. She noted that tourism had been returning to usual in 2025 after Hurricane Beryl, which upon making landfall in July 2024, tore up homes, flattened crops, and signalled an earlier and more intense shift of hurricane seasons to come. Visitors, she emphasised, are welcomed – and are central to the island's rehabilitation. "Even though the storm damage was mostly limited to the north of the island, the beautiful capital, many of the attractions and all the best resorts are on the south side."

Grenada remains an under-the-radar destination, but recent luxury resort openings like Six Senses La Sagesse on the south-eastern coast and Silversands Beach House to the south-west provide new opportunities for relaxing and cultural immersion, from nutmeg tours to snorkelling. Returning the the island's rebuilding efforts, Blechschmidt adds, "[it] is a perfect time to visit, when wonderful accommodations are available but visitor numbers aren't yet [causing overcrowding]."

How Grenada's Underwater Sculpture Park was created

Canadian travel journalist Jennifer Bain spent a week in Grenada at the start of 2025 and also recommends a visit. "The big draw in Grenada is snorkelling (or diving) the Molinere Underwater Sculpture Park, which was a global first when it debuted in 2006 [and features] works by British artist Jason deCaires Taylor," she says.

Bain advises travellers see Grenada's Rainbow Eucalyptus tree on the edge of Grand Etang National Park, a tree whose bark peels to reveal fantastical colours. Aviation enthusiasts may want to take a peek at the two Cold War-era planes lying in a field at the decommissioned Pearls Airport. Her final recommendation? "Eat as much nutmeg and chocolate here on the Spice Island as you like." That's not difficult, since Grenada boasts two nutmeg museums and a bean-to-bar chocolate-making industry. "The Grenada Chocolate Festival runs in May, but the House of Chocolate, a mini-museum and cafe in St George's, is always open," she says.

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