One of the joys of Caribbean travel is the ease with which travellers can journey between islands, taking in two or three different cultures in one trip. Most islands are well connected by local and international airlines, although some - Cuba, for example, or Dominica - are less well served than most. Many of the bigger airlines offer airpasses costing from US$300 for three stopovers to US$600 for unlimited Caribbean travel within an airline's range.

If you plan simply to travel between groups of islands - the Caymans, for example, the Virgin Islands or the Grenadines, the many small airline companies operating there run a regular and reasonable service. Alternatively, you might consider travelling by ferry : there is a high-speed service between St Lucia, Martinique, Dominica and Guadeloupe and another between St Barts, Saba and St Maarten - we've given full details of inter-island ferry services.