The Caribbean can be an excellent and cheap summer getaway
Obviously most people start to think about a vacation in the Caribbean only when the weather in their own area starts getting really cold and dreary. The problem with that is exactly that everyone else is thinking the same thing, so cheap flights are harder to find and hotels are at their peak prices during December and January. So what about trying the Caribbean in summer? It’s actually a great alternative to staying home and it’s far cheaper than Europe.
But what about the rainy season and hurricanes?
One thing that keeps many people from considering going to the Caribbean in the summer is they hear that’s the rainy season, and what about those horrible hurricanes? The reality is that the “rainy season” never gets too bad on most islands, and September through November is usually the peak as well.
The official hurricane season lasts from June 1 to the end of November, but anyone who is paying attention will realize that over 90% of the hurricanes, including all the dangerous ones, occur in September and November, so summer is totally safe. The other thing that’s worth knowing is that these hurricanes are never surprises, as they are tracked for a week or more from the time they form near the equator until they reach the area. This means that the worst case scenario is that you’d leave the island a few days early if one is on the way, but again, that only happens after summer anyway.
Destination: Puerto Rico
Instead of paying $1,000 for a round-trip flight from New York to Madrid, what about paying $332 for a round-trip flight between New York and San Juan, Puerto Rico? You can easily find a nonstop for under $400 RT, or a huge variety of one-stop flights for around $350 RT. From Chicago the flights are around $420 to San Juan, as opposed to around $1,100 RT between Chicago and Rome, for example.
In June, and really the whole summer, the average high in San Juan is around 87F and the average low is 74F. It can be humid, but you’ll probably be on or near a beach during the day, so the tropical breezes will make it feel very comfortable.
The city is a wonderful colonial city center, which is very interesting and will remind you of Europe for obvious reasons, and there are dozens of wonderful beach resorts not far out of the city. Cheap all inclusive resorts lower their prices significantly after March, so you’ll pay perhaps half as much as you might have during January.
It’s true that you don’t get the relief from your own miserable weather in June that you do in January, but instead consider it an alternative to a much more expensive vacation in Europe, or even a more-expensive vacation in the United States. The fact that you don’t need a passport to go to Puerto Rico is a benefit, as is the fact that you don’t need to change money.
You can find similar great deals in the Bahamas, Jamaica, or in the Dominican Republic, or pay a bit more to go to one of the more posh islands like St. Thomas or Aruba. A big part of saving money on vacations is going to great places when their prices are lower, and the Caribbean in summer fits this perfectly.