There are several smart ways to go to Caribbean islands and one of the perfect ways is to book a long Caribbean cruise. You can book your travel to Caribbean ports and among the top cruiselines on the web and save even more money. www.travelzoo.com has a great promotion which they send out weekly to their email subscribers. It is called This Weeks Top 20 for Travelzoo VIPs and you will need to go on their site and sign up for it. A typical special would be something like $ 379 — Bermuda: Cruise 7 Nights This Spring w/$ 50 Credit or $ 1149 — 2-Week Panama Canal Cruise incl. $ 150 Credit & Air. These and other fantastic special deals get sent directly to your email each week.

One of the perfect cruiselines you can take to visit Caribbean island destinations is Royal Caribbean Cruise Companies (www.royalcaribbean.com) but there are many of cruise ship companies and some that aren’t as famous may be better values. You can get a much more for your money if you visit Caribbean destinations with a less popular cruise line.

Once on the cruise liner you will be able to do most anything you would dream of doing at a land locked resort. There are different restaurants and buffets available at all hours and all the food you can eat is included in your cruise ticket. Many of these buffets are incredible with great food including lobster, shrimp and seafood prepared by some of the best chefs in the business.

There are numerous ports of call when you go Caribbean countries via cruise ships. Some of the most popular are Puerto Plata (Dominican Republic), San Juan (Puerto Rico), St. Johns (Virgin Islands), St. Thomas (Virgin Islands), and Kingston (Jamaica). When you finally arrive you will either have signed up for a land tour with the ship or you can go off on your own, find your own taxi or rent-a-car and explore to your hearts content. The only rule is that you simply need to be back at the ship at a certain hour or else you get left behind and that can cost you an arm and a leg.

St. Thomas has some very nice shops near the pier where all the cruise ships berth and you can walk around and shop til you drop. If you like rum, this is truly a paradise for you and you will find hundreds of rare bottles of rum including Rhum Babancourt and St. James Extra Old. You can pick up as many bottles as you want and not pay duty on them. This really makes them a lot more affordable and tempting to purchase. You can also get authentic Cuban cigars in St. Thomas as well as beautiful arts and crafts from the local artisans.

If you want to relax you can take a cab to a local beach and lay out and get a suntan. One of the best parts of travel to Caribbean ports of call is that they each have their own distinct character and unbelievable beaches.

All in all, a Caribbean cruise is a terrific and affordable way for families to explore travel to Caribbean countries and exotic beaches.