Costs Of Caribbean Escapes Highlighted By TripAdvisor TripIndex

NEWTON, Mass., March 5, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- As much of the country continues to suffer a cold winter, TripAdvisor^®, the world's largest travel site*, today announced the results of its TripIndex Caribbean, a cost comparison of a one-week trip for a family or group of four to 20 popular Caribbean destinations during the travel period of March 1, 2014 – April 30, 2014.  The TripIndex Caribbean evaluated travel expenses including the average round-trip airfare from the continental U.S., a seven night hotel stay, dinner for six nights and a half-day snorkeling excursion for four.

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The average cost for a one-week trip for a family or group of four traveling to the Caribbean during the spring travel period is $7,152, and they can expect to pay around $3,253 for round-trip flights and $2,772 for one week in a hotel.

Go to Greater Antilles for Savings

• U.S. travelers seeking Caribbean value may consider several destinations in the Greater Antilles, including Puerto Rico, the least expensive destination on the TripIndex with a total cost of $4,609; Jamaica which ranks as the second best value ($4,631), and the Dominican Republic at #4 ($5,315).
• The most expensive Caribbean spots are located in the Leeward Islands: St. Barthelemy (St. Bart's) is the priciest Caribbean destination on the Index at $12,486 – 17 percent more expensive than the second priciest on the list, Anguilla ($10,709). The British Virgin Islands round out the top three costliest Caribbean spots at $9,712 for the week.

"After a particularly harsh winter, many Americans are desperate to escape the Polar Vortex and thaw out in the warm waters of the Caribbean," said Brooke Ferencsik, director of communications for TripAdvisor. "The TripAdvisor TripIndex reveals that U.S. travelers heading to Dominican Republic, Jamaica, or Puerto Rico within the Greater Antilles can get more value for their money and save 36 percent compared to other Caribbean destinations."

Caribbean Hotel Values

• The average nightly rate for a Caribbean hotel during March-April is $396.
• The costliest stays are in St. Bart's, where the average nightly rate of $844 is more than two times the average for the region.
• Savvy spenders can find the least expensive rooms in the Dominican Republic, where a one night stay is around $177. Travelers could stay nearly five nights in a Dominican Republic hotel for the cost of a single night in St. Bart's.

Airfares to the Islands

• For flights to the Caribbean departing and returning on a Saturday, the average fare per person during the spring travel period is $813.
• At an average of $509 per round-trip ticket, Puerto Rico offers the most affordable airfare for travelers flying from the continental U.S. That's less than a one-night hotel stay in the six priciest spots for lodging on the TripIndex.
• Airfares to and from Anguilla are the most expensive at an average fare of $1,316. Round-trip tickets for a family of four ($5,263) cost more than an entire one-week vacation to the three least expensive destinations on the TripIndex.

Travelers Save at U.S. Territories

Trips to territories controlled by the U.S. are 20 percent less expensive than the average Caribbean vacation cost. Here is the average cost of visiting the Caribbean ranked by jurisdiction:

1. U.S. Territories – $5,696
2. Independent States – $6,459
3. France and/or The Netherlands Territories – $7,536
4. U.K. Territories – $8,676

Most Affordable Caribbean Destinations

Most Expensive Caribbean Destinations

Cost Breakdown by Destination

Traveling solo or with a different number of people? Here are the individual costs of common expenses to help travelers budget for their trips:

Notes to Editors:

TripIndex Caribbean looks at 20 popular Caribbean destinations, based on spots with the most visits on TripAdvisor from U.S. travelers between November 15, 2013 and January 15, 2014.  Cuba was excluded due to limited direct travel from the United States.

Hotels: Hotel prices included in the TripIndex reflect the average cost of a seven night stay in a hotel found on TripAdvisor, excluding all-inclusive resorts. On average, about 40 hotels were included in the total cost of each destination. Pricing information was sourced using TripAdvisor Hotel Price Comparison for the travel period of March 1, 2014 – April 30, 2014.

Flights: Flight prices included in the TripIndex reflect the average round-trip airfare for a family of four from the continental U.S. to each destination's airports. Pricing information was sourced using TripAdvisor Flights and is accurate of fares found between February 17-24, 2014 for the eight Saturday-Saturday departure/return dates between March 1, 2014 and April 30, 2014. National average prices are based on fares from the top 20 busiest U.S. airports: ATL, BOS, CLT, DEN, DFW, DTW, EWR, IAH, JFK, LAS, LAX, LGA, MCO, MIA, MSP, ORD, PHL, PHX, SEA, and SFO.

Meals: Meal prices included in the TripIndex specify the average cost of dinner for six nights for four people, consisting of a two-course meal (salad and fish filet entree) paired with two bottles of beer and two sodas. Prices are averaged from three mid-range restaurants.

Snorkel Trips: Snorkel trip prices included in the TripIndex specify the average cost of a half-day (3-4 hour) guided snorkeling tour for four people and are averaged from three tour operators.

About TripAdvisor
TripAdvisor^® is the world's largest travel site*, enabling travelers to plan and have the perfect trip. TripAdvisor offers trusted advice from real travelers and a wide variety of travel choices and planning features with seamless links to booking tools. TripAdvisor branded sites make up the largest travel community in the world, reaching more than 260 million unique monthly visitors** in 2013, and more than 150 million reviews and opinions covering more than 3.7 million accommodations, restaurants, and attractions. The sites operate in 34 countries worldwide, including China under daodao.com. TripAdvisor also includes TripAdvisor for Business, a dedicated division that provides the tourism industry access to millions of monthly TripAdvisor visitors.

TripAdvisor, Inc. (NASDAQ: TRIP) manages and operates websites under 20 other travel media brands: www.airfarewatchdog.com, www.bookingbuddy.com, www.cruisecritic.com, www.everytrail.com, www.familyvacationcritic.com, www.flipkey.com, www.gateguru.com, www.holidaylettings.co.uk, www.holidaywatchdog.com, www.independenttraveler.com, www.jetsetter.com, www.niumba.com,  www.onetime.com, www.oyster.com,  www.seatguru.com, www.smartertravel.com, www.tingo.com, www.travelpod.com, www.virtualtourist.com, , and www.kuxun.cn. 

*Source: comScore Media Metrix for TripAdvisor Sites, worldwide, December 2013

**Source: Google Analytics, worldwide data, July 2013

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SOURCE TripAdvisor