There’s a particular delight in finding the perfect beach town in the Caribbean, a place that manages to marry a pristine stretch of sand with a walkable, energetic, culture-filled mini-destination.
While great beach towns (and beach cities) abound in the Caribbean, from legendary spots like Grand Case, Saint Martin to surf hotspots like Cabarete, it’s the Caribbean’s tiny beach towns that really manage to yank at your heart strings.
Here are five of our favorite small beach towns in the Caribbean, ranging from the heart of the French Caribbean to a tucked-away destination on the Caribbean coast of Mexico.
Le Carbet, Martinique It began with a beach bar, Le Petibonum, that almost single-handedly turned this lovable village just south of Saint Pierre into a bucket-list destination. Now, Le Carbet is a buzzing (but still quite laid back) beach destination with a growing number of toes-in-the-sand eateries and a hard-to-match barefoot vibe. It doesn’t hurt that just across from the sand is one of the Caribbean’s most legendary rum distilleries, Rhum Neisson.
Le Diamant, Martinique Still largely undiscovered even by tourists to Martinique, this town at the southern tip of the island is a vibrant, diverse getaway that joins a world-class beach (and its iconic Diamond Rock just off the coast) with a foodie-friendly village and a broad collection of luxury villas to boot — and the new Diamant Les Bains hotel, a modern transformation of a mid-century beach hotel.
Bodden Town, Grand Cayman The Cayman Islands’ original capital is set on the south central coast of Grand Cayman, a historic, charming little beach village that’s quietly in the midst of a renaissance. That means everything from new street art to a cigar factory to a lovely beach hotel called the Turtle Nest Inn.
Deshaies, Guadeloupe You may know it as the filming location for the fictional island of Saint Marie on BBC’s Death in Paradise, but in-the-know travelers (and particularly sailors) have long come here to find old-school French Caribbean charm, world-class dining and a lovely clutch of boutique hotels, led by one of our favorites, the Tendacayou eco-lodge in the lush hills above the town.
Puerto Morelos, Mexico Maybe you’ve been to Tulum or Playa del Carmen, but this fishing village about 45 minutes from the heart of Cancun will instantly have you hooked. There’s a terrific outdoor market, an eminently walkable downtown filled with cafes and artisanal shops and a growing number of great places to stay, from the ultra-luxe Grand Residences Riviera Cancun to a Fives-branded hotel that will be opening its doors very soon.
— CJ
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