Dominica

Dominica is not the Dominican Republic - get that out of the way first, because everyone confuses them. This is the Nature Island of the Caribbean, a volcanic, mountainous, jungle-covered gem between Guadeloupe and Martinique that looks like the Earth just finished making it yesterday. There are no white sand beaches and mega-resorts here. Instead, there are 365 rivers, nine active volcanoes, the world's second-largest boiling lake, and rainforest so thick and ancient that it was used as a filming location for Pirates of the Caribbean.

Dominica is the only Caribbean island where the pre-Columbian Kalinago people still live in their own territory, maintaining traditions that stretch back centuries before Columbus arrived. The island is just 47 kilometers long with around 72,000 people, but it contains more natural wonders per square kilometer than islands ten times its size. You can snorkel in the world's first underwater sculpture park, soak in volcanic hot springs, hike to a boiling lake through the Valley of Desolation, and spot the endangered Sisserou parrot that exists nowhere else on Earth. Dominica is raw, rugged, and relentlessly green - the Caribbean for people who want adventure over all-inclusive.