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A new article in this month’s Essence Magazine by Keith Murphy says the Dominican Republic has overtaken Brazil* as the new hot spot for young, black, successful men looking for love, sex and a little fun in the sun. [Fool’s Paradise, February 2010] These men tout all sorts of reasons as to why the tiny island has become the new hotspot for—it’s cheapness, proximity to the U.S., it’s gulf courses are a few…but the main reason?  The beautiful women. Many of the men quoted, some of whom were married or boo-ed up, said Dominican women give them the love and respect that sista’s in the states just won’t, can’t or don’t give.  All for a price of course.  Murphy sums it up:

“…there is something that almost every Black man will also tell you about his time in the D.R.: The Dominican women–whom they insist willingly adhere to more traditional gender roles than African-American women—offer Black men an experience few sisters would ever give them back home.  Here they say, the men rule and women fall in line.  “They treat you like a king! raves Eric, who has visited the country three times and plans to return.  “They know how to dance and cook and they don’t ask questions.  They are taught that they have to take care of their man.  So it’s a totally different mind-set.  And brothers are attracted to that.  One girl cooked for me multiple times during the week.  She came through and took care  f a brother and with no hassles.  She was just cool.  That’s the kind of thing I would want to happen in the States all the time.”

I have to give the author credit; he tries to balance out the article with some dudes that seemingly understand that these men are getting “respect” [read: played] for their dough, still… I’ll admit I was mad for a good ten minutes after reading it.  Then, I shook my head because, if that’s what’s making young black men happy, no matter how much it annoys me, fine.  However, I am irritated that while the number of stories about black men partying it up and leaving the sista’s at home usually creep up every few months in these magazines, stories of young black professional women getting it in on an island retreat are far and few.  Yes, I know we had Stella, but that was over twelve years ago!

The travel industry seems to be picking up on the trend of girlfriend group travel (though many don’t seem to cater to black women specifically), with sites like www.girlgetaways.com ,  Sherman’s Travel, Fine Living and Trip Advisor devoting specific pages to women travelers.

To learn more about traveling as a black woman, you may also want to pick up a copy of Go Girl! : The Black Woman’s Book of Travel and Adventure by Elaine Lee the So, next time you read one of these articles about black men there sun in, don’t sit home and sulk, find an adventure of your own!

Here are a few suggestions from some young, black, professional women on top spots to hit up if you’re looking for your own fools paradise.  This list is by no means conclusive; so let me know if I missed any…

1.) Jamaica (This seems to be the top spot by far)

2.) Essence Music Festival, New Orleans, Louisiana

3.) A cruise sponsored by Blackcruiseweek.com

4.) Barbados

5.) Carnaval (Especially Trinidad and Brazil)

*Cop the book: Don’t Blame It on Rio: The Real Deal Behind Why Men Go to Brazil for Sex by Jewel Woods and Karen Hunter for more on Brazil and sex tourism