These Are 17 of the Most Beautiful Caribbean Islands

For the disposition of the French countryside (French is its official language) in the laid-back, sunny Caribbean, make your way to Saint Barts’s rolling hills and turquoise waters. Its high-end restaurants, upscale hotels, and designer stores invite many visitors by yacht or private plane, or you can fly to a nearby island and take transportation to it.

Where to Stay: Le Toiny

Come to Grand Cayman for the white beaches (don’t miss Seven Mile Beach), but stay for the food at the culinary capital of the Caribbean. Snorkeling and diving is fantastic all over the island, but a highlight is exploring the Kittiwake Shipwreck for a unique dive site. Grand Cayman is the largest of the Cayman Islands, but you can also visit Cayman Brac and Little Cayman.

Where to Stay: The Ritz-Carlton, Grand Cayman

No passport is needed to get to the largest of the U.S. Virgin Islands! There you’ll have your choice of lively beaches (like Rainbow Beach) and secluded beaches, and you might even see a sea turtle on the beach at Sandy Point National Wildlife Refuge. Be sure to explore Buck Island right off the island’s northeast coast too.

Where to Stay: The Buccaneer Hotel

For a slow paced island, make your way to Virgin Gorda. It has scenic, quiet beaches like Spring Bay and Savannah Bay, but there’s also a reason more people make their way to explore large rock boulders and sea grottos at The Baths in the southwestern end of the island. Explore the northeastern side of the island for the most dramatic scenery.

Where to Stay: Rosewood Little Dix Bay

This small hidden gem of a French Caribbean island is known as the rum capital of the world, so be sure to visit at least one of its historic distilleries. Located between Dominica and St. Lucia, it of course has its fare share of beautiful beaches too, with Anse Dufour being arguably one of the most beautiful and Grande Anse du Diamant being one of the largest.

Where to Stay: Hotel La Pagerie

With 45 beaches and countless remote coves, this independent island boasts mountainous rain forests in its interior, like one giant, lush garden. Many of its hotels, resorts, and restaurants are family-owned, and locals are known for their hospitality and friendliness. As its nickname “Spice of the Caribbean” connotes, its production of nutmeg and other spices make the island breeze aromatic and sweet.

Where to Stay: Spice Island Beach Resort

Nicknamed “The Friendly Island,” this beachy destination is Dutch Sint Maarten on its south end and French Saint Martin on the north end, offering the distinct cultures of both. Its 37 beaches are ripe for swimming and snorkeling alike, and some are only accessible by hiking trail or boat. For a beach break, you can wander the cobblestone streets of Dutch Philipsburg and take in the views from the ruins of Louis Fort.

Where to Stay: La Samanna, A Belmond Hotel

This two-island nation is underdeveloped and perfect for travelers who love nature and a relaxed getaway to sandy beaches and lush rainforests. While there, you can tour one of the oldest rum distilleries in the Caribbean at Old Rum Road Company and explore a rainforest farm at Liamuiga Natural Farm on Mount Laimuiga on Saint Kitts. If you stay on Saint Kitts, take a day trip over to the less developed Nevis (or vice-versa) and explore their hiking trails and Botanical Gardens.

Where to Stay: Belle Mont Sanctuary Resort

Saint Lucia's white beaches shimmer, and its awe-inspiring pitons peak up above behind it, with lush leafy palms and fruit trees blossoming in between. Further inland you can hike through the rainforest that takes up 70 percent of the island, or you can traverse to get a picture-perfect view of Marigot Bay or Rodney Bay Village or visit the Caribbean’s only "drive-in volcano" in Soufrière.

Where to Stay: Sugar Beach, a Viceroy Resort

No, not the Dominican Republic. Dominica remains the best-kept secret in the region and is without a doubt one of the area's most beautiful islands. Dominica is called "the nature island" of the Caribbean—and for good reason. Amid its lush and protected interior, it has the best hiking in the area, including the longest continuous trail, the 115-mile Waitukubuli Trail. This volcanic isle also boasts a river for every day of the year, with 365 freshwater streams in its verdant, jungle footprint.

Where to Stay: Secret Bay

Of the Bahamas' nearly 700 islands, Andros is the largest and feels like an unspoiled escape. Known as the Blue Hole Capital of the World, Andros offers the Caribbean's signature turquoise waters and the recognizable beauty of more than 150 blue holes; some are even preserved in the 40,000-acre Blue Holes National Park. The island is also home to the world's third-largest barrier reef.

Where to Stay: Small Hope Bay Lodge

Bonaire is famed as a diver's paradise for its 85+ dive sites, but there's more to this little island's beauty than the deep blue sea (it is noteworthy, though, that 100% of the ocean surrounding the island is a protected marine park). Beyond that, colorful architecture in the capital Kralendijk, the dreamy salt pans full of flamingos, and the Netherlands' oldest national park are just a few of the compelling reasons to visit this small Dutch overseas territory.

Where to Stay: Harbour Village Beach Club

Much of Antigua's beauty stems from its famous white sand beaches, but the sweeping harbor views offered at Shirley Heights in the island's southern reaches are some of the prettiest vistas in the entire Caribbean. There, sparkling white yachts stand out against the aquamarine water. Antigua's intricate coastline, rife with bays and natural harbors, makes it an especially attractive destination.

Where to Stay: Hermitage Bay

This Dutch tropical escape stuns in the southern Caribbean with more than 35 beaches and the colorful, UNESCO-recognized capital city of Willemstad. Multiple national parks help preserve local flora and fauna and keep part of the island wild.

Where to Stay: Baoase Luxury Resort

In terms of natural beauty, no other island can compete with Saint John in the United States Virgin Islands. Virgin Islands National Park, one of the nation's least visited, covers two-thirds of the island, preserving it for generations to come. Rolling hills, lush with vegetation, tumble into the sea and provide excellent outlooks for sweeping vistas from this island paradise.

Where to Stay: Gallows Point Resort

Turks and Caicos is a well-known destination in the Caribbean, though its star is the island of Providenciales. Its massive Grace Bay Beach, often called the world's most beautiful, features calm, turquoise waters emblematic of the region.

Where to Stay: The Palms Turks and Caicos

An especially luxe isle, Anguilla is an Eastern Caribbean gem. The island is a British overseas territory famous for palm-fringed beaches, upscale hotels, and the second-largest barrier reef in the world. Don't miss the limestone cave formations which decorate many of the gorgeous 33 public beaches.

Where to Stay: Malliouhana Resort