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This ranking keeps the islands our pages tag for couples (romance, honeymoons, slow evenings) and orders them by our overall score. It measures the island, not one resort, so it rewards places where a couple has good weather, good water and things to do outside the hotel.
The winner, Curaçao at 8.3, will surprise anyone who expected an overwater villa. It has a 9.8 weather score, the dry Southern Caribbean climate with one hurricane center within 50 nautical miles since 1950, a value score of 9.9 and nonstops from 6 US airports. Willemstad gives you restaurants and a UNESCO-listed waterfront; the west coast gives you coves and turtles.
Score = the island's overall score, with islands that suit this kind of trip ranked first. How we score
| # | Island | Score | Weather | Beaches | Things | Access | Value | Crowds |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Curaçao | 8.3 | 9.8 | 8.0 | 8.0 | 8.6 | 9.9 | 4.6 |
| 2 | Jamaica | 8.3 | 9.4 | 7.5 | 8.5 | 9.7 | 10.0 | 8.3 |
| 3 | Martinique | 8.2 | 9.4 | 7.5 | 8.5 | 7.8 | 8.3 | 7.0 |
| 4 | Maui | 8.1 | 9.7 | 9.0 | 9.0 | 6.9 | 4.3 | 5.6 |
| 5 | Barbados | 8.1 | 9.5 | 8.5 | 8.0 | 8.1 | 7.4 | 4.8 |
| 6 | Antigua | 8.0 | 9.5 | 9.0 | 7.0 | 8.5 | 7.1 | 4.9 |
| 7 | St. Lucia | 7.9 | 9.3 | 6.5 | 8.5 | 8.2 | 8.4 | 6.0 |
| 8 | Grenada | 7.9 | 9.6 | 7.5 | 7.5 | 7.6 | 8.1 | 6.3 |
| 9 | Sicily | 7.9 | 8.1 | 7.0 | 10.0 | 4.9 | 7.0 | 8.6 |
| 10 | Exuma | 7.8 | 8.9 | 9.0 | 6.0 | 9.7 | 4.6 | 8.3 |
1Curaçao is first on weather (9.8) and value (9.9): the cheapest 3-star room in Willemstad was $62 on both of our dates, though that is a city hotel in Punda without a beach. Couples get waterfront dinners in Willemstad, boutique hotels in Pietermaai and quiet west-coast coves such as Grote Knip, about 27 miles (44 km) from the capital, and Playa Lagun, where turtles feed close to shore. You will need a rental car. Every visitor fills in the free online Dicard before arrival.
2Jamaica scores 8.3 even after the 0.4-point deduction for its conditional verdict, on value (10), access (9.7, with 24 US nonstop gateways) and crowds (8.3). Adults-only all-inclusives in Negril and Ocho Rios and sunsets at Rick's Cafe make it an easy honeymoon. Two caveats. The $53 room behind the value score is a small Montego Bay guesthouse, not a resort, and all-inclusives were not priced. And after Hurricane Melissa, the Tourist Board lists seven big Montego Bay resorts, including Breathless and Secrets St. James, as reopening only in 2027.
3Martinique is the food-and-rum honeymoon: estates such as Habitation Clément and Depaz, French-Creole cooking, and calm southern bays like Grande Anse des Salines. It scores 8.5 for things to do and 7.0 for crowds, and rooms in Les Trois-Îlets were $102 in January and $82 in July. Beaches (7.5) and access (7.8) hold it back: the only US nonstop is from Miami. The State Department asks for six months of passport validity beyond arrival.
4Maui is the classic Hawaii honeymoon, with a 9 for beaches, 9 for things to do and a 9.7 for weather. Wailea and Kapalua resorts, sheltered Napili and Kapalua bays, Haleakala at sunrise ($30 a car plus a $1 reservation) and whales from November to April fill a week. It ranks fourth on price: value scores 4.3, and the cheapest 3-star hotel in Wailea was $605 on January 13, against $296 in Kihei. It is the only island in this top 10 that needs no passport.
5Barbados lets couples split the week: quiet west-coast hotels in Holetown and Mullins, then the bars and restaurants of the south coast and the Oistins Friday Fish Fry. It scores 9.5 for weather and 8.5 for beaches, with nonstops from 8 US airports. Crowds (4.8) hold it back. South-coast rooms were $140 in January and $92 in July; we did not price the west coast, where the luxury resorts are. The required online Immigration and Customs Form opens 72 hours before arrival.
6Antigua has a 9 for beaches, with quiet southwest bays such as Darkwood and Ffryes, adults-only resorts and the Sunday barbecue and sunset at Shirley Heights. Nelson's Dockyard at English Harbour is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. A 7 for things to do holds it to sixth, and beach rooms are not cheap: $222 near Dickenson Bay on January 13, and $415 for the cheapest all-inclusive we saw. Passport cards are not accepted; bring a passport book.
7St. Lucia is the view honeymoon: hillside suites with plunge pools facing the Pitons, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2004, and Sugar Beach between the two peaks. Things to do score 8.5 and value 8.4, from $81 in January in Rodney Bay; we did not price Soufrière's view hotels. Beaches score only 6.5, and the transfer is long: US flights land at Hewanorra, about 20 miles (32 km) from Soufrière and 41 miles from Rodney Bay. Some couples pay for a helicopter hop.
8Grenada suits couples who want quiet: it counted 186,395 stay-over visitors in 2025, and most hotels are small. Grand Anse and Morne Rouge are calm, pale-sand bays, and the days fill with Belmont Estate chocolate, the water-wheel rum distillery at River Antoine and waterfall hikes. Weather scores 9.6. Things to do and beaches (7.5 each) and four US nonstop gateways hold it to eighth. Rooms were $96 in January and $100 in July. It is in the hurricane belt: Beryl struck Carriacou in July 2024.
9Sicily is the European pick: Taormina, the old island town of Ortigia in Siracusa, the baroque Val di Noto, Etna wine and some of Italy's best food. It scores a perfect 10 for things to do and 8.6 for crowds. Beaches (7) and access (4.9) keep it ninth: many beaches are pebble, and the swimming season runs about June to early October. Delta flies JFK to Catania, and United adds Newark from May 28, 2027. Taormina rooms were $116 in January and $140 in July.
10Exuma is the empty-beach honeymoon. It received 69,437 foreign air arrivals in 2025 and no first-port cruise visitors, so Tropic of Cancer Beach and Stocking Island stay quiet. Beaches score 9, access 9.7 and crowds 8.3. Things to do score only 6: beyond a boat day to the swimming pigs, Thunderball Grotto and the Land and Sea Park, there is little on land. Value is 4.6: the cheapest 3-star room around George Town was $256 in January and $225 in July.
In this guide
The overall score weights beaches and things to do at 25% each, weather at 20%, and access, value and room to breathe at 10% each. Islands whose own verdict is "conditional" lose 0.4 points. Only islands tagged for couples are eligible. The weights and sources are on how we score islands.
All three are tagged for couples. They miss the top 10 on the numbers:
If a week in one resort is the plan, those islands can still be right; read the Bora Bora and Maldives pages. This list is for couples who want to leave the hotel.
Whichever you pick, book every ticket in the exact name on the passport or ID you will carry.
Nine of the ten are in the Caribbean or Hawaii, and both have hurricane seasons from June 1 to November 30, per the NOAA National Hurricane Center. Most of the Caribbean picks score best from February to April in our data. Curaçao is the safest bet for a summer or fall wedding date, because it sits south of the main track. Sicily, the one European island, is best in June, August and September. Our storm seasons guide explains insurance and timing.
It is short for the price and has no hotel pickup. A good option for non-swimmers who want to see the reef.
Rating as shown on Viator
Admission to both sites is included; meals, water shoes and tips are not. Pickup is free around Ocho Rios but costs extra from Montego Bay, about 90 minutes away.
Rating as shown on Viator
Drinks and a fruit snack are included. Boarding is from Fort-de-France or Case-Pilote; check which when you book.
Rating as shown on GetYourGuide
Booking through these links supports this site at no cost to you. Prices move by date, so we do not print them here; the official prices we checked are in the page above.
On our scores, Curaçao (8.3 out of 10): dry weather, low hurricane risk, a real city and reef coves, with rooms from $62. Jamaica ties on score but needs more checking after Hurricane Melissa; Maui is the best no-passport choice.
Maui, at 8.1. St. John (7.4) and Kauai (6.7) are also tagged for couples but miss this top 10. Our Hawaiian honeymoon ranking compares the islands of Hawaii.
Yes, if you base yourself in Negril or Ocho Rios and confirm your resort is open. The Tourist Board says the airports and cruise ports are operating, but its list shows several large Montego Bay resorts closed until 2027.
They score 6.3 and 6.1 overall. Both have fine water but low scores for things to do (5) and access from the US, and both carry conditional verdicts on our island pages.
Curaçao, then Jamaica and Martinique on this ranking. For views pick St. Lucia; for empty beaches, Exuma. Our Caribbean couples ranking covers the region in more depth.
Further reading
