Acapulco - Still one of the best hotspots

If you don’t know or have never heard of Acapulco, well, you obviously don’t know Latin America and one of the most popular beach resorts in the Caribbean. Acapulco has been somewhat overshadowed by Cancun but still remains one of the hottest beach destinations and caters very well for tourists. The sun seems to always shine and the beaches are white and have an inviting assortment of beachfront restaurants and cafes. Once here you have to go to La Quebrada and see the famous cliff divers doing their thing. You can either see this from a platform on the cliff (after paying a small entrance fee) or from the nearby restaurant. Generally the prices here are cheap, which is surprising since it is such a popular tourist destination. One of the best beaches can be found on Isla de la Roqueta. After a short water taxi (the one we took had a glass bottom which was pretty neat) you can get to the island. There are family friendly shallow beaches as well as deeper beaches with a little more surf. The nightlife here is great fun as the families generally head to the restaurants and then their hotels while those that want to spend the night dancing and drinking usually do so until the sun comes back up.

Bocas del Toro - A perfect hideaway

In the north east corner of Panama, lays the little hidden gem Boca del Toro. You still won’t find many tourists bloating out the town, which is a nice change from a lot of other Central American beach spots. This is another great – and cheap – place for diving and scuba to see some beautiful corals and sea life. You might even get to see a reef shark or two! And even if you stay above the water you have a pretty good chance of getting to see and play with some dolphins. The island itself is quite small so you can rent a mountain bike and trip across to other side and visit Bocas del Drago. But the best beaches are nearby and you normally only need to pay $3 or $5 for round trip by boat to either Red Frog Beach or Wizard Beach. Red Frog is the better place but will charge an admission fee of another $1 or $2. Further inland you can find – The Bat Cave! Don’t worry if you’re an evil villain, this version is only for the animal not the superhero. For only $1 you can wade through the watery cave and spy on hundreds of bats clinging to the ceilings of the caves.

Utila - Island Magic

Diving, diving, and more diving. If this sounds like a dream situation to you, then you have to come to the little island of Utila just off Honduras. Every diving enthusiast I know raves on about this place, and rightly so. The island is a small and isolated place in the Bay Islands and everything to do with the island is very cheap. As a side effect of this, it has the cheapest rates for diver certification in the Caribbean. And why is the diving so good there? Well, how many other places do you get the chance to see a Whale Shark on regular occasions? Also the corals are rich with life and the coasts are beautiful and sparsely populated. There isn’t much choice on the island for different activities or places to go, but what is there is a treat. Bando Beach is the main beach, and if you get tired of the water you can always visit the Iguana Research Centre and learn more about this amazing reptile. There is a huge selection of cheap delicious seafood, and accommodation is cheap. About the only thing that will burn a hole in your pocket is using technology like the internet or making an international phone. The prices for these can be extortionate!

Cancún - The sunnyside paradise

The city of Cancun has had huge amounts of money pumped into by the Mexican government over the past 10 or 20 years and it shows. The place is a water or beach lover's dream holiday location. With vast white sand beaches stretching for what seems like miles, it feels like a world away from work and city life. Most of the other things to keep yourself occupied with usually involve taking a dip in the gorgeous blue ocean. Snorkelling, scuba diving and fishing are some the activities that are enjoyable, relaxing and a perfect way to enjoy the sun, sights and the sea. Most of these trips can be organised through your hotel and usually includes pick-up and drop-off so all you need to sort out is yourself. The best time to arrive is just in time the Carnival in the end of February. This is basically one huge beach party where you will find tourists from every corner of the world drinking and dancing together. Another time to visit is during the mid-May Jazz Festival that draws in some surprisingly big name artists. This is not quite the chaotic level of the Carnival but has a much more cultured and chilled atmosphere about it.