| My wife is a world-class shopper for cheap Caribbean | | | | and have fewer hurricane risks. |
| packages, and she has saved us many thousands of | | | | 3. My wife maintains a lengthy list of Web sites that |
| dollars from the 11 trips to the islands we have | | | | she visits on a regular basis that have sections |
| planned together. | | | | specializing in the Caribbean. They include major travel |
| She follows a short list of rules for finding Caribbean | | | | shopping sites such as Expedia and service providers |
| deals that help make each trip both fun and | | | | such as hotel chains, airlines and cruise lines. Even 30 |
| economical. | | | | minutes every few weeks will provide great insights |
| 1. We start talking about where we want to go more | | | | into the best deals. |
| than a year in advance. It doesn't have to be a | | | | 4. Write down prices, locations and providers to get |
| specific destination quite yet, just a short list of | | | | a base list of prices. As the months go on, it is easy |
| possibilities. We first consider the region, whether it is | | | | to forget which provider has the best deal. Act |
| eastern, western or southern Caribbean. That's when | | | | quickly on deals for less popular places such as St. |
| she starts looking for cheap packages -- more than a | | | | Kitts or Dominica because they show up less often. |
| year in advance. | | | | 5. Choose flights early because prices are generally |
| 2. We talk about when we want to go. December | | | | cheaper the further out they are booked. Flights to |
| through February are cool months for the more | | | | the most popular destinations such as Cancun, Aruba, |
| northern Caribbean locations, while September | | | | Jamaica, Bahamas and Dominican Republic are less |
| through November are inexpensive for most of the | | | | expensive than flights to smaller islands. If you are |
| Caribbean because of the hurricane season. Late | | | | thinking about a remote location, start shopping for |
| spring to mid-summer are more expensive because | | | | an airline ticket as soon as possible. |
| they are popular times to go. The exceptions to the | | | | 6. When a good deal pops up, act fast because the |
| seasonal price variation are Aruba, Bonaire and | | | | number of available seats, rooms or cabins are |
| Curacao, which usually have the most stable prices | | | | always limited. |
| because they are in the warmer southern Caribbean | | | | |