Caribbean Islands Guide: Which Island, Countries in the Caribbean and the Best Time to Visit

The Caribbean is not one place but more than 7,000 islands, islets and reefs strung in an arc between Florida and the coast of South America. They share sunshine, rum and warm water, but little else is the same: some are flat coral islands ringed with white sand, others are steep volcanic peaks covered in rainforest. Some speak English and drive on the left; others are Spanish, French or Dutch. This guide lists the countries in the Caribbean region by region, explains the best time to visit the Caribbean month by month (including hurricane season), and matches islands to what you want from a holiday, with links to our detailed island guides.

Countries in the Caribbean: the full list

There are 13 independent countries made up entirely of Caribbean islands: Antigua and Barbuda, the Bahamas, Barbados, Cuba, Dominica, the Dominican Republic, Grenada, Haiti, Jamaica, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, and Trinidad and Tobago. Around them are territories linked to the UK, the Netherlands, France and the USA. Five of the British islands in the Caribbean are UK Overseas Territories: Anguilla, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Montserrat and Turks and Caicos. The Bahamas and Turks and Caicos are strictly in the Atlantic. Read the table from north-west to south-east, like a map.

Leeward and Windward are old sailing terms: the Leewards lie further from the north-east trade winds. Dominica is sometimes counted as a Leeward island.

The Caribbean region by region

Greater Antilles

• Big islands
• Culture and mountains

The four big islands: Cuba, Jamaica, Hispaniola (shared by Haiti and the Dominican Republic) and Puerto Rico. Jamaica has the Blue Mountains, reggae and Negril’s sunsets; the Dominican Republic has Punta Cana’s long beaches and Santo Domingo, the oldest continuously inhabited European-founded city in the Americas.

Jamaica holiday guide →

The Bahamas and Turks and Caicos

• Flat coral islands
• Whitest sand

Low limestone islands in the Atlantic north of Cuba, with some of the clearest, palest water anywhere. The Bahamas runs from busy Nassau to the quiet Exumas and the pink sand of Harbour Island. Turks and Caicos is smaller and more upmarket, centred on Grace Bay on Providenciales.

Turks and Caicos guide →

The Cayman Islands

• Diving
• Easy and safe

Three flat islands south of Cuba: Grand Cayman, with Seven Mile Beach and Stingray City, and the quieter Sister Islands of Cayman Brac and Little Cayman, famous for wall diving. Polished and family-friendly.

Cayman Islands guide →

Leeward Islands

• Beaches and sailing
• Island-hopping

The northern arc from the Virgin Islands to Guadeloupe. Antigua is the beach and sailing island, with Nelson’s Dockyard; Anguilla is low, quiet and luxurious with superb sand; St Kitts and Nevis pairs a fortress and volcano with a sleepy sister island.

Antigua and Barbuda guide →

Windward Islands

• Volcanic and green
• Hiking and romance

The southern arc of steep, green volcanic islands: Dominica, Martinique, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, and Grenada. Expect rainforest, waterfalls and dramatic views; the Grenadines are a sailing paradise.

St Lucia holiday guide →

Barbados

• Out on its own
• Food and beaches

Barbados sits about 160 km east of the Windwards. It’s a coral island with calm west-coast beaches, Atlantic surf on the east, rum distilleries, cricket and the best restaurant scene in the eastern Caribbean.

Barbados holiday guide →

Trinidad and Tobago

• Southern edge
• Birds and reefs

Just off Venezuela, on the southern edge of the hurricane belt. Trinidad is busy and cultural, home to the Caribbean’s biggest Carnival; Tobago is its quiet sister, with rainforest, hummingbirds, reefs and unspoilt beaches.

Tobago holiday guide →

The ABC islands

• Driest and sunniest
• Outside the hurricane belt

Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao, Dutch islands off the coast of Venezuela. Dry and breezy, with cactus instead of rainforest, they lie south of the main hurricane track: the safest bet from August to October. Aruba has long white beaches, Bonaire some of the Caribbean’s best shore diving, and Curaçao the colourful UNESCO-listed capital, Willemstad.

Which Caribbean island is best for you?

There is no single best Caribbean island to visit, only the best island for what you want.

Diving, snorkelling and the reef

The best underwater visibility is in the flat coral islands. Grand Cayman has sheer walls a short boat ride offshore and Stingray City, a sandbar where rays glide around you in waist-deep water; Little Cayman and Bonaire, where most dives start from the shore and the whole coast is a marine park, are favourites with serious divers.

Turks and Caicos has a long barrier reef and wall, and humpback whales pass in winter. Tobago has big manta rays off Speyside, and Grenada an underwater sculpture park that snorkellers can see. For the second-longest barrier reef in the world, go to Belize.

Culture, food and festivals

Each island mixes African, European, Indian and indigenous influences. See the UNESCO-listed Zona Colonial of Santo Domingo, the garrison and old town of Bridgetown in Barbados, Nelson’s Dockyard in Antigua or the Dutch waterfront of Willemstad.

Eat jerk chicken in Jamaica, flying fish and cou-cou in Barbados, doubles in Trinidad and nutmeg-spiced everything in Grenada, the “Spice Isle”; the French islands add Creole cooking with a Gallic touch. Every island makes rum, and Barbados claims to be where it started.

Time a trip for a festival: Trinidad Carnival (8 and 9 February 2027), Crop Over in Barbados (ending in early August) or Grenada’s Spicemas in August.

Best time to visit the Caribbean

The Caribbean is warm all year: daytime highs sit between about 27°C and 31°C almost everywhere, and the sea is around 26°C to 29°C. What changes is the rain, the humidity and the risk of storms. The best time to go to the Caribbean is the dry season, from mid-December to April, with steady trade winds and low humidity. It is also the busiest and most expensive time, especially at Christmas, New Year and Easter. May, June and November are good-value shoulder months. August to October is the peak of hurricane season, when the southern islands are the safest choice.

Hurricane season

The Atlantic hurricane season officially runs from 1 June to 30 November. Most storms form between mid-August and mid-October, with the statistical peak in early to mid-September. Most weeks are simply hot and showery, but one storm can close airports and damage islands for months: Hurricane Beryl hit Carriacou in Grenada in July 2024, and Hurricane Melissa caused serious damage in western Jamaica in October 2025. If you travel in summer or autumn, book flexibly, take travel insurance that covers hurricanes and check the forecast before you go. The ABC islands, Trinidad and Tobago lie south of the main storm track and are rarely affected.

Caribbean weather by island

Average daily high and monthly rainfall, 10-year ERA5 data (2014 to 2023). Rain usually falls in short, heavy showers rather than all-day downpours.

Sargassum: in recent years, brown seaweed has washed up on some Atlantic-facing beaches, mostly between spring and late summer. West-facing Caribbean coasts are usually much less affected, and we can suggest which beaches to choose.

The Caribbean coast of Central and South America

You don’t need an island to get Caribbean water. The Caribbean coast of Mexico, from Cancún down the Riviera Maya to Tulum, combines white beaches and cenotes with Maya ruins, and has direct flights from the UK. See our Mexico guide.

Belize is English-speaking, with the barrier reef, the Blue Hole and laid-back cayes, plus jungle and Maya temples inland: Belize holiday guide. In Costa Rica, the Caribbean side around Tortuguero and Puerto Viejo is wild, green and Afro-Caribbean in flavour: Costa Rica holiday guide. Colombia’s walled city of Cartagena and the beaches of Tayrona are covered in our Colombia guide.

Island-hopping, multi-centre trips and cruises

Many islands are close enough to combine. Short regional flights link the main hubs (Antigua, Barbados, St Lucia and St Maarten), and ferries run between neighbours such as St Kitts and Nevis, Antigua and Barbuda, and Grenada and Carriacou.

A cruise is an easy way to sample several islands in a week. See the best Caribbean cruises from the UK, including fly-cruises from Barbados and Antigua.

Getting to the Caribbean from the UK

Direct flights: Barbados, Antigua and St Lucia are the easiest islands to reach, with direct flights from London in about 8.5 to 9 hours all year; these are the nearest Caribbean islands to the UK by flying time. Jamaica (Montego Bay and Kingston) takes about 10 to 11 hours direct, and there are direct flights to the Bahamas and, seasonally, to Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic.

With one stop: Grand Cayman is usually reached via Nassau (about 11 hours), Tobago with a stop on the way (10 to 11 hours), and Anguilla via Antigua or St Maarten. Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao are easiest via Amsterdam; Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands via the USA, which needs an ESTA.

Time difference: the eastern islands are four hours behind the UK in winter; Jamaica, the Cayman Islands and the Bahamas are five hours behind.

Practical tips and travel advice

• Travel advice: check the FCDO travel advice for each country you plan to visit before you book and again before you travel. We don’t currently arrange trips to Haiti.
• Entry: British passport holders don’t need a visa for a holiday on most Caribbean islands, but rules and arrival forms vary; Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands follow US rules (ESTA).
• Insurance: take it as soon as you book, and make sure it covers hurricanes and disruption if you travel between June and November.
• Money: many islands use the Eastern Caribbean dollar and others their own currency, but US dollars are widely accepted; cards work in hotels and most restaurants.
• Driving: on the left on most English-speaking islands, on the right on the Dutch, French and Spanish-speaking ones.

Frequently asked questions

Keep planning

• Cuba holiday guide
• St Vincent and the Grenadines guide
• Cuba holidays
• Barbados holiday guide
• Antigua and Barbuda guide
• St Lucia holiday guide
• Grenada holiday guide
• Jamaica holiday guide
• Best time to visit Jamaica
• Bahamas holiday guide
• Turks and Caicos guide
• Cayman Islands guide
• Anguilla holiday guide
• Tobago holiday guide
• Dominican Republic guide
• St Kitts and Nevis guide
• Belize holiday guide
• Mexico holiday guide
• Costa Rica holiday guide
• Best Caribbean cruises from the UK
• Caribbean holiday offers