by Frances Stanford

Created on: March 25, 2009

During the cold winter months, you will likely daydream of lying on a white sandy beach under the heat of the sun and you listen to the gentle waves lapping the shore. The Caribbean beckons and it is not an expensive undertaking to have a winter vacation in this destination. If a beach is what you crave at this time of the year, you can't go wrong with choosing one of the Caribbean beaches. Most of the hotels and resorts are built right on the beach so you only have to step out the door.

Antiqua is one of the islands where the beaches are famous. It is said that this island has a beach for every day of the year. According to the locals, the best of these beaches are Dickenson Bay, which is in the northwestern corner of the island and Half Moon Bay. The latter beach is a half mile long along the eastern coast and is covered in fine white sand.

Shoal Bay is an excellent beach on Antiqua. It is covered with silvery sand and is home to schools of iridescent fish darting among the coral reefs. This is one of the excellent locations in the Caribbean if you want to engage in snorkelling. Just a short distance away you will find Katouche Beach, but you have to take a trail from Old Ta to reach it. This is the best spot on the island for a picnic under the shade of the trees.

Palm Beach, on Aruba, is a superb strip of fine white sand. It has been voted one of the 12 best beaches in the world by magazines, such as Conde Nast. It is the prime location to choose if you want to take in some swimming, sailing or fishing.

The Gold Coast of Barbados contains some of the best beaches in the Caribbean. This location is the site of some of the most expensive resorts in the Caribbean. Some of the best beaches in this area include Paynes Bay, Brandon's beach, Paradise Beach and Brighton Beach, all of which are public beaches,

Cane Garden Bay, on Tortola in the British Virgin Islands, is a favourite with joggers on vacation. It stretches for 2 km and has white sand. If you're looking for a really long beach, don't overlook the 9km long Seven Mile Beach on Grand Cayman. The beach is actually 5.5 miles long not seven, in spite of its name. There is a wide array of watersports available at this beach, which is lined with condos and resorts. The water maintains a consistent temperature of 80. There is another beach of the same name on Jamaica, but is a nudist beach, so it is not for you if you are conservative.

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