The Best Luxe Caribbean Islands to Visit

These islands invite you to experience the Caribbean through a lens of luxury that feels one-of-a-kind.

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What does a "luxury island stay" mean to you? Of course, there are a few prerequisites: sumptuous oceanfront accommodations with impeccable yet discreet service, elevated cuisine that showcases culinary artistry and top-quality ingredients, and an overall vibe that melds rarefied air with warm hospitality.

Many Caribbean islands have all of these, including some exciting new and soon-to-open options. But they also transcend mere indulgence, offering unexpected surprises that appeal to travelers seeking something more. Maybe you long to stroll through streets dotted with not only tony boutiques but galleries showcasing the destination's budding art scene, or tour and taste the results of one of the world's most exciting new winemakers. Whatever your penchant, here are nine islands that invite you to experience the Caribbean through a lens of luxury that feels one-of-a-kind.

Aruba

Known for a buzzy vibe, especially in bustling Eagle Beach and Palm Beach, this Dutch island outside the hurricane belt is leaning into winemaking and mixology. Sure, bars still whip up the island-born Aruba Ariba rum punch, but others like Apotek Speakeasy and Liquid Chef Gastro Bar in Oranjestad are serving elevated sips made using advanced techniques, high-end rums, and Caribbean ingredients like tamarind, guava, and orgeat (a sweet almond-flavored nonalcoholic syrup). On the arid northeast side, grapevines share space with cacti: here, Alto Vista Winery produces wines with estate-grown tempranillo and chenin blanc, and an upcoming cidery next to the Radisson Blu Aruba will introduce the fermented fruit juice to thirsty locals and visitors.

The just-opened Secrets Baby Beach Aruba is an adults-only cliffside property on the southern coast overlooking the eponymous bay. It has a 3,200-square-foot spa with a cenote-style reflecting pool and hydrotherapy circuit, and its 304 suites are just steps away from the island’s calmest, snorkel-friendly beach, with décor inspired by dunes, cactus, lush palm foliage, and coastal tones. The new St. Regis Aruba Resort touts five dining concepts, butler service to fulfill every whim, and expansive ocean views from rooms and suites, which are outfitted in muted sand-toned palettes with dark-wood accents, woven materials, and floor-to-ceiling windows that flood the space with that enviable Caribbean sunlight.

Saba

This tiny Dutch-Caribbean island of only five square miles and 2,000 residents unapologetically embraces its philosophy of remaining anti-chain and anti-mega-resort. Instead, visitors to the so-called "Unspoiled Queen of the Caribbean" sojourn at small hotels, private villas, and charming gingerbread-like cottages topped with red roofs. The Scenery Hotel, the island's first luxury property, is set to open later this year, with bungalows, private terraces and an infinity pool. The property is partnering with local practioners to provide a wellness focus, including poolside massages, revitalizing yoga sessions, and other curated experiences.

Recent and ongoing upgrades to Saba National Marine Park, including coral gardening and the restoration and restocking of algae-controlling sea urchins, are improving dive sites and supercharging ecotourism. On terra firma, a hike to the top of Mount Scenery (2,910 feet), a dormant, cloud-shrouded volcano covered in lush rainforest, delivers you to the highest point in the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

St. Lucia

Everything about this island evokes romance, from private plunge pools on villa balconies overlooking the twin emerald-green peaks for which St. Lucia is known to the heady aroma of orchids and artisanal chocolate.

Right now, hoteliers are increasingly enticing all visitors — not just those coupled up — with wellness-focused properties, like the upcoming Sapphire Sands Villas on Reduit Beach, with one- to three-bedroom villas, 24/7 butler service, and an Ayurvedic spa, and the soon-to-open TheLifeCo Holistic Wellness Hotel in Gros-Islet that will offer detox programs, biohacking therapies, yoga, and meditation. If you prefer edible wellness, Hotel Chocolat at Rabot Estate's limited-time Cacao Immersion Package includes a three-night stay, tree-to-bar tours, and other discounted experiences, such as a chocolate-making class.

St. Barts

With a glimmering harbor filled with some of the world's most luxurious yachts and sailboats, and a town center brimming with well-heeled shoppers perusing designer boutiques, this French island dazzles at every turn. But there's also understated luxury to be found beyond the glamour. Sunbathers in the know will eschew the see-and-be-seen clubs at Nikki Beach in favor of secluded, tucked-away spots like Colombier, accessible only by foot or boat, and Grande Saline, where deserted powdery white sand stretches alongside sparkling turquoise water.

A burgeoning art scene is unfolding at new galleries such as Spirit Art Space, which spotlights mixed-media avant-garde exhibitions; Jam's Art, which displays street pop art pieces; and Maison Pélican, a treasure trove of vintage furniture and objets d'art. The iconic Eden Rock, one of the few resorts in the world with an artist-in-residence, has added new amenities, including plunge-pool suites directly on the namesake Rock and Rémy Bar, a dim, speakeasy-style lounge awash in crimson. Here, guests can settle into a seat at the marble-topped bar and sip elevated cocktails, such as a Piña Colada layered with rum, Champagne, pineapple juice, coconut sorbet, and vanilla essence, while sampling indulgent small plates, including truffle cheese fritters.

Cheval Blanc St-Barth recently reopened its Guerlain Spa after a five-month transformation timed with the resort’s 10th anniversary, and the refreshed space, which melds brass, pale woods, and raffia, feels more like a private villa than a resort. A new treatment menu created in collaboration with award-winning masseur Slav Marinov includes the St-Barth Muscle Treatment, an exclusive deep-tissue experience available nowhere else.

St. Vincent and the Grenadines

Craving a private island escape? Look no further than this chain of 32 islands and cays in the southern Caribbean, where secluded hideaways are de rigueur. Need more proof? Mick Jagger and Tommy Hilfiger have homes on Mustique, which was also beloved by Princess Margaret. Petit St. Vincent is a digital detox-friendly private island resort where guests raise a green flag outside their villa for room service and a red flag for solitude. While the resort is currently being rebuilt after damage sustained during Hurricane Beryl, the seven-square-mile Bequia offers a taste of the same laid-back luxury.

Tucked within Friendship Bay, Bequia Beach Hotel was just named part of Small Luxury Hotels of the World and offers packages that include air service from Barbados and St. Lucia to the island’s J.F. Mitchell Airport (BQU), a 10-minute drive to the resort, as well as excursions on the resort's 115-foot restored wooden schooner. Visitors to the new Sandals St. Vincent & the Grenadines can luxuriate on Buccament Bay from a two-story overwater villa, which has glass floor panels, private infinity pools, and overwater hammocks.

Dominica

What you'll encounter in the wild, rugged interior of the "Nature Island" is more of a draw than its small, volcanic-born beaches. Think hiking trails surrounded by indigenous flora and fauna that lead to refreshing waterfall-fed pools and the steep Red Rocks in Calibishie, whose rust-colored faces make a dramatic contrast as they spill into the edge of the azure sea.

Within a year, the new Dominica International Airport will open with a bigger runway for larger, wide-body aircraft and more direct routes and flights from North America and Europe. As a result, there's a flurry of new hospitality offerings to accommodate the expected uptick in tourism. The villas and treehouses of Tranquility Beach will be perched on a bluff with access to two secluded beaches, and the brand-new five-star Sanctuary Rainforest Eco Resort and Spa sits adjacent to the Morne Trois Pitons National Park and is centered around a traditional Hammam that features a steam and relaxation experience. The 115-mile Waitukubuli National Trail is expanding, with new and improved signage and facilities.

British Virgin Islands

Devotees of this island chain have an affinity for the upscale, as the British Virgin Islands' yacht-focused, quiet atmosphere contrasts with livelier U.S. counterparts like St. Thomas, which buzzes with shopping and nightlife. Nautical-minded visitors can charter a luxury yacht through operators including The Moorings, like the new-ish Moorings 403 Power Catamaran, a 40-foot six-passenger vessel with wraparound windows.

If you'd rather stay ashore, three resorts in the BVI have recently completed extensive renovations after Hurricane Irma. The Bitter End Yacht Club on Virgin Gorda has added beach bungalows and marina lofts and fully restored its marina and sailing school. Tortola's Long Bay Beach Resort now touts plunge pool beachfront villas and a sushi bar in its signature restaurant 1748. And the glowed-up Yacht Club at Peter Island Resort & Spa has a new pool, sports courts, and the Drunken Pelican Bar & Grill, and can now accommodate super-yachts.

Anguilla

If you're crowd-averse, you'll be tickled to know that this unhurried British Overseas Territory isn't a cruise port stop. Here, you'll find endless white sand beaches, boutique-y hotels, and resorts with attentive and polished yet unassuming service and an unmatched culinary scene — the 2024 World Travel Awards named it the Caribbean's Leading Culinary Destination.

Each spring, the Anguilla Culinary Experience (ACE) is a five-day event featuring chef collaborations, mansion-set dinners, and rum crawls with local and global top-toques. Beloved restos like Celeste by Kerth Gumbs, where diners can swoon over cliffside views of Meads Bay while tucking into tableside ceviche, are joined by upstarts like Dames, named for Anguillan-born jurist and legal scholar Bernice Lake, which features Caribbean seafood and views of St. Martin. In between sips and bites, consider staying at ÀNI Private Resorts' second Anguilla property, a 15-suite development on Shoal Bay East with a 1:1 guest-to-staff ratio.

Saint Martin

Long beloved for the thrilling opportunity to watch jets screech overhead on Maho Beach, which sits directly next to the runway at Princess Juliana International Airport, this dual-personality island (half Dutch, half French) has luxe appeal in spades. Francophiles' palates will be piqued by the thriving culinary scene in Grand Case; Le Pressoir continues to garner accolades for its Continental-meets-Caribbean cuisine, exemplified by dishes such as rum-soaked foie gras topped with pineapple and coconut cream.

The soon-to-open Whimsey Hotel, Spa & Beach Club in Marigot will elicit joie de vivre with a waterfront beach club and rooftop bar overlooking the bay, and the new Under Sint Maarten Sculpture Park in Divi Little Bay attracts snorkellers with four galleries featuring more than 300 artificial reef sculptures that pay homage to the Dutch West Indies island's history.