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A typical vacation to Caribbean islands conveys a stereo typed idea of an exotic land remembered by images of blue sunny skies, Havana Cigars, carnivals, voodoo magic and palm trees! But there is more to this group of islands than just a conventional picture of booze and fun! Or those classical pictures of James Bond and Dr.No; The Three Blind Men and the seductive Honey Rider! It is just only one of many that make up the real Caribbean. One of the most striking and amazing things about the Caribbean region is its diversity and cultural speciality. Every island is unique and every region is special with contrasting landscapes, ecosystems, ethnicities, and foods.

Every Caribbean island has some thing of its own to offer to travelers! If you’re looking for that special, erotic swinging nightlife, peaceful tranquility, golfing, diving, sailing, gambling or camping, some are found on a few islands while in others you do not find them. In total, the Caribbean islands are about 90,000 square miles of landmass of small islets, half of it hilly or mountainous and the other half flat land. Most of them are a great scenic combination of the water and earth, circled by sandy beaches, blue lagoons and pristine coves.
With more than 20 Island nations to choose and visit, one needs to be very wise and prudent in identifying. What ever the choice, this is a magnificent region overall, has a lazy paced life style, numbers of activities and recreation options to choose from and a year round tropical ambience. The more one knows about these finer details, the more one becomes infatuated with the islands! Caribbean vacation has thousands things to offer and million things to learn!

Caribbean vacation displays a benevolent Mother Nature who is extraordinarily diverse and a great artist. It is perfect picture post card sceneries all over the region, almost on the verge of the work of a Renaissance master! Back drop of cool mountains, like a drapery screen with tall palm trees to give company. Clear blue skies with occasional cotton like white clouds! Crystal clear seas with numerous bays, lagoons and shallow beaches with palm tress dotted all over!Which ever the region one chooses, get stunned by what is seen –from volcanic mountains to stretches of tropical forests, clear streams to wild ocean, mangrove swamps to sand dunes, huge rock formations to colorful coral reefs. Get excited by limestone hillocks and caves, rivers both over ground and subterranean, waterfalls, rainforests, lakes and teeming wild life. And always there is the ubiquitous sea. Spectacular is the metaphor for all encompassing seas and beaches!

Caribbean vacation can bring the other darker side of life too! Rare earth quakes and violent spewing volcanoes can make one tremble with fear up their spine, while gusty winds and torrential rains of a destructive hurricane can be a sight in fury! Look out for all those tiny sand islets created and destructed at the mercy of Mother Nature. The amazingly panoramic grandeur of the Caribbean defies one’s imagination. One needs to be a true spectator to get immersed in the glory of the Caribbean vacation. The radiating beauty of the natural Caribbean is practically inescapable and beyond comprehension. No one is far from the panoramic sight of undulating hills, lovely gardens and clear blue seas. Just take a peep out of the window and take a look at the eternal sea. Or gaze beyond the wide expanse of lovely mountains! Most of the visitors get immersed in the splendor of these chains of exotic islands even before they know it.

A well earned Caribbean vacation is dream come true for nature buffs! Providence bestows its favor to all these lovely islands with what seems to be an endless number of species of plants and animals, many of them indigenous and more endangered! Myriads of varieties of plants and animals dot from high hills to low seas. Islands full of strange creatures; some exotic like butterflies and humming birds and others captivating like Sharks and turtles! Besides more well-known species like flamingoes, terns, and pelicans, bird watchers will have all the luck to have a glimpse of a Barrancoli, a Flautero, or a Bananaquit. Garden buffs might well recognize and relish Bougainvilleas, Hibiscus and Orchids, while food buffs will taste exotic tropical fruits and sea dishes. Due to paucity of information on the flora and fauna, it is best left to a traveler to do his own research and compilation and get ready for an experience of a life time.

Intriguing people, rich and diverse culture, exotic and delicious cuisine, and intoxicating reggae music; there’s plenty to see and experience on the islands. While Grenada can be quiet and somber, lively San Juan can be too boisterous and active. The tiny islets of Barbuda and Barbados are full of sports while the sugar fields of Cuba can be a nostalgic colonial experience. The Caribbean vacation also offers a wide variety of physical landscapes; if one wants to relax on some of the prettiest beaches in the world, Aruba is an automatic choice, but if one wants to explore and trek the rain forests, Puerto Rico is the natural selection. The whole region has its own menu to offer! There are high mountains to climb and lush rain forests to explore. There are sandy deserts too sprinkled with scrub-trees, cacti, and boulders and that unbearable heat! Gently undulating hills covered with brilliantly colored grass and sugarcane fields surrounding those majestic 19th-century plantation mansions are like fresh whiff of wind.

A Caribbean vacation can be a visit to an unspoiled paradise full of vibrancy and life! Enchanting spots, lovely beaches, risky trekking trails, exotic food and gyrating reggae are all part of a heaven begging to be visited and explored! Lovely faces and cute braids are always high points of attraction. Home cottages, cold beer and delicious sea food are words of hospitality. The islands of Caribbean always remain the jewels in the crown of world tourism.

Stein O Stien is the webmaster of http://www.travel-and-vacation.com.
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Summer all year… gorgeously turquoise ocean… sandy white beaches… shopping from Mexican handicrafts to designer clothes… stunning hotels with interesting architecture, many right on the beach… world-class restaurants… nightlife and dance clubs that go till early morning… Mayan ruins in the middle of it all… that’s Cancun!

Water sports include swimming, surfing, diving, boating, fishing, kayaking, and snorkeling. Day trips to Mayan archaeological sites offer you a glimpse of the fascinating civilization that was in the area for centuries.

No wonder Cancun is one of the most popular beach resorts in all of North and South America! With over three million visitors a year, the folks in Cancun have figured out how to provide what you want for a memorable vacation, whether it’s total relaxation, going out dancing, water sports, enjoying spring break or a honeymoon, or whatever.

Cancun’s history is short. In the early 1970s, the Mexican government had a study done to decide where to put a new resort. A little piece of land in the Caribbean sea, just off the coast of Yucatan, was chosen. It didn’t take long before tourists were coming in ever-increasing numbers. Now Cancun (on the mainland just opposite that slip of land) has a population of something over half a million — and the visitors keep coming!

Cancun is its own kind of place. It’s hardly typical Mexico, but it’s a lot of fun in its own way!

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Rosana Hart has traveled to Mexico many times. Her website, www.mexico-with-heart.com, contains the full text of a book she wrote about traveling in Mexico, as well as information and travel tipson a variety of Mexican cities popular with tourists.

The internet is a marvelous tool for finding vacation properties. But the uninitiated may not realize that there are many types of rental property provider out there, and they don’t all offer equal levels of value and service.

The first type is the general vacation rental website. There are many of these available, and they are perhaps most suitable when you haven’t decided where you want to go. You can browse these sites for ideas on where to go and the larger sites may well have a reasonable choice of homes in certain destinations, particularly the most popular ones. These homes may be advertised by the individual owner, or by companies who manage multiple rental properties.

However, these sites have their limitations. You will rarely find any information about each destination, since these sites typically cover the globe, albeit with varying levels of inventory available in any one resort or location. Also, the site is really nothing but an advertising venue; it takes no responsibility for the accuracy of any of the information posted by the owners who use it, and you will have no comeback to the operator of the website if it turns out that the property is misrepresented, is not available when you turn up even though you have paid or, in the worst but by no means unknown case, does not even exist.

The second type of site is often advertised as ‘by owner’. These sites may be global, or they may be destination-specific. Such sites frequently claim that by dealing directly with owners they are cutting out the middleman and saving you money, and in certain areas owners who market their properties directly can escape some types of tax. However, these sites also have drawbacks. As with global vacation rental sites, ‘by owner’ sites provide no guarantees about your holiday; they are just a way of putting you in touch with the owner. Furthermore, the owner is not worried about the credibility and reputation of the site as a whole; their main concern is to promote their own property. Finally, if the property becomes unavailable for any reason, the owner may be restricted in their ability to provide an alternative. So be cautious with these sites.

The third type of site belongs to a property manager with an inventory of homes in a individual destination. He does not usually own the homes but rents them out on behalf of the owners. He does not mind which home you choose, so his incentive is only to find the property most suitable for your group. If, exceptionally, your property becomes unavailable for your dates, he will be able to find you an alternative from other properties he manages. Finally he will have consistent quality systems in place to ensure that your place is in perfect condition for your stay. So if you want to be sure of the quality of your vacation rental, choose a property management company which specializes in the resort of your choice.

Henry Schlee is the owner of a property management company in Whistler, BC. If you want a great Whistler condo rental or somewhere to find a choice of Whistler lodging, give them a call.