St. Barts

This arid, volcanic rock of just eight square miles is home to an eclectic mix of iguanas, night-blooming cactus, and fabulous beaches as well as luxury yachts, designer boutiques, and celebrities… Peopled primarily by descendents of the original French settlers and transplanted Europeans, this is an island with a strong, independent personality. Through the vagaries of its history it became a duty-free port and more recently liberated itself from the administrative yoke of Guadeloupe. It is certainly the most unusual of the French West Indies islands.

From everything that you might have heard about St. Bart’s (short for Saint-Barthélemy), you’d half expect a red velvet rope to be strung up at the airport. The Caribbean’s most elite, most expensive island lives up to its reputation as an adult sandbox, where the rich and famous air-kiss over glasses of rosé. But it still has charms that make it attractive to regular folk, from its uncrowded white-sand beaches to its distinctly Gallic flair. The tidy capital of Gustavia, with its gingerbread-trimmed cases (cottages) and designer shops, surrounds a yacht-filled harbor. On the opposite side of the island, near the airport, St.-Jean is a diminutive strip of colorful boutiques and beach bars that has been compared to St.-Tropez.

Gorgeous, white-sand beaches—22, to be exact—are the trump card of St. Bart's, the Caribbean's most elite (read: most expensive) island. It's got a French vibe, gingerbread-style cottages in the pint-size capital of Gustavia, and the kind of sun great vacations are made of.