Traveling around the world has been a passion of mine for as long as I can remember. As a child, we traveled often, visiting wherever my dad’s baseball team was playing. I actually attended first grade in Milan, Italy! Some of my favorite places I’ve visited have been tropical islands. Not only are they absolutely breathtaking, but I find the laid-back and secluded atmosphere on an island to be welcoming and refreshing. Today I’m going to highlight six of my favorite tropical islands along with a few bonus tropical resorts that I’ve visited and loved. If you’re looking to add somewhere new to your bucket list, this post is for you!
Favorite Tropical Islands
Personally, I think an island vacation can work for any type of trip. I’ve traveled to tropical islands for family vacations, romantic getaways, and adult-only trips. Each of these vacations was magical in its own way. If you’re itching to visit somewhere warm and exotic, put these tropical islands at the top of your list! I’ve traveled to each of these locations within the last 10 years and highly recommend them. And if you decide you’d rather travel somewhere warm and tropical right here in the United States, be sure to check out my list of the best Florida resorts and my favorite Southeast resorts.
1. Grace Bay Beach, Providenciales
We visited Grace Bay Beach on the island of Providenciales (Turks and Caicos) as a family back in 2016 and I’m still dreaming about this incredible beach today. Grace Bay has held the positions of “World’s Leading Beach Destination” and “World’s Best Beach” many times over the past decade and for good reason. The water is a beautiful shade of turquoise and incredibly clear. And the sand at Grace Bay is possibly the softest and whitest out of all of the tropical islands I’ve visited.
There are many luxury tropical resorts located on Grace Bay Beach. We stayed at The Palms, which is a smaller resort with only a few restaurants, but this didn’t bother me. Due to the smaller size, everything was very close to our room, which was great since we were traveling with young children. Some of our favorite activities during this trip included snorkeling and diving. I would love to return and explore this area again someday soon!
2. Nevis
We traveled to Nevis for the second time this past spring break and somehow I loved it even more this time around! There is so much that I adore about Nevis – the food, the people, the charm of the architecture, the natural beauty… honestly, I could go on and on. Both times we visited this tropical island we took our kids. But since the trips were six years apart, the vacations looked very different (no naps this time!) However, this would be a wonderful vacation spot for couples or an adult-only vacation as well.
One of the reasons Nevis made my list of favorite tropical islands is because of the abundance of things to do. There’s snorkeling, horseback riding, deep sea fishing, scuba diving, and tons of great tours. There are also many delicious restaurants and beautiful tropical resorts to stay at. We’ve stayed at the Four Seasons Resort Nevis both times and I don’t think it can be beat for a family vacation. For a complete guide on things to do, places to stay, and where to eat, check out my Nevis Travel Guide!
3 Harbour Island, Bahamas
After a lot of research, we decided to take a trip to Harbour Island, Bahamas for JB’s 40th birthday. We had heard a lot of wonderful things about this island and I’m happy to report that it fully lived up to the hype! Harbour Island is full of natural beauty, friendly people, delicious food, and incomparable views. Like many tropical islands, it can be quite a journey to travel to this destination; however, I promise it is worth it!
Some of my favorite experiences at Harbour Island were the exotic activities – swimming with piggies, snorkeling with sea turtles, and jumping into the Sapphire Blue Hole. We opted to stay in a rental home for our trip and it worked out perfectly, as there was enough space for our family and JB’s parents. Plus, we were still able to experience the hotels via dining. And oh my, the dining on the island was superb! For a complete list of activities, restaurants, lodging, and more head on over to my Harbour Island Travel Guide.
4. Montego Bay, Jamaica: The Tryall Club
Back in 2019, I had a true “pinch me moment” when Draper James invited me to the Tryall Club in Montego Bay for a photoshoot. The exclusively private Jamaican property is unbelievable with 2,200 acres of natural beauty featuring rolling hills and valleys, a private shoreline, a beach club full of activities, and villas and homes that made my jaw drop.
For this trip, we didn’t venture off to other areas in Montego Bay. But this wasn’t an issue, as this tropical resort is so expansive and fun to explore. There’s an incredible golf course, croquet, wonderful restaurants, a beautiful ocean, an infinity pool, a kids’ club, and more! The Tryall Club would also make a great tropical island family vacation destination – I honestly don’t think I’d want to go off the resort, even if we stayed for an entire week!
5. Saint Lucia
Another one of the tropical islands that we’ve traveled to as a family is Saint Lucia. Once again, there are so many brilliant areas to explore at this destination. These include mountains, volcanic beaches, reefs, fishing villages, and rainforests. At the time, our boys were still pretty young, so we did a lot of activities right at our tropical resort, The Landings. However, I would love to return and explore the area further now that they’re getting older!
We all loved our accommodations at The Landings. Hobie cats, kayaks, and all water sports were free to use, plus the beach at the resort was beautiful. We also loved the on-resort dining. However, we did venture off-resort to try a few different restaurants and some street food (per JB’s request!) If you’re considering a family trip to this tropical island, I highly recommend checking out The Landings.
6. San Juan, Puerto Rico
Out of all of the tropical islands in this post, Puerto Rico was the easiest to get to. San Juan was only a three-hour flight from our local airport and it was so nice to not have to go through customs since it’s a U.S. territory. Our trip to San Juan was quick, as we were visiting the area for a friend’s wedding, but I would love to return for a longer visit someday!
This was a trip JB and I took by ourselves, so it was a different type of vacation. We spent time wandering around San Juan, exploring the shops and trying out all of the authentic foods. Two people on Instagram suggested dinner at Jose Enrique and it was honestly one of the best meals of my life! There was live music and dancing in the street, making it such a fun vibe and experience! Be sure to read more about our long weekend in Puerto Rico if you’re planning a trip to San Juan. We also spent such a wonderful long day here when our layover was long getting to Little Dix Bay.
Additional Tropical Resorts
Although the main focus of this post is my favorite tropical islands, I also wanted to highlight a few additional tropical resorts. These aren’t technically islands, but they are tropical locations that give off island vibes and are definitely worth checking out!
7. Punta Mita, Mexico
Punta Mita is a peninsula, which is basically a tropical island that is a bit easier to travel to (in my opinion!) This 1,500-acre resort and residential community is truly breathtaking. It’s surrounded on three sides by white sand beaches of the Pacific Ocean and everywhere you turn there are beautiful flowers and lush natural gardens.
We stayed at the St. Regis Punta Mita Resort for our babymoon before Wes was born and it was such a special trip together. The luxury tropical resort was not only gorgeous, but the staff went over the top to spoil us. I covered what we ate and which activities we did while in Punta Mita in this babymoon post.
8. Peninsula Papagayo, Costa Rica
Keeping the peninsula theme rolling, next up is Peninsula Papagayo in Costa Rica. The abundance of wildlife and outdoor adventures at this destination is equivalent to those at tropical islands (again, it’s basically an island in my eyes!) You can hike trails and forests, swim with dolphins, kayak, snorkel, surf, ride mountain bikes…the options go on and on!
We stayed at the Four Seasons Resort Costa Rica and I cannot say enough great things about it. We traveled with my mom and our elementary-aged kids and all of us had a wonderful time. It was also fairly easy to get to this tropical resort – we flew out of Orlando and into the Liberia airport and then it was a short 45-minute drive. My Four Seasons Costa Rica Travel Guide has more information on where to eat and what to do in the area.
9. Panama City, Panama
If you’ve been here for the long haul, you may remember that JB and I actually lived in Panama when he was playing baseball there. A few years ago, we took the boys to Panama City and it was so fun experiencing some of our favorite places with them! I can’t get over how much the city has changed (in the best way!)
If you travel to Panama City, you must visit Casco Viejo. This gorgeous area is full of amazing restaurants, shops, cobblestone streets, and a fun atmosphere. I also highly recommend day trips to Gamboa to see monkeys and to the beautiful beaches as well. For more details on what we did, where we stayed, and our favorite restaurants, head over to my Panama City Travel Guide.
10. Riviera Nayarit, Mexico
Riviera Nayarit is a fun and beautiful 200-mile stretch of coastline that rivals tropical islands. But the biggest benefit of this destination is that it’s mere minutes away from Puerta Vallarta’s International Airport! The entire beach city evokes the sense of an exotic getaway with so many beautiful areas to explore. The beaches are pristine, the seaside coastal towns are dreamy, and the lush rainforests and mountains create endless activity options.
When we traveled to Riviera Nayarit, we stayed at Grand Velas, which is a wonderful tropical resort. This was another vacation we took with our in-laws and our boys, who were very young at the time. And I’m happy to report, this resort was an exceptional place for a family vacation – there was so much for kids to do! I shared more details about our itinerary and our favorite restaurants in my Riviera Nayarit Travel Guide.
Tropical Islands Worth Visiting
I know planning a vacation can sometimes be overwhelming. First, there are so many locations to choose from and then once you narrow it down you have to research lodging, activities, and food. If you’re wondering which tropical islands are worth visiting, I highly recommend starting with one of these and then clicking on my individual tropical resort travel guides for more specific details. Of course, feel free to leave me a comment below or send me a DM if you have any questions. I always love helping others plan travel adventures, as I think it is one of the most special ways we can spend time with the ones we love!
