This week I wanted to showdown a question I get asked quite frequently "Which one is better: the Eastern or Western Caribbean?"
On an Eastern Caribbean cruise, ports include any combination of St. Thomas, St. Maarten,
Tortola, Bahamas, Puerto Rico, St. Kitts, and a few others along the USVI and BVI regions.
Best for:
1. History buffs looking to learn more about early colonialism in the Caribbean, as well as the
famous stops of the Caribbean pirates.
2. Avid shoppers looking for the best deals. St. Thomas is known as a port for the best pricing on jewelry *hint hint*.
3. Beach buffs looking to get their tan on as these beaches tend to be less volcanic; also
photographers looking to grab beautiful shots of the vistas.
On the Western Caribbean route, ports include any combination of Cozumel, Grand Cayman, Jamaica, Belize, and Honduras, just to name a few.
Best for:
1. Animal lovers looking to get up close and personal with some of their favorite animals.
Grand Cayman has an actual "stingray city", as well as a turtle farm you can visit.
2. Snorkelers looking for a richer experience with beautiful coral and tropical fish. The
Eastern may have beautiful vistas above ocean, but not below.
3. Archaeological avids looking to explore ancient Mayan ruins.
Now would a history lover still be able to enjoy heading to the West? Of course - because of
the Mayan ruins. A snorkeler will also still enjoy heading to the East because there are many
famous shipwrecks. Food and beverage lovers will be able to get their fill across the Caribbean as well.
I think what especially stands out to me between the two is the amount and variety of
excursions there are in the West, compared to the East. That is simply due to land mass, as
the East is filled with smaller islands and in the West islands are larger, or you will be
visiting parts of Central America. This is what for me personally makes the Western
Caribbean the winner, as I like to be able to try different experiences when I visit once, or
revisit multiple times. Note that the Mexican Caribbean is not on here, that will be for another post.
Also, while this list sound like it's more for cruisers, you'll see that the countries works for land travel with lots for multigen families and for Mom's that need a break.
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