Honeymoon - Cabarete pehaps?

All

Im planing my honeymoon for two weeks from the last week of May 2002

Was thinking of Maui - but its a long haul from the UK, and despite it being a dream destination for me - being there in what would be a 'non 100% windsurfing' manner would be just sacriliegious. Besides i want my marriage to last longer than my honeymoon!!

So - im looking for other ideas for myself and my non windsurfing fiance

Front runner thus far is Cabarete - because not only can i windsurf/kite - there are also loads of other things to do and see (horseriding, kayaking, snorleking, mtn biking etc).

Q1. Can anyone reccomend the best acomodation for such a trip (ie romantic and secluded - but still accesible to the windsurfing!??)

Q2. Can anyone tell me when the Cabarete Race week is?? I think its June but not sure exactly which weeks. (I dont want it to be too be crowded!)

Q4. Any other ideas?? Other caribean destinations? What about mainland USA?? I keep reading about Hatteras?? Or Maybe Florida or SF?

All sugestions most welcome!

Many Thanks,

First of all you get points for PLANNING this. Does she windsurf? If not, that makes a difference.

I love Bonaire (easy access from Holland), Antigua (BA or Virgin) and of course Cape Hatteras (not easy access). I have sailed FL but if you want an exclusive vacation for windsurfing I doubt FL is the place. One option is Calema near Cocoa Beach. That way you could also do Orlando if that is your thing. (Calema.com).

Ok, with that said email me if you are keen on Bonaire or Antigua. I will let the DR resident experts fill ya in.

Annie
www.antiguacaribbean.com

Cabarete would NOT be my first choice for a honeymoon. Picture a town like this:

Beach with hotels packed side by side - no space in between. Tons of people on the beach.

25 yards from the beach, a highway runs through the town - and it is a highway busy, noisy, dusty.

This is a windsurfing resort - first and foremost - and I would choose some place which is more of a resort (with some windsurfing available) than a dedicated windsurfing resort. (Advice from an old married guy with a non-sailing spouse.)

Two best places:

St. Bart's The Moorings - Florida Keys

Very romantic WITH decent windsurfing available. Both quite expensive though.

Tom - Chicago

Hi Steve, 1st congrats & Good Luck mixing the 2... I had my honeymoon in Barbados .

Do Not eat The cute little Apples on the tree however.... Sent me and my bride to the clinic on the 1st day! They Burn after 4 or so minutes going down! As for as D.R. Another great island however for honeymoon purposes.... you must remember it is as close to 3rd world as you can get. If your soon to be doesn't mind a bit of dirt and dust you both can have a great adventure there. The 2 hotels i would recomend are 'The Windsurfing Resort ' or 'Villa Taina Hotel' The windsurfing resort is a bit more exclusive but not as nice as the villa taina which is butted right up with all the rest on the ocean. If I can be of anymore help please e mail me! Andy

I also honeymooned in Barbados, but did not love it. Silver Sands is great if you wave sail. If I were to do it over, I'd choose Maui or The Moorings.

Skip Cabarete. Michael

Steve,

You ask for: wind, romantic and secluded... The only places I can think of are Phan Thiet or Nha Trang in Viet Nam at http://www.surfasia.com/vietnam/index.html

There will be both wind and quiet romantic times for you honeymoon...

also, islamorada is a huge strip mall, not very romantic. the moorings is very nice though.

but the sailing can be great.

he's right, go to cabarete on some other trip. it's too busy to be a good honeymoon spot for most people.

I would recommend Cabarete for a Honeymoon. My wife and I went to Cabarete the year after our honeymoon in Bali and we said that we would liked to have gone to Cabarete. We stopped at Villa Tania and spent the entire holiday on the beach. We usually like to explore when on holiday but this time we strolled up the beach every night in the moonlight and picked a different beach side restaurant/bar. Villa Tania is right on the beach front (as is a lot of accommodation). My wife does not windsurf but was happy enough lying under the palm tree's ordering fruit from the lady on the beach. If you happy to do so, you don't need to leave the beach day and night. You can watch the windsurfing from Villa Tania if your on the 3rd floor, sea view (worth paying for). Some of the bars can get rowdy, but that can be fun if you sit back a little and watch from a distance. After a days windsurfing sit in boom chairs at the bar run by the fanatic centre, have a cocktail and watch the sunset, go back to your room a few minutes stroll along the beach. Great!

This was two years ago and at the time there was some hotel's just starting to be developed and it seemed to be the all inclusive stuff so it may not be quite the same. Regards,

Michael

All

thanks for all your responses

My wife to be doesnt windsurf - but we both love being at the beach and doing things...she particularly enjoys (and is knowleadgeable) about flora (esp) and fauna and loves the outdoors, natural vistas etc.

We have both been to Egypt a few times - great for sailing but pretty limited if you want to do anything else except dive/snorkel.

I have also spent a year travelling around india - so being a less than prestine / commercial environment is not a problem - just the opposite maybe - we dont really want to go anywhere thats all sanitised / too organised without any soul.

Maui would have been ideal - but i wanna do Maui another time when i can indulge 100% in windsurfing.

For the honeymoon the emphasis (our goal) is a beach based adventure - seeing and doing things we cant do/see in UK / Europe - and also having a romantic escape and doing some windsurfing.

I think / hope Margarita and Cabaarete could offer this - as long as we do more than just sit on the beach and/or sail all the time. Barbados also sounds interesting...The idea of visiting the Venez rainforest from Margarita is partic appealing - as is the waterfalls....and the islands (Coche etc)

Anyone reccomend the best hotel for escape / windsurf (in that order) in Margarita? Whats the wind and weather like in early June? How busy would it be??

Any more info / comments would be most welcome!

PS Anne - thanks for the Antigua/Bonaire idea - but i think it might be a bit too 'exclusive' for our tastes / budget.

Regards

well, i've never heard cabarete described as 'too sanitized' - just a joke. actually, i do understand what you mean. while cabarete is a very busy town, and is over-run with tourists, it does sort of have it's own unique character. most of the hotels are small to medium size, and it definitely doesn't have the 'manufactured' or 'disney world' feel that, say, aruba has.

for the reasons discussed, cabarete doesn't fit my description of a 'romantic' spot - but it may fit yours.

from your description of yourself and your interests, the key to an enjoyable cabarete vacation would be to get out of cabarete and into the countryside in the mornings, and sail in the afternoon. this makes sense because the wind only comes up at about 1:00 pm anyway.

the countryside is quite beautiful, and is accessible by bike and horse. it does take a little bit of effort to get beyond the tourist sites though. it is possible to see , within horseback riding distance, people living lives barely touched by modern conveniences.

because you have persisted this long, i will mention my website with a description of cabarete and the windsurfing there.
http://www.jfeehan.net/Cabarete/cabarete.html

(it is down for 'maintenance' but shold be up within a few hours.) i will soon put some photos there, and i have a few from the countryside around cabarete.