Pigeon Island Beach, Saint Lucia.
Saint Lucia ranked 18 on the list of 25 best Caribbean islands published Friday by Business Insider magazine.
The selection of destinations took into account the island’s accessibility from New York, the average cost of hotel rooms, the number of attractions and something called the beach density index, a ratio of the length of the coast to total area.
St. Lucia’s was selected as one of the top 25 islands because it takes 4 hours and 35 minutes from New York by air and the average hotel room cost $290 per night, according to Business Insider.
The publication said despite the low beach density score of 0.26, its gorgeous palm-fringed beaches and miles of unspoiled rainforest make it a perfect escape into the tropics.
It emphasized that the island boasts 96 attractions, including the majestic Pitons peaks that offer hiking with vista views.
Puerto Rico, the Bahamas, St. Barts, St. Martin and Curaçao made the list’s top five, while Grenada, Turks and Caicos, Dominica, Guadeloupe and Haiti filled the last five slots.
The study also evaluated the Dominican Republic, the Cayman Islands, St. Kitts and Nevis, Jamaica, the British Virgin Islands, Barbados, Montserrat, Cuba, Martinique, Aruba, Trinidad and Tobago, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Antigua and Anguilla.