Here are my picks for the best Caribbean travel bargains for summer 2008, when you can easily find hotel rooms and suites discounted by 30% or more.
1. Best of Barbados Bargains
© Barbados Tourism AuthorityNow through Aug. 15, travelers booking fall trips to Barbados can get air credits of up to $300 per person plus a bevvy of other discounts and amenities, including free nights, breakfast and dinner credits, and discounts on shopping and car rentals.
©Dan RossThe new Seven Stars Resort in Turks & Caicos is opening on July 1, and the first guests at the Providenciales resort can save 25% off already-low summer rates if they book one of the property's garden-view one-bedroom studios.
Not only do lower summer rates go into effect on May 1 at Anguilla's luxury Cap Jaluca, the resort is sweetening the pot by offering a seventh night free for guests who book a six-night stay between May 1 and Aug. 31.
The adults-only, all-inclusive Galley Bay Resort & Spa in Antigua is offering free airline tickets from East Coast gateways in the U.S. to guests who book premium rooms for stays between June and November. Couples who book a Premium Beachfront Suite for seven nights will receive free air travel on American Airlines or Delta Air Lines from New York/JFK, Atlanta, or other cities.
Here's a good deal for a short Caribbean gambling junket: the Wyndham Nassau Resort & Crystal Palace Casino in the Bahamas is offering a "Casino Getaway" package that includes four nights accommodations, dinner for two at the modern Asian eatery Moso or the Black Angus Grille, and $100 in promotional slot credits, starting at $345 per person.
One of the dirty secrets of staying at a Caribbean luxury resort is that it can cost you as much to eat each day as it would for a room at a less-posh resort. That's why I like the Westin St. John's new Island Time package, which includes a $100 daily dining credit as well as roundtrip airport transfers and 20% off spa services.
Staying in a private villa on St. Barths or St. Martin come sometimes seem like an extravagant luxury, but a new deal from villa rental company Wimco can help bring a villa vacation within reach.
