Whisker pole for Caribbean

[Ded reckoner]

Is a whisker pole desirable for cruising the Caribbean and Spanish Main?

Currently, we have neither a spinnaker pole nor a whisker pole. My experience with a spinnaker pole is this is unsuitable for double-handed cruising. On a friend's boat, we had two or three guys manhandling a spinnaker pole and it was difficult even then. On the other hand, a suitably rigged whisker pole seems manageable. I understand the whisker pole is not as rugged. But, my question is whether it is needed for sailing the Keys, Bahamas, Lesser Antilles, ABC's, Colombia, San Blas islands, Jamaica, and Cayman Islands. My concern is swells and large waves creating conditions flogging the headsail.

The headsail is expected to be a 95% jib almost all this time. We won't be racing any.