ESCAPE PLAN
By CHRIS BUNTING
January
16, 2007
--
5 MORE CARIBBEAN ISLANDS, FAR FROM THE CROWDS
SINT EUSTATIUS
When American colonists
thought it was time to make the Redcoats a little redder, they bought guns and
ammo from Dutch arms dealers on this Netherlands Antilles settlement. Today, the
island makes love, not war, with its med school and healthy eco-tourism
industry.
Get here:
No ferries available; take a 20-minute Winair
flight from St. Martin/Maarten (www.fly-winair.com)
Stay:
Statia Lodge has 10 sleek and exotic bungalows with WiFi (from $120,
statialodge.com)
Info:
statiatourism.com
UTILA
Not yet the overdeveloped Honduran
island that Roatan is (but getting there), Utila is still a low-key divers’
dream (the Mesoamerican barrier reef is here) where the whale shark roams.
Get here: Take the Utila Princess ferry from La Ceiba (mainland) or fly in on Aerolineas SOSA (laceibaonline.net/aerososa/sosaingl.htm)
Stay: Laguna Beach has 13 bungalows over a mangrove lagoon - there’ll never be more than 36 guests (doubles from $125/night; utila.com)
Info:
aboututila.com
SAN SALVADOR
The centerpiece of this Bahamian
island - discovered by Christopher Columbus in 1492 - is a 163-foot-high
lighthouse that’s powered by 400,000 candles. Of course, where Columbus went, so
did slavery, and there are plenty of plantation ruins to explore.
Get here: Take a mail boat from Nassau to Cockburn Town, or fly Bahamasair the same way (bahamasair.com)
Stay:
Of the two lodging options, the 286-room Club Med Columbus Isle Village is best
(all-inclusive from $3,224/week for two;
clubmed.us)
Info:
bahamas.com
BIG CORN ISLAND
Weird vegetal nomenclature aside,
seedlings of tourism have started to sprout here in the form of diving operators
and horseback riding tours. The larger of Nicaragua’s duo of Corn Islands, 47
miles off the mainland, was once a bustling pirate’s cove - a seafaring/fishing
culture still remains.
Get here: Take a river taxi from Rama wharf to Bluefields, Corn Island, or fly from Managua on La Costena (tacaregional.com)
Stay: Casa Canada has 20 stylish cabanas and an onsite restaurant (doubles from $85/night; www.casa-canada.com)
Info:
bigcornisland.com
CARRIACOU
Just northeast of Grenada lies its
sister island, Carriacou (“land of reefs”) - the largest of the Grenadines at 13
square miles. Its charm? Big time white beaches, Scottish boat-building,
Shakespeare competitions and Carnival.
Get here:
From Grenada, take the Osprey Ferry or a
short flight on SVG Air (svgair.com)
Stay:
The Carriacou Grand View Resort has killer views of Hillsborough Harbour, and a
piano bar (doubles from $60,
carriacougrandview.com).
Info:
grenadagrenadines.com
Escape plan [NYP]