Critters? Cuisine? Casinos? Pick Your Perfect Isle

Barbados is best known for its classic course, Royal Westmoreland, which ranked 31st on the golf magazine's list. It was the only significant course in Barbados until the opening of three courses at Sandy Lane resort: the Green Monkey, the Old Nine and the Tom Fazio-designed Country Club Course. The resort is where Tiger Woods had his wedding. The Country Club Course will probably make Golf Digest's new "100 Best" list this year, but some people think it's too stuffy.

Bermuda, known generally for great golfing, has "one of the best courses in the world," Finch says: the Mid Ocean Club, which runs along the water for several holes and ranked 45th on the "100 Best" list. Also in Bermuda, Tucker's Point is tops, Finch adds, saying that the two courses "are next to each other, so you can play one, have lunch, then play the other. A perfect day."

Gourmet Dining

Finding a nice dinner of fresh fish is possible on any Caribbean island. Excellent restaurants are scattered here and there, and if goat stew is your idea of a delicacy, you should find happiness on many islands. But let's face it, gourmands don't usually run to the Caribbean all hopped up about the array of dining choices.

If food is a primary factor in deciding which island to choose, think first of those with French influence. St. Barts attracts young chefs trained in fine French restaurants. Guadeloupe, whose tourism bureau lists 200 restaurants, is also a place to find good French and West Indian Creole, as is St. Martin and, to a lesser degree, Martinique.

Despite its British heritage, Barbados ranks high among the Caribbean islands for dining. Restaurants specialize in European and Caribbean fare, with some Asian touches. The Zagat Survey chose Barbados as the subject of its first and so far only restaurant guide of the Caribbean.

Puerto Rico is known for good food with a Spanish flair, although San Juan's 200 restaurants offer cuisine from around the world. More than 40 restaurants get the government's "mesones gastronomicos" stamp for preserving uniquely Puerto Rican culinary traditions.

Although the number of restaurants in Antigua has dropped as many of the island's resorts have gone all-inclusive, it remains one of the better islands for dining, and some of the all-inclusives welcome diners who aren't staying in the resorts.

You'll also find more fine-dining options in some of the wealthier islands than elsewhere, including Anguilla, Aruba, Grand Cayman, St. Kitts and Nevis, the Grenadines and St. Thomas.

Shopping

Duty-free shopping is an island staple, and you'll find the most extensive array of shops for such things as jewelry, perfume, liquor and designer fashions in Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas; Philipsburg, St. Maarten; and Bermuda, which also features English and Irish woolens, crystal and porcelain. In St. Barts, more than 200 boutiques sell upscale luxury goods. Top fashions from New York and Paris are among the items, and such stores as Hermès, Louis Vuitton and Cartier line the streets. The island is a duty-free port, but given the value of the euro against the dollar, you're not likely to come away with big bargains in clothing -- although duty-free French wine might be a deal.

For locally made items, including folk art, Puerto Rico and Jamaica are probably your best bets, with higher-quality art more likely to be found in Puerto Rico. Haiti has wonderful colorful crafts and art. Crime, among other things, has taken Haiti off the tourist radar, and probably as a result, Haiti has been exporting some local works to Grand Cayman (though not at Haiti prices). Grand Cayman 's duty-free bargains come with a bonus: no sales tax. Locally produced items include jewelry made of a marblelike stone called caymanite, and the island has clothing boutiques with brand names from the United States and Europe. Aruba has a major shopping mall and is building a second.

Shopping for spices? Try an outdoor market in Grenada or the farmers market in St. Lucia to pick them up for a fraction of the stateside cost. Also in St. Lucia, across from the farmers market, a craft market is filled with baskets, leather goods, pottery and wood carvings. You'll also find in town a good selection of batik and silk-screened clothing and table linens. Trinidad, which goes all out creating costumes for Carnival, is another great place to buy fabrics, and there are good buys on leather goods as well.

In addition to duty-free goods, Barbados has two shopping areas, one in Holetown and one in St. Lawrence Gap, that sell local products from brightly painted shops. Crafts include pottery, glass, wood carvings, handmade dolls and paintings.