A journey through the rainforest to a Mayan temple. A rugged hike to a 200-foot-wide boiling lake. A dive into the heart of a blue hole.
Far beyond the beach, there’s another side of the Caribbean, of mountains and rainforests and frontiers. Whether you’re exploring the untouched outback of Andros or venturing through the Belizean rainforest, the Caribbean’s natural environment is one of the world’s great adventure destinations, blessed with a surfeit of unforgettable experiences.
And certain hotels in the region make adventure their specialty, both in their design and their itineraries, drawing travelers searching for new ways to enjoy the Caribbean ecosystem.
Here are the best adventure hotels in the Caribbean.
Small Hope Bay Lodge, Andros, The Bahamas The ultimate Caribbean adventure hotel. This legendary resort is set on South Andros in The Bahamas, a portal to every adventure you can imagine: bonefishing and deep sea fishing; diving and snorkeling; nature tours across caves and blue holes; birding; kayaking; and the feeling of discovering one of the great untouched wildernesses in all of the Caribbean.
Jungle Bay, Dominica Yes, Dominica is the Nature Island, but we’ve long called it the Adventure Island, for its immense natural beauty and pristine environment, from waterfalls to volcanos to rivers and boiling lakes. And Jungle Bay is the island’s signature adventure resort, an eco-hotel focused on connecting travelers with Dominica’s signature (and nearby) experiences: hiking the Waitukubuli trail; snorkeling nearby Champagne Reef or watching the year-round escapades of sperm whales.
Bimini Big Game Club, Bimini, The Bahamas It’s the only Caribbean hotel with its own on-site shark safari center, and that’s just the beginning for this renowned hotel, where scuba diving, a shark cage and some of the world’s greatest fishing tournaments are all key components.
Hamanasi Adventure and Dive Resort, Belize Belize may be best known for beachy coastal hotspots like Ambergris Caye; but it’s the lush, rugged interior of the country that calls to adventurers, with Hamanasi the country’s Mecca: the hotel’s eponymous adventure center is your own personal adventure concierge, connecting you with the right guides, curating your itinerary and helping you engage with everything from rainforest fauna to ancient Mayan pyramids.
Natura Cabana, Cabarete, Dominican Republic While most people tend to associate the Dominican Republic with its magnificent beaches, the country is actually a major destination for adventure, particularly in always-bustling Cabarete, home to this popular beachfront eco lodge. Natura Cabana is within easy access to a multitude of unforgettable activities: kitesurfing, rappelling, river kayaking, white water rafting, mountain biking and even an encounter with squirrel monkeys.
Fond Doux Eco Resort, Saint Lucia Set on a working cacao estates, surrounded by 135 acres of rainforest, is all about nature: birdwatching, hiking, and enjoying the diverse wildlife that call the property home. When you’re not exploring, you can do a chocolate heritage tour, take a spa treatment or enjoy the comfort of your private rainforest cottage.
Guana Island, British Virgin Islands While most of the wonders of the British Virgin Islands are enjoyed out on a boat, the beauty of this private-island retreat is that you never have to leave. The 850-acre island is its own destination: seven beaches, copious hiking trails, abundant natural wildlife (including flamingos), an on-site orchard and the feeling that you’ve discovered your own new world.
Tendacayou, Guadeloupe You feel it when you walk out to the terrace and look down at the ground below. Here, in your own private treehouse in the rainforest above Deshaies, you can truly savor the lush natural delights of Guadeloupe’s volcanic island of Basse-Terre. That’s without mentioning this eco and wellness hotel’s signature restaurant, one of the island’s best.
Le Domaine des Bulles, Martinique This hotel is an adventure in itself — a collection of “bubbles,” a form of transparent, spherical tent that is a completely new way to experience an island’s natural beauty. But they have all the comforts of a hotel, including the signature “Robinson” suite, which comes with its own plunge pool.
Swains Cay Lodge, Andros, The Bahamas First, there’s the fishing: bonefishing, deep sea, reef fishing and spearfishing, all some of the best in all of the Caribbean. But then there’s Mangrove Cay itself, a cornucopia of experiences from world-class snorkeling to blue hole exploration to guided excursions into the bights.