Hi Doug,

Right off I recommend Margarita Island for being great for shelling, inexpensive and with plenty of non-shelling points of interest. I understand you can fly directly from a couple of US cities and thereby bypass the hassles at Caracas airport.

I've puzzled over what other good-but-inexpensive places there might be in the Caribbean. I went to several islands when I was a teenager in the 1960s and 70s, but they have become way too expensive since then. The exceptions that I know of would be difficult in terms of security unless you stay at a sealed-off tourist compound: I'm thinking of Jamaica or Dominican Republic.

I'd like to be wrong about the last paragraph and would like to hear from the list about any positive experiences on other islands where modest accommodations on the beach are less than, say, $100/night.

Maybe it's just that I've only come across the places that are able to advertise on the net or in magazines.

Vieques may still have a couple of decent places. I was there in 1995 and the shelling was OK but not spectacular. And I just had a good time on Tobacco Caye in Belize in the off-season for a reasonable price--but I was warned off the fringing reef after a couple of days of good collecting by the Fisheries officers.

David Kirsh
Durham, NC

When you think of the long and gloomy history of man, you will find more
hideous crimes have been committed in the name of obedience than have
ever been committed in the name of rebellion. -C.P. Snow, scientist and
writer (1905-1980)

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