Kelly Magyarics
As a travel writer specializing in tropical destinations, I've been lucky enough to have visited 30 islands around the world. Because of my extensive travels, people often ask me which islands I'd return to.
Each island I've been to has been idyllic and unique, but a few lingered in my salt-spray-tinged memories long after my tan faded.
Here are the five islands I always recommend to other travelers.
Kelly Magyarics
This South Pacific haven screams "paradise." Although getting there was a long journey — I had to take a 16-hour flight from New York to Tahiti, followed by an hourlong flight to Bora Bora — the island was absolutely otherworldly.
Formed by an extinct volcano, Bora Bora is surrounded by a calm turquoise lagoon that's basically a huge wading pool. I remember marveling at rows of romantic bungalows with thatched roofs and glass floors overlooking the water.
The local cuisine combines French and Polynesian cultures. I enjoyed meals like poisson cru, a ceviche-like dish made with coconut milk, tomatoes, and cucumber. It was truly heaven on earth.
Kelly Magyarics
St. Barts is full of fancy spots, with a yacht-filled harbor, designer shops along the pristine streets of Gustavia (the island's capital), and luxurious hotels.
I found a lively day-drinking scene at Nikki Beach, a destination that's attracted celebrity guests like Mariah Carey, and restaurants with menus and wine lists to rival any Parisian hot spot.
However, you don't have to be a multimillionaire to soak in the island's beguiling swankiness. During my visit, I spent an afternoon on a catamaran ride and did some window shopping.
Visitors can also find elevated cuisine at various price points — I had tuna poke and chilled rosé from Ti' Corail on a laid-back beach, and it was one of my favorite meals.
I was blown away by the many local beaches, such as the sandy Gouverneur Beach and the secluded Colombier Beach, a spot accessible only after a steep (but worth it) hike.
If you're a Francophile who adores fabulous food and an upscale feel, I highly recommend St. Barts.
Kelly Magyarics
St. Martin is split into two distinct French and Dutch sides. During my visit, I thought the French side had a quiet, relaxed vibe.
I enjoyed lying on the beach at Orient Bay (referred to as the Saint-Tropez of the Caribbean) and shopping at the luxury boutiques in Marigot, the capital of the French collectivity on St. Martin.
I found the Dutch side much livelier as I clubbed at the Soggy Dollar Bar in Simpson Bay and sipped rum cocktails while watching the sunset at The Rusty Parrot.
The island is also the ultimate destination for aviation geeks, as the Princess Juliana International Airport is steps away from Maho Beach. I spent hours watching planes fly directly above me.
Visitors can also island hop to nearby St. Barts and Anguilla, which are easily accessible by ferry or plane.
Kelly Magyarics
Curaçao is known for having more than 35 beaches, so every sun-worshipper can find their perfect spot.
During my visit, it seemed that some beaches, like Playa Piskadó, were mainly frequented by locals, so they were uncrowded and relaxed. Others, such as Grote Knip and Playa Kalki, in quiet coves, were also very tranquil.
During my stay, I sipped my way through the gin and tonic menu at Zest Restaurant & Beach Cafe on the lively Jan Thiel Beach and, of course, tried the island's namesake bright blue liqueur in a cocktail.
Handelskade, a row of brightly colored Dutch colonial buildings lining the water in Willemstad (the island's capital), was the perfect photo op.
As an added bonus, Curaçao is part of the ABC islands (the other two being Aruba and Bonaire), which are unlikely to be severely affected by hurricanes.
Ina Meer Sommer/Shutterstock
The Caribbean is synonymous with rum, but in my opinion, no island offers as authentic an experience as this destination.
Based in Barbados, the iconic rum producer Mount Gay has been selling the spirit since 1703. Touring and tasting at the company's distillery is a must-do for any fan of the sugarcane-based spirit.
Visitors can also make their way through Barbados' flavorful cocktails (and cuisine) at lively bars and restaurants. I loved the potent rum punch and local fish cakes at Oasis Beach Bar, as well as the seared jerk tuna and butter beans at Calma Beach Club.
The island was perpetually vibrant — it seemed like a party, festival, or concert was always happening. The snorkeling in Carlisle Bay was also amazing, as I saw parrotfish, hawksbill turtles, and seahorses.
Plus, Rihanna fans can snap a selfie in front of the Barbadian native's colorful childhood home, where her name adorns the doormat.
This story was originally published on August 9, 2024, and most recently updated on August 8, 2025.
Chevron currently has a dividend yield above 4.5%.
The oil giant has the lowest breakeven level in the industry and a fortress financial profile.
It has plenty of fuel to continue increasing its dividend.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average tracks 30 of the most prominent companies in the country. These mature companies are very profitable, which allows many of them to pay generous dividends. The index currently has a 1.8% dividend yield, which is higher than the S&P 500's 1.3% and the Nasdaq-100's 0.8%.
The Dow is fertile ground for those seeking dividend income. It holds several higher-yielding dividend stocks with an excellent track record of increasing their payouts. One that stands out for income seekers this July is Chevron (NYSE: CVX). Here's why it's a great Dow stock to buy this month for passive income.
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Chevron's dividend yield is currently over 4.5%. A high dividend yield can sometimes be a warning sign that the payout isn't sustainable. However, that's not the case with Chevron.
The oil giant has built a highly resilient portfolio. The company's business currently has a breakeven level of around $30 per barrel, the lowest in the industry. With crude oil prices in the mid-$60s, Chevron is generating a substantial amount of free cash flow. It produced $15 billion in free cash flow last year after funding capital expenditures of $16.4 billion and another $3.7 billion in the first quarter of 2025. With its dividend costing $3 billion a quarter, Chevron has an ample cushion.
Chevron also has an elite balance sheet. Its leverage ratio was a low 14% at the end of the first quarter. That's well below its 20%-25% target range and toward the low end of its peer group's range.
The company's combination of a low breakeven level and fortress balance sheet puts Chevron's high-yielding dividend on a firm foundation.
Chevron has been investing heavily in high-return capital projects, which are driving growth in its production and free cash flow. The company and its partners recently completed the Future Growth Project in Kazakhstan and the Ballymore project in the Gulf of Mexico, also known as the Gulf of America in the United States. It has more projects in the Gulf and the Eastern Mediterranean that should come online soon. In addition, the company is developing its assets in the Permian and DJ basins in the U.S. Chevron estimates that its current slate of growth projects puts it on track to add an incremental $9 billion in annual free cash flow by next year, assuming a $60 oil price.
On top of that, the company is waiting to close its mega deal for Hess. It agreed to buy the fellow oil and gas producer in late 2023 for $60 billion. A dispute with ExxonMobil over Hess' stake in their lucrative development offshore Guyana is currently holding up the transaction.
The case has gone to arbitration, with a ruling expected soon. Chevron is so confident it will win that it spent $2.2 billion to buy nearly 5% of Hess' outstanding shares on the open market earlier this year. Winning the case will allow it to close the needle-moving deal, which will extend its production and free cash flow growth outlook into the 2030s.
Even if it loses its case and can't close that deal, Chevron has plenty of growth ahead. As a result, the company's dividend growth engine won't run out of gas. The oil giant has increased its payout for 38 consecutive years, a period spanning multiple commodity price cycles. The company has delivered peer-leading dividend growth over the past decade.
Chevron currently offers investors an attractive dividend yield due to the uncertainty over the fate of its Hess acquisition and the volatility of commodity prices. However, the company has a highly resilient portfolio and a fortress financial profile, which puts its high-yielding dividend on rock-solid ground. Meanwhile, it has lots of fuel to grow, even if it can't close its deal for Hess. Those features make it a great Dow stock to buy this July for a lucrative and growing stream of passive dividend income.
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Matt DiLallo has positions in Chevron. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Chevron. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Hackers suspected of working on behalf of the Chinese government exploited a maximum-severity vulnerability, which had received a patch 16 months earlier, to compromise a telecommunications provider in Canada, officials from that country and the US said Monday.
“The Cyber Centre is aware of malicious cyber activities currently targeting Canadian telecommunications companies,” officials for the center, the Canadian government’s primary cybersecurity agency, said in a statement. “The responsible actors are almost certainly PRC state-sponsored actors, specifically Salt Typhoon.” The FBI issued its own nearly identical statement.
Salt Typhoon is the name researchers and government officials use to track one of several discreet groups known to hack nations all over the world on behalf of the People's Republic of China. In October 2023, researchers disclosed that hackers had backdoored more than 10,000 Cisco devices by exploiting CVE-2023-20198, a vulnerability with a maximum severity rating of 10.
© Steve McDowell / Agefotostock
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I promise it's OK to be basic. In fact, it might even be cool.
A few months ago, I started hearing friends and colleagues regularly talk about the London-based fashion label COS, which is owned by H&M. Admittedly, I tuned them out. Its clothes looked a little too simple for me.
But I couldn't escape the brand.
Fashion influencers started raving about COS in interviews when I asked about their wardrobe staples. Then, I saw Lyst, a fashion search and shopping platform, name COS one of the "hottest brands" of Q1 this year, jumping 11 spots since its Q4 listing in 2024.
That's partially because COS is ideal for shoppers "seeking the 'quiet luxury' aesthetic without the luxury price tag," Turner Allen, a 32-year-old personal stylist, told Business Insider.
It's also because COS has done something many other brands haven't: created basic clothes that people actually want to wear.
Samantha Grindell/Business Insider
Women have long been touting COS as the ultimate aspirational luxury line. BI reporter Sam Grindell Pettyjohn described the store as "H&M's more sophisticated, socially conscious, and luxurious older sister."
Men are now coming to the same conclusion. Alex Nicoll, 29, a former Fortune 500 employee turned fashion influencer, swears by COS.
"It's really slept on for men's fashion," he told BI. "It's a good place to play around with classic silhouettes, and pieces that are a little bit more playful and different."
COS has put in the effort to attract shoppers like Nicoll.
While it's long offered classic styles like trousers and blazers, the brand is now also selling utility bags, cropped polos, and tinted sunglasses specifically for men. This appeals to current trends while remaining timeless.
Allen said that mix of "clean, approachable, and still fashion-forward" styles is key.
"It's a winning formula for men who want to elevate their style without stepping too far outside their comfort zone," he added.
The brand also reflects those styles in its marketing, from prominently displaying men on its Instagram page to making menswear a huge part of its Spring/Summer 2025 runway collection.
Victor Virgile/Getty Images
All the while, COS is still equally catering to the rest of its customers.
The brand's $99 barrel-leg trousers for women became an instant success this year, and most sizes are now sold out. Lyst has cited the pants as the sixth most-popular garment of Q1.
In mid-April, the brand also launched COS Perfumery, a unisex line of fragrances and candles retailing between $49 and $99.
Lyst said the scents are another factor in the brand's 44% increase in demand this year.
After all, COS shoppers no longer have to turn to brands like Byredo and Le Labo for luxury fragrances. They can buy their favorite clothes and perfume in the same online order.
New tariffs and a potential recession are changing how people shop, and luxury lifestyle brands are already being affected.
COS, however, holds a unique spot.
It's technically a runway brand that sells luxury-adjacent garments, many of which lean into the old-money aesthetic. Its products retail between $15 for small items like socks and $1,390 for shearling-lined coats.
However, they aren't as expensive as those from retailers like The Row, Bottega Veneta, and Loewe.
COS also boasts brand ambassadors like Adrien Brody and celebrity fans like Jodie Turner-Smith. If the brand is good enough for Hollywood actors, it's golden for fashion fans.
Jessica Tyler/Business Insider
Nicoll said he loves COS because the brand "keeps up with trends like a fast-fashion brand would" without compromising on "materials or construction." Fashion fans on social media have said the same.
"This is like Skims but for men," TikToker @stefffanos wrote about COS T-shirts after trying them in April. Skims does sell menswear, including T-shirts.
Andrea Cheong, a fashion writer and influencer, also applauded the brand's stitching, fabric reinforcements, and thick materials in a video.
The clothing is made with a variety of classic materials like linen, denim, and wool, many of which are said to be sustainably sourced. COS also publicly shares a list of its current suppliers on its website.
That craftsmanship completes the COS fashion puzzle. With its reputation for high-quality pieces — as well as reasonable prices, coveted menswear, and timeless styles — there's nothing the brand doesn't have.
COS is trendy, unisex, and feels rich, though you don't need to be to shop the brand.
"It's a great option for shoppers who want to step off the fast-fashion hamster wheel, but still look current and put-together," Allen said.
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