Photo by: Eric Cline

Island Hoppin': Smaller Carriers Can Get You There

By Betsy Arvelo and Rob Sheppe

Getting to the Caribbean can sometimes be a tricky proposition, and getting around once you're there can be even more problematic if you're outside the domain of the dominant carriers. With a little forethought and planning, however, you can get to just about any island destination without much stress or difficulty by using the smaller airlines and charters. Smaller doesn't always mean less quality, either.

Here's a round-up of the best regional carriers in the Caribbean and where they go. You'll need to contact the carriers or look at their Web sites for specific flight information.

CARRIER	ABOUT THE CARRIER	SERVICING	WEB SITE
AIR CULEBRA	Air Culebra is a charter air service based out of San Juan that flies to most Caribbean destinations.	Anegada Anguilla Antigua Barbados Culebra Dominica Grand Turk Grenada Guadaloupe Martinique Montserrat Nevis Tortola St. Barts St. Croix and St.Thomas, USVI St. Kitts St. Lucia St. Maarten St. Vincent Virgin Gorda Vieques	www.airculebra.com

AIR JAMAICA	Air Jamaica is the official airlines of Jamaica and has the most fleet of all the large Caribbean carriers.	Bahamas Bonaire Barbados Curacao Dominican Republic Grand Cayman Grenada Jamaica St. Lucia Turks & Caicos	www.airjamaica.com

AIR SUNSHINE	Air Sunshine is a Florida-based carrier that services the USVI and the Bahamas.	Florida Bahamas Puerto Rico Virgin Islands Dominican Republic Jamaica Turks & Caicos''	www.airsunshine.com

AIR TROPICAL	Air Tropical, based in Guadaloupe, operates small twin-engine aircraft seating 4-5 people.	Anguilla Antigua & Barbuda Bequia Cancouan Carricou Dominica Grenadines Union Mustique Martinique Nevis Puerto Rico St. Eustatus St. Barts St. Croix St. Thomas St. Lucia St. Kitts St. Maarten	www.air-tropical.com
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ALM AIRLINES	ALM Airlines, based in Curacao, is one of the oldest airlines in the Caribbean, with planes in service as far back as the 1930s.	Aruba Bonaire Caracas Curacao Miami Port au Prince St. Maarten Valencia	www.airalm.com

BAHAMAS AIR	Founded in 1973, the year of Bahamian independence, Bahamas Air continuously operates schedules between the United States and The Bahamas, and domestic flights connecting the Family Islands.	Abaco Acklins Andros Cat Island Crooked Island Eleuthra Exuma Freeport Inagua Long Island Mayaguana San Salvador Provo, Turks & Caicos South Florida	www.bahamasair.com

BWIA	BWIA, based in Trinidad & Tobago, is the largest largest airline in the eastern, western and southern Caribbean.	Antigua Barbados Caracas Grenada Jamaica St. Lucia St. Maarten London Georgetown, Guyana St.Kitts St. Vincent Toronto Trinidad & Tobago US: Denver Chicago Boston, New York, Miami, Washington Venezuela	www.bwiacaribbean.com

CAPE AIR	Cape Air is a regional airline serving both the Caribbean, South Florida, and the northeastern United States.	San Juan, Puerto Rico St. Thomas and St. Croix, USVI Tortola, BVI	www.flycapeair.com

CARIBBEAN STAR AIRLINES	Based in Antigua, Caribbean Star Airlines was founded in 2000 and flies about eight aircraft.	Anguilla Antigua Barbados Dominica Grenada Guyana St. Kitts St. Lucia St. Vincent Tortola Trinidad	www.flycaribbeanstar.com
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CAYMAN AIRWAYS	Cayman Airways, now in its 30th year, operates 3 Boeing 737-200 aircraft between Grand Cayman and its US gateway cities.	Grand Cayman Cayman Brac Kingston, Jamaica US: Miami, Tampa, Houston	www.caymanairways.com

ISLAND AIR	Island Air is a small Cayman Islands carrier that runs scheduled inter-island flights.	Grand Cayman Cayman Brac Little Cayman Charters Sightseeing Tours Freight	www.islandaircayman.com

LIAT	LIAT airlines is one of the largest regional carriers in the Caribbean, servicing most of the major destinatinons.	Antigua and Barbuda Nassau, Bahamas Barbados Havana Dominican Republic Kingston, Jamaica Montserrat San Juan, Puerto Rico St.Kitts St. Thomas and St. John, USVI	www.liat.com
CARRIER	ABOUT THE CARRIER	SERVICING	WEB SITE

Posted online 01/10/02.

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