Dominican Republic
This complicated and beautiful Latino country has some 20,000 rooms and unbridled tourism. Lodgings pepper the north coast from Luperon, west of Puerto Plata, to Cabarete, about an hour`s drive to the east. Sosua, once known for small hotels and cottages, has grown, barnaclelike, on its share of coast. Cabarete has many villas and apartments in all styles except ultraluxury. The center for tourism on the north coast is Playa Dorada, with an 18-hole golf course, near the town of Puerto Plata. Among the apartment clusters are Dorado Naco Apartel (809-586-2019) and Villas Doradas
(809-586-3000).
At Sosua, look into the attractive Sandcastles complex (809-571-2549)
that is a honeycomb of units at the shore. North Shore Realty (809-571-2292)
has listings of places for rent. On the south coast, at popular Boca Chica, a beach resort near Santo Domingo, are hundreds of apartments gathered in management clusters. Playa Juan Dolio, farther east on the south coast, has become a resort center on its own.
Places on the playa include Villas del Mar (809-529-3735), Sea Shell
(809-529-8851) and Palmas del Mar (809-689-0055), a cheek-by-jowl lot that bring action to the beach. The country-club style of Casa de Campo
(809-682-9656), with its 18-hole golf courses and several tennis courts, includes apartments near the tennis courts or the golf course, as well as lavish villas.
On the east coast at Punta Cana are self-catering facilities at Bavaro Beach (809-682-2162) and Punta Cana Resort (809-686-0084), where there are apartments and villas.
Grenada
With white sand beaches near its capital on the south coast and lush mountains in the north, Grenada is at the southern end of the crescent of islands. Twelve Degrees North (809-444-4580) leads my list of attractive apartments; also high in the running are the units at Flamboyant
(809-444-4247), Blue Horizons (809-444-4316), Siesta (809-444-4646) and Hibiscus (809-444-4233), all close to Grand Anse Beach. There are many beach cottages at Grand Anse and at Anse aux Epines beaches, where Southwinds
(809-444-4310) and Wave Crest (809-444-4116) have comfortable lodgings, as well as many places around the countryside.
Guadeloupe
French in language, flavor and currency, Guadeloupe has a style reminiscent of the Mediterranean. Dozens of apartments have been built in recent years, and campers are available for those who want to tour on wheels. Les Marines de St. Francois (011-590-88.59.55) has a number of units within easy access of the golf course; La Toubana (011-590-88.25.78) plants its units on a hillside in a residential area on the coast; and Callinago Village
(011-590-84.25.25) is in the thick of resort activity at hotel-studded Gosier.
Village Soleil (011-590-90.85.76) is not far from the marina at Bas du Fort, near Pointe-a-Pitre. For independent villa and apartment rentals, contact Agence Molinard (Galeries Nozieres, B.P. 372, Pointe-a-Pitre, Guadeloupe).
An offshore isle, tiny Terre-de-Haut, is reached easily by ferry boat or small plane. Its housekeeping units are spartan but away-from-it-all, especially when the day tourists from Guadeloupe have gone.
Jamaica
Jamaica seems to grow villas and apartments even faster than its other crops. Centers for condominium apartments are Ocho Rios and Negril, although there are many lovely villas elsewhere on the north shore. On Runaway Bay, Portside Villas (809-573-2007) has traditional apartments; at Montego Bay and beyond, the Palms (809-953-2160), the Tallyman (809-952-0722) and Jamaica Vacation Villas at Ironshore (809-952-2500) are places to consider.
In the Montego Freeport area, where the cruise ships dock and the Montego Bay Yacht Club has its headquarters, Ocean Pines Villas (809-952-4070) and several other clusters of condominiums are available for rent in the owners`
absence.
In the Ocho Rios area, elegantly furnished apartments are gathered in several management clusters. In the heart of town, Sandcastles (809-974-5857) has studios as well as one- and two-bedroom units around a central pool. In the hills, on the east side of town, the center unit of the villas at Radisson`s Ciboney (809-974-2201) has the kitchen; bedrooms on either side are rented as a complete villa or independently. When you take the entire villa, you have the pool for yourselves. Two reliable sources for Jamaican villa rentals are Selective Vacation Services (809-974-5187) and Jamaica Villa Vacations (800-323-5115 or 708-698-9303).
Martinique
This island, north of St. Lucia and south of Dominica, shares the French nationality and the franc with Guadeloupe and sister islands. Francophiles will enjoy Pointe du Bout`s yacht-filled marina, across the bay from Fort-de- France, where apartments can be found at La Pagerie (011-596-66.05.30) and the burgeoning area near St. Francois; here the Anchorage apartments
(011-596-76.73.74) are placed in pool-centered clusters, within a short walk of the bistro-flecked beach shared with Club Med and others.
Le Fregate Bleu, a private home whose guest rooms boast a view, offers a quiet hideaway with class. Members of the Relais Creoles (inns) include Callalou, Caraibe Auberge, Dunette, La Madras, all on the sea, and a Victorian hillside inn, St. Aubin, above La Trinite. Logis Vacances Antilles
(011-596-63.12.91) and Gites de France (011-596-73.67.92) have listings of modest self-catering places that appeal to many French-speaking people.
Montserrat
This British-affiliated territory, about a 15-minute flight from Antigua, long has been a hideaway for smart folks who built second homes on the mountains. Often for rent in the owners` absence, the homes vary in size and shape but usually have a private pool.
In the heart of Plymouth, Lime Court Apartments (809-491-3656) allow homelike surroundings. Woodsville Apartments (809-491-5119) are on the outskirts (requiring a rental car for mobility), and Shamrock Villas
(809-491-2434), on a hillside overlooking Plymouth and the sea, is sometimes are available for vacation rentals. Villas of Montserrat
(809-491-5513) are comfortable homes. Bradshaw Villa Holidays
(809-491-5270) is one of several real estate brokers listing homes for rent.
Nevis
Island cognescenti long have considered Nevis, brought into the headlines with the opening of its first real resort, as a quiet place where time stands still and people are content to let that happen.
Nevis is cherished for its many enchanting inns, most of them plantation houses at one time. It also has apartments for rent at places such as Mt. Nevis Hotel (809-469-9373). Hurricane Cove Bungalows (809-469-9462), set on a hillside, offer a wonderful view across the channel to St. Kitts, as do the Victorian-style lodgings at Oualie Beach (809-469-9735), where you are within steps of the sea.
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico, a U.S. Commonwealth with a distinctly Spanish style, is cluttered with commerce and resort activity in its Condado area, near San Juan, where apartments can be found in high-rise towers such as those of the Dutch Inn (809-721-0810), or nearby in the Miramar area, where the Excelsior
(809-721-7400) has comfortable apartments as well as one of the island`s best restaurants. Near the airport, the beachside ESJ Towers (800-468-2226 or 809-791-5151) are high-rise buildings full of apartments.
More relaxed, refined villas are available on Hyatt`s Dorado complex, through the Dorado hotel (809-796-1600), about an hour`s drive west of San Juan on the north coast. On the southeast coast, the Villas at Palmas del Mar (800-221-4874) are a cluster of studios plus one- and two-bedroom apartments. You can choose to be near the tennis courts, beach, marina or golf course.
The dozens of small hotels include several in the San Juan area that offer clean rooms at modest cost. Longtime favorites are the El Canario trio, led by the original El Canario (809-722-3861) on Ashford Boulevard. El Canario by the Lagoon (809-722-5058) is within walking distance of the beach, but in a residential area of Condado; El Canario by the Sea (809-722-8640) is nearby, within a few steps of the beach. All include a simple continental breakfast
(beverage and bread) with the room rate.
Other worthy smaller hotels in the Condado area are El Portal
(809-721-9010) and the Atlantic (809-721-6900), within walking distance of the flashy casino-studded resorts.
Around the countryside, the Paradores Puertorriquenos (809-721-2884), government-assisted country inns, offer a total change of pace for meals or overnight.
Saba
Poking from the sea south of St. Maarten, Saba has a few guest houses and dozens of tiny wood-frame cottages for rent. One source is Dave Johnson
(011-599-46-2254). Captain`s Quarters (011-599-46-2201) in Windwardside is the pace-setting inn; Cranston`s Antique Inn (011-599-46-3218) in the Bottom has four-poster beds; Juliana`s Apartments (011-599-46-2269) offer
housekeeping, as do several tiny clapboard Saban cottages.
St. Barts
French and fashionable, St. Barts (formally known as St. Barthelemy) is southeast of St. Maarten and continues to set the pace, albeit a bit self-consciously these days. Cottages and villas freckle the landscape,
especially near the beaches, but all are low-key, attractive places. My favorite, quietly casual Emeraude Plage (011-590-27.64.78), places its beachside cottages behind the sea grapes on Baie de St. Jean. For a comprehensive list of rentals, contact Sibbarth (011-590-27.62.38), affiliated with WIMCO, above.
