THE $99 PER DAY THE TINY CRUISE 15 LAYOVER IDEAS THAI P. 48 to maximize your Caribbean trips P. 55 LIFE P. 16 ® TOPOur CRUISES for 2014 (from Grenada to Greenland) Where to Find THE WISEST PEOPLE P. 26 GOLD BENEATH ICE P. 36 UNDERWATER ART P. 41 FLOATING CAVIAR P. 47 EXPLODING FRUIT P. 48 ISLANDS MARCH 2014 VOLUME 34 NUMBER 2 THE $99 PER DAY THE TINY CRUISE 15 LAYOVER IDEAS THAI P. 48 to maximize your Caribbean trips P. 55 LIFE P. 16 ® TOPOur CRUISES ON THE COVER for 2014 (from Grenada to Greenland) Sail Windjammer’s ship Mandalayy, at anchor off Carriacou DISPLAY UNTIL 3/25/14 in the Grenadines. GREENLAND Where to Find THE WISEST PEOPLE P. 26 4 GOLD BENEATH ICE P. 36 UNDERWATER ART P. 41 P. 36 FLOATING CAVIAR P. 47 EXPLODING FRUIT P. 48 MARCH 2014 U.S. $4.99 Photo by Jon Whittle. BVI P. 12 FROM THE EDITOR GRENAD PAPUA COZUMEL P. 26 NEW Past the Ports P. 56 GUINEA P. 18 HAWAII P. 47 CURAÇ SRI LANKA Many years ago, I lived in the P P. 10 OS RAJA AMPAT P. 8 Caribbean, dated a local, and TAHITI together, we sold nightlights P. 35 FIJI P. 42 to cruise passengers. Not just any CHILOE nightlights. We glued shells to ours, P. 6 creating virtual bouquets of light. Sold at $15 a pop, profi ts followed. So did a folding display table, two chairs, World’s Edge EDITORS’ PICKS In Greenland a bottle of wine and, well, lots of TOP CRUISES 36 we find a clash portside jabs at my expense. of climates, person- “Aren’t these your people?” she asks. FOR 2014 alities and landforms. 24 Yep, the place has it all. Here we go. We embark in the Grenadines. ∏he search for a one-of-a-kind “Chunky white sneakers, khaki shorts, Fiji’s Last Stop big hats — a uniform in the States, yes?” souvenir takes us on a mara- To get to 42 You’re making fun of our customers. thon run, to a nameless village dreamiest Fiji, in a rare truck, and to islands sail past the women in ULTIMATE CARIBBEAN “I don’t understand you Americans. sulu skirts, around the You speak only one language. Maybe too small for maps or trinkets. tiny fishing boats, and Layover Fixes ... just keep sailing. 55 The word two. Men dress to fi t in, not stand out.” “layover” is You polished off our wine, didn’t you? loathed. But hang with What’s to See “∏o these people,” she says, pointing on a Big Ship? us. We can show you On a cruise how to turn limp hours to cruisers nearby, “the Caribbean is a into bonus day trips. 48 where domi- blur of ports . Where’s the fun in that?” noes in villages are DEPARTMENTS Back then, I didn’t pay her com- considered dangerous, the author goes rogue. 8 Get Here ments much attention. My ego was too 10 Life Here busy basking in the thought that she, Wildest Calls 12 Stay Here despite her rants, was dating me, an Whales swim 53 alongside the 14 First Person American . ∏he more she jabbed, the ship. We can almost 16 Live the Life more pleasing her became my patriotic smell the breath of 18 Travel Tales duty: Do this for your country. wolves. All nice, but there’s something 20 Taste But in creating this issue, her words even wilder up ahead. 72 Outtake came back to me. Fiji’s oldest world, Greenland’s greening, the Caribbean’s quietest cove — all within reach from WIN A DREAM TRIP The scene on this issue’s cover is within arm’s reach, a cruise. ∏he ports, and the nightlight literally. Post your best travel photo (from an island) in our annual photo contest and you could soon be there — or Hawaii, or the poshest stands, are just their starting points. resort in the Florida Keys. Enter at islands.com/facebook. — EDDY PATRICELLI, [email protected] FROM LEFT: JON WHITTLE; ZACH STOVALL 2 ® BRAND DIRECTOR Eddy Patricelli GROUP PUBLISHER Laura Walker [email protected] [email protected] EXECUTIVE EDITOR Robert Stephens [email protected] EDITORIAL CRUISE MANAGING EDITOR Audrey St. Clair DIGITAL CONTENT DIRECTOR Steve Spears DIGITAL EDITOR Cami Webb WITH US COPY EDITOR Kathleen M. Kiely INTERNS Lurvin Miladis, Destini Rodriguez ON M/S PAUL GAUGUIN CONTRIBUTING WRITERS & PHOTOGRAPHERS Jad Davenport, Bob Friel, Amanda Jones, Jen Judge, R. Ian Lloyd, Brooke Morton, TO TAHITI Edward Readicker-Henderson, Ann Vanderhoof, Alison Wright ART ART DIRECTOR Jennifer Pileggi PHOTO EDITOR/SOCIAL MEDIA EDITOR Lori Barbely SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHERS Zach Stovall, Jon Whittle ADVERTISING CARIBBEAN/MEXICO, CARIBBEAN/EUROPE Carol Johnson, Publisher, 908-221-9122; [email protected] MEXICO/HONDURAS/SOUTH PACIFIC/HAWAII Valerie Aguilar, 805-452-0679; [email protected] CARIBBEAN/EASTERN UNITED STATES Jackie D’Antonio, 407-571-4718; [email protected] CARIBBEAN Julie Kittredge, 813-877-6959; [email protected] HOTELS/VACATION RENTALS Leslie Parker, 407-571-4985; [email protected] ADVERTISING SERVICES MANAGER Krys Pettit, 407-571-4534; [email protected] VP, DIRECTOR OF BRAND STRATEGIES Matt Hickman VP, DIGITAL OPERATIONS David Butler EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Shawn Bean CREATIVE DIRECTOR Jerry Pomales GROUP MARKETING DIRECTOR Haley Bischof MARKETING MANAGER Lindsay Gigler PRODUCTION DIRECTOR Michelle Doster PRODUCTION MANAGER Alison Klein DESIGN SERVICES DIRECTOR Suzanne Oberholtzer GRAPHIC ARTISTS Julia Arana, Willy Frei, Jennifer Remias, Aubrey Wilson HUMAN RESOURCES DIRECTOR Sheri Bass ISLANDS IS A DIVISION OF Jonas Bonnier Chairman Dave Freygang Chief Executive Officer Eric Zinczenko Executive Vice President David Ritchie Chief Content Officer Nancy Coalter Chief Financial Officer Lisa Earlywine Chief Operating Officer Elizabeth Burnham Murphy Chief Marketing Officer Leslie Glenn Chief Human Resource Officer Sean Holzman Chief Brand Development Officer THE ULTIMATE CRUISE John Reese Vice President, Consumer Marketing Dean Turcol Vice President, Corporate Communications WHERE: Tahiti & the Society Islands Jeremy Thompson General Counsel WHEN: Sept. 27-Oct. 4, 2014 (7 nights!) 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Floating Market. • Khantoke dinner with authentic traditional dance performances. • Feed, bathe and then ride an elephant through the jungle. • SITA guests will also receive a complimentary wine set, to enjoy • Visit the colorful Hill Tribe villages in Northern Thailand. while in destination. • Enjoy 7 nights of luxury accommodations, breakfast daily, and • Looking for more? Combine this itinerary with an extension private transfers. into Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar or Vietnam. Our consultants • Combine your journey with an extension into Laos, Cambodia, will build your dream South East Asia itinerary. Myanmar, Vietnam or Bhutan. (800)421-5643 (855)206-7162 www.sitatours.com [email protected] [email protected] http://www.travcoa.com/tours/asia-and-south-pacifc/thailand ISLANDS.COM/WISHLIST Ultimate Wish List A SNEAK PEEK AT OUR TOP 100 CASTAWAY ISLAND, FIJI CONRAD MALDIVES VICEROY BALI 1 Do as the name suggests 2 Eat and sleep underwater 3 Luxury on high DISPATCHES AMSTERDAM MANOR BEACH RESORT CHILE: ∏his canÕt be legal. Heads cock BAHAMAS: We pass the turnoff to Friendly & intimate resort located at quiet Eagle Beach for some real “me time”. to one side. A few glance up, trying to Hatchet Bay Cave. Shoulder-height Comfortable studios and suites, beach dining, locate the buzzing. Photographer Jon weeds hide the entrance, and the thin free Wi-Fi and warm smiles. Whittle is smiling, and quoting ∏op Gun. red string guiding us through isn’t reas- 1-800-969-2310 www.amsterdammanor.com In his hands, he holds a remote control. suring. After a few caverns of rocks and Above us, circling a church in Castro, the bats, I need a Goombay Smash. Or three. capital of Chiloe Island, is the Islands — Islands photo editor Lori Barbely, via e-mail quadcopter — a flying drone of sorts, the kind Amazon.com hinted at using ISLANDS.COM/TRAVELTOBALI for future shipments. At lower altitudes, “I’m breathing its four whirring rotors are audible as sighs of relief after Jon commands it to fly by a cathedral traveling from for aerial imagery.