No rental cars are allowed here, but taxis are everywhere and the terrific public bus system gets you all around the island. (Even visiting golfers use it, clubs and all). If you live dangerously, you can rent a scooter.

OK, maybe pink sand is hard to find, but you'll have fun looking for it.

Information: Bermuda Dept. of Tourism, 800-BERMUDA, www.bermudatourism.com.

BIMINI, BAHAMAS

Via Continental Connection and Lynx Air

from Fort Lauderdale

Just 50 miles from South Florida, this funky island features a fascinating history. Rum runners used it as a base for jaunts to Miami during Prohibition. Ernest Hemingway lived and wrote there in the 1930s. Colorado Sen. Gary Hart's presidential bid was derailed when photos of he and model Donna Rice in a cosy pose in Bimini were published.

Hemingway's favored hangout was the Compleat Angler, a hotel whose treasure of Hemingway memorabilia regrettably was lost when it burned to the ground a few years ago.

Bimini today is a favored getaway spot for South Floridians, who find equal pleasure in roaming along Alice Town's funky main street, trolling the surrounding waters for big game fish, and enjoying spectacular diving.

Bimini Bay Resort and Marina, which opened a major resort few years ago in North Bimini, has expanded with a pool, spa and convention center; a casino is in the works.

Information: Bahamas Tourist Office, 800-BAHAMAS; www.bahamas.com.

CAT ISLAND, BAHAMAS

Via Continental Connection and Lynx Air

from Fort Lauderdale

Cat Island, in the central Bahamas, is much less known than other Bahamian tourist centers such as Nassau and Grand Bahama island. But much of the Bahamas' music and folklore originated on the island, which once was a prosperous British colony with numerous cotton plantations.

It also possesses the highest point in the Bahamas chain, a 206-foot hill topped with a monastery that provides a marvelous view of Cat's woodlands and 60 miles of beach.

You won't much of the trappings of mass tourism here -- no huge hotels, traffic jams or hordes of shoppers. This is a place to wind down, to smell the roses, to lay back in pleasant surroundings -- not a bad combination.

Information: Bahamas Tourist Office, 800-BAHAMAS; www.bahamas.com.

GRENADA

Via American from Miami

beginning Nov. 2

They call Grenada the ''Spice Island'' because so many savory seasonings are grown there, but most visitors come for its beaches. In particular they flock to the lovely crescent called Grand Anse. Its sands are golden, the Caribbean waters are clear and gentle, and many of the island's top hotels, understandably, line the shore.

Many new tourist developments, however, are under way here and elsewhere on the island as it works to recover from the terrible beating it took from Hurricane Ivan in 2004. One of them is a 550-acre Four Seasons resort that will become that company's largest. Also under construction are resort homes, some selling for as much as $3.5 million.

Part of Grenada's charm is its lush vegetation, nestled in rivers, waterfalls and rainforests. Nutmeg, cloves, ginger, cacao and cinnamon grow riotously here, and spice plantations tours are on many tourist agendas.

Information: Grenada Board of Tourism, 800-927-9554; www.grenada.mot.gd.

MONTEGO BAY, JAMAICA

Via AA and Air Jamaica from Miami,

Air Jamaica and Spirit

from Fort Lauderdale

A new Jamaican playground for tourists is growing in the Rose Hall area of Montego Bay, where several major developments are nearing completion.

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