There aren't many come-ons more alluring than those from packagers who offer golf in the Caribbean: rum punches under swaying palms after a round on a world-class course.
Especially to the winter-weary or just those who yearn for an exotic break from the mundane, golf vacations in the Caribbean may at first appear to be the ideal, tropical balm for what ails you.
But buyer beware: sometimes the Caribbean isn't always what it's cracked up to be. Here are some factors the travel agents may conveniently forget to tell you about.
First of all, crime - including violent crime - is on the increase virtually everywhere in the Caribbean. The islands are a transnational shipping point for illegal drugs going from Columbia and elsewhere in South America to the U.S. and Europe. Add declining economies and high unemployment in many Caribbean states, and you have a problem of considerable proportions. Throw in chronic water shortages, power outages, bad roads, insane drivers, maddening bureaucracy and the fact that the Caribbean is the demonstration, protest and violent riot capital of the world.
On a more prosaic note, watch out for that VAT (value added tax) some islands charge. The name changes from island to island, but many have hidden fees you don't know about until you're ready to leave.
This isn't to say that a Caribbean golf vacation can't be a wonderful, once-in-a-lifetime experience, if you're careful. More at http://www.caribbeangolf.com/