But hey, let's not discourage Phil so easily! I'm just one person with one
opinion. And I've certainly gotten things totally wrong before!!!

"Papa Tom" wrote in message
...
I've always been disappointed when asking this same question, as I never
get any enthusiastic responses about the islands I occasionally visit (ie
Aruba, St. Thomas, St. Maarten, Grand Cayman, Puerto Rico) on business or
pleasure. When you get to these places and get on a bike, you'll
understand why.

Not to burst your bubble, but cycling on many of these islands is not what
you'd expect. Mostly, when you get outside the small tourist areas,
things can get very "dark" very fast. I've never felt safe biking on any
island, with the possible exception of Aruba. Plus, unless you avoid the
main roads, you're often dealing with drunken tourist drivers - and in
some cases, drunken tourist drivers who are driving on the opposite side
of the road for the first time. I've had some very near misses on some of
these islands.

Lastly, the whole idea of "cycling along the beach as the sun goes down"
seems non-existent to me. Someone else may have had another experience,
but I've never seen those quiet stretches of roads or bike paths that pass
right by the ocean, as seen on TV and in travel guides. It seems all
those areas are eaten up by resorts.

I can't speak for Jamaica, Guadeloupe, or Antigua (roughly half the places
you mentioned), but I wouldn't build a bike trip around any of the other
islands above. They're all great places to visit, though. And once you
get to them, the pace is so laid back that you'll probably forget all
about wanting to bicycle anyway!