By James Henderson From Conde Nest Traveller

Don’t just laze on the beach, says James Henderson. Bike mountains, raft rivers and trek into volcanoes
Photo: Ethan Daniels | Shutterstock.com
The Caribbean offers more than just blue waters and white-sand beaches. Experience these 12 exciting adventures that you can brag about back home.

Dive into Belize’s Blue Hole

More than 100m deep, this perfectly round, royal blue eye on a turquoise sea
and reef system is a karst limestone sinkhole from another age, and a classic Caribbean dive. You descend to a sandy ledge at 40ft and then over the lip into the blue gloom, with the wall on one side and a pod of Caribbean reef sharks on the other. As the sunlight fades, the corals bleach to deep red and your eyes adjust to spot stalagmites in the cave. As you fizz out back onto the sandy ledge, the air you breathed out below comes up through the porous limestone— it’s like diving in Champagne, but even more magical. Book a session with Belize Diving Services (Website) for an unparalleled dive experience.

Go down Cayman Islands’ Bloody Bay Wall

In the Cayman Islands, the drop-offs are so steep that depth sounders can ping between 6 and 600m in a second
or two. And they offer some of the Caribbean’s nest diving—star coral, staghorn, sea fans waving gently on the current, tube sponges like yellow organ pipes, groupers making faces at you. Bloody Bay Wall on Little Cayman offers excellent visibility and colours that will make you feel like you’re skydiving through a kaleidoscope. Southern Cross Club (Website) is a local dive club that’s highly recommended.

Kitesurf in Cabarete, Dominican Republic
Photo: Hemis / Alamy Stock Photo
The meandering fringe of sand around Cabarete on the Dominican Republic’s northern shore is witness to the Caribbean’s nest kitesurfing grounds— at water within a reef, some waves but vitally, constant near parallel winds. The protected bay around the town itself works well for beginners, with sandbars to retreat to after a foray into the waves. At Kite Beach, gentle morning winds climb to a reliable 15—20 knots over winter (25 knots between June and August) in the afternoons. Things are even wilder at El Encuentro Beach, where competitions are held. Kite Club Cabarete (Website) in Puerto Plata rents out kitesurfing gear and offers training sessions as well.

Swim in the sea off St Kitts
& Nevis

The Narrows between St Kitts & Nevis is one of the loveliest stretches of water in the Caribbean islands. So, why not approach the islands from the sea? Do this with SwimTrek (Website), which organises four- to six-day swimming holidays timed to the annual Cross Channel Swim (Website), across 4km of shallow sea, from Oualie Beach on Nevis to St Kitts’ Reggae Beach Bar & Grill (well, this is the Caribbean after on Cockleshell Bay. SwimTrek also organises swimming trips in Haiti and the British Virgin Islands.

Trek, bike and windsurf in St Lucia

The twin peaks of the Piton, two incisor-shaped tips that soar 2,400—2,500ft from the sea’s edge, are one of the Caribbean’s most distinctive sights. It is possible to
hike to the top of the Gros Piton, the taller of the two peaks, in a three-hour climb from Fond Gens Libres (named after runaway slaves) at the base of the mountain. The trail is steep, but incredibly beautiful. As you clamber over roots and rocks, the view opens out over the south coast and down to St Vincent. Hiking guides are available through Real St. Lucia Tours (Website). Besides hiking, St Lucia also has great kitesurfing near Vieux Fort. Head to pet-friendly The Reef Beach Cafe (Facebook page), which offers not just stellar meals, but also classes in kitesurfing and windsurfing. To bike the mountain trails of Anse Mamin coast, look no further than Bike St. Lucia (Website).

Sail past the British Virgin Islands

The trade winds, constant northeasterlies that fly in from the Atlantic, are perfect for learning to sail. And the North Sound, at one end of Virgin Gorda, the British territory’s third largest island, sees every sort of seaborne vessel, from tiny sailing dinghies to chartered catamarans and private yachts as long as destroyers. So, hop onto a Hobie Cat and head out into the Sound and learn to tack and jibe. Book with Bitter End Yacht Club (Website).

River-raft & climb waterfalls in Jamaica
Photo: Danita Delimont / Alamy Stock Photo
Mention Jamaica and the beach is what instantly comes to mind, but actually, the island’s inland water is exceptional. Few activities are as relaxing as local river-rafting—you are punted on a 12m bamboo raft, Red Stripe, the famous local lager, in hand. The Great River and Martha Brea are lovely, but the Rio Grande near Port Antonio (Website) is heart-stoppingly beautiful. You can also trek up rivers and climb waterfalls. Dunn’s River, though famous, is a tourist trap, so head for the not-so-clichéd Reach Falls in the east and Mayfield in the west. Hikers should start climbing the Blue Mountain Peak at 3am, reaching
the 7,042ft peak for a spectacular dawn view from Whitfield Hall (Website) a coffee farm.

Hike across Dominica

The most fertile island in the exceptionally green Windward Island chain, Dominica
 has always offered superb hiking—to lakes, up 100ft waterfalls and through lush jungle up into montane and then elfin woodland. Or you can hike to the Valley of Desolation, where the growth is killed by volcanic activity
 in steaming riverbeds, boiling pools and rocks that have been discoloured thanks to minerals. Now many paths have been linked to create the Waitukubuli hiking trail, which spans more than 160km, from the island’s southern to the northern tip. Ken’s Hinterland Adventure Tours (Website) knows the best paths to tread.

Mountain bike & kayak in Puerto Rico
Photo: Efrain Padro / Alamy Stock Photo
Just a few Caribbean islands have mountain biking trails and Puerto Rico is laced with them. Check out Toroverde Adventure Park (Website), with banked trails of all standards (and massive ziplines flying above you), including a demanding single track in the rampant jungle greenery. Also try Cerro Gordo and Aguadilla coastal rides. One of the Caribbean’s most wonderful natural experiences is at offshore island Vieques’ bio- luminescent lagoon. At night, the strokes of a kayak’s paddle set of vortices of ghostly blue-green light, as millions of tiny dinoflagellates glow for just a second or two. For the best possible experience, sign up with Abe’s Snorkelling and Big Bay Tours (Website).

Trek, bike and windsurf in St Lucia

The twin peaks of the Piton, two incisor-shaped tips that soar 2,400—2,500ft from the sea’s edge, are one of the Caribbean’s most distinctive sights. It is possible to
hike to the top of the Gros Piton, the taller of the two peaks, in a three-hour climb from Fond Gens Libres (named after runaway slaves) at the base of the mountain. The trail is steep, but incredibly beautiful. As you clamber over roots and rocks, the view opens out over the south coast and down to St Vincent. Hiking guides are available through Real St. Lucia Tours (Website). Besides hiking, St Lucia also has great kitesurfing near Vieux Fort. Head to pet-friendly The Reef Beach Cafe (Facebook page), which offers not just stellar meals, but also classes in kitesurfing and windsurfing. To bike the mountain trails of Anse Mamin coast, look no further than Bike St. Lucia (Website).

Walk into a volcano in St Vincent & the Grenadines

The brooding La Soufriere volcano,
 a massive, steep-sided cone that blows cataclysmically about once a century, dominates the northern end of St Vincent. But the over 4,000ft peak can be climbed from either coast (the leeward side is the tougher climb), along rocky riverbeds and then up through jungle into open ground where the wind whistles and the view stretches for miles. If you haven’t had enough, you can descend into the crater itself (in sections, you let yourself down by rope). Guides are available through Richmond
 Vale Diving and Hiking Centre (Website).

Stand-up paddleboard in Barbados
Photo: imageBROKER / Alamy Stock Photo
The western shore of Barbados, protected by the island from the Atlantic’s winds and waves, offers the glass- flat, shining blue waters of the tropical island idyll. And it’s the perfect place to try out the newest of sports—stand-up paddleboarding. Paddle Barbados (Website), offers lessons and tours around Carlisle Bay in the southwest. Or, for an adventure, you can join the 9km ‘down-winder’, riding the wind and swell along the south coast. Spot huge corals in Trinidad & Tobago
. The eastern end of Tobago, pointing out into the Atlantic, is washed by nutrients on the out ow of the Orinoco River, so its corals are immense—a brain coral the size of
a house and barrel sponges large enough for an adult to sit in. The current can be strong, so the diving is mostly drift, and of an advanced level, but with luck, you’ll see huge mantas and maybe even a pelagic fish, with the ghostly shape of a marlin, or a whale cruising past. Sign up with Blue Waters Inn (Website).

Dive into Mexico’s cenotes

The lush jungles of Yucatan, on the Caribbean coast, are home to many cenotes (sinkholes where limestone has given way and formed deep pools of water). But several, like Angelita and Tajma Ha, are truly exceptional for they offer a mix of fresh and salt water from the Caribbean Sea. As you dive, stalagmites and stalactites become visible as do fossilised trees and seashells. Book your trip with Original Diving (Website)

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