The Caribbean Sea

The Caribbean Sea is by far North American’s number-one warm-weather international destination. Annually millions of visitors enjoy its abundance of sun, sea, and sand. Only the Mediterranean surpasses the Caribbean in its variety of destinations and absolute numbers of international visitors (primarily Europeans) at warm-weather resorts. But the Mediterranean is a long overnight trip from the United States, and its fall, winter and spring climates appeal to a smaller number of Americans. While millions of Europeans take their chances on Mediterranean beaches with 55-degree temperatures in January, millions more join North American sun-worshippers for the steady 80-degree temperatures in the West Indies. For sheer beauty and diversity, only the islands of the South Pacific rival the Caribbean. But for most North Americans, the South Pacifica is halfway around the world.