Each Caribbean island has its own distinctive personality, but the one that delights almost everyone is St. Barths. With its status as a DOM (Département d’Outre-Mer), St. Barths is as much a part of France as Normandy or Provence, even if the mother country is 4,100 miles away. It is also perceptibly one of the happiest, most polite and most peaceful places in the world. The white sand beaches are dazzling; the food is consistently excellent; and the island’s capital, Gustavia, has arguably the prettiest harbor in the Caribbean (its only real rival is St. George’s, Grenada).