I’ve spent some time around the Caribbean, so St. Lucia, the Bahamas, the Keys, Cozumel, Cancun, Grand Cayman, San Juan are good places for vacation.
Cancun was hit the worst and down south of Cancun where you should really go, like Akumal, Playa Del Carmen and Tulum, they are suffering from people thinking they were hit too, but the area was barely touched and about 100% back to normal, so you can book really good values right now. You fly into Cancun and drive south to sleepy little towns, friendly locals and great hidden beaches. Lots of Europeans love this place so don’t be offended by a few beautiful topless women walking around. Accommodations range from super luxury all inclusive (rare) to small gorgeous boutique hotels with 10-20 rooms on the beach (more common) to condos or homes.
The Mayan Rivera stretches from Cancun down to Tulum (Tulum used to be a hippy hang out, so you will still find people sleeping in a tent pitched right on the beach in some places, a few minutes down the beach you will find a tiny 5 star beach restaurant/hotel/bar - I loved stumbling onto these places, you order a couple of beers or some of their signature drinks (it’s always 2 for one it seems in Tulum) and stretch out on one of their hammocks strung between two palm trees on the beach) , the area in between such as Akumal is a gorgeous paradise to relax, get lost and just mellow out. There’s really only a couple of beach bars, the Vida Loca which you might have to yourself, a couple of other tourists and a few locals is awesome.
Aruba is a nice quiet island. Away from the coastal resort build-up, the island reminded a lot of southern Arizona with goats running around. One thing I really enjoyed about Aruba was that the sun sets in the ocean horizon directly across from the beach. So you can stay on the beach and get sun until the evening if you want, and then see gorgeous sunsets.
I’ve been in Bahamas a few times. There is never a lack of stuff to do during the day or at night. I’ve also staid at the Atlantis on Paradise Island, and if you want a nice resort, it doesn’t get much better in the Bahamas.
Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands are scuba diving destination, but the island itself was one of the nicest in terms of quality of living for the locals. Some of the secluded beaches were very nice.
St. Martin and St. Maarten are two countries on one island, there are probably more casinos here than you will have time to visit. They all vie for you business with plenty of comps. Make sure you stock up on coupons at the airport when you arrive. When we were there, the island was still struggling to get over a few major hurricane hits in a row, so there were a lot of building/resorts simply abandoned.
St. Lucia is island is by far the most beautiful I’ve been to in the Caribbean. However, the reason, I think, it is still so beautiful still is because it is not a big tourist destination. Their number one industry is not tourism, and it shows. That said, this was my favorite, by far, of all my Caribbean destinations. If unspoiled nature and quiet are what you are looking for, this is the spot to visit.
Belize is not really an island destination as a whole (and I would not really recommend what they pass as a resort island), this coastal country is best suited for diving and adventure travel. There are plenty of ruins to explore, and back-country caves to climb through. Everything is very cheap, too.
St. Thomas is mainly a cruise ship destination, and that when there was no cruise ships, many of the businesses closed. It was probably here least favorite island in the Caribbean.