I want to do a 5 day vacation with my wife and two kids (6 and 4 years old) this summer. I love the Caribbean Islands (been to St. Lucia, Bahamas, St. Thomas and Puerto Rico). The first thing that comes to mind is Beaches all-inclusive resorts in Jamaica (Beaches Sandy Bay in Negril is the smaller of the Beaches resorts) because it is a family and children friendly resort. I prefer all-inclusive and direct flights. Is all-inclusive really worth it? Airfare to Cancun/Riviera Maya is dirt cheap these days. I have been e-mailing a family friend who used to be a travel agent and she mentioned that there is a lot of bad press and news in Mexico. What's that all about? Room rates and airfare to Paradise Island, Bahamas has been coming down. Any other ideas?
Suggestion for Caribbean vacation with the wife and kids
- Thread starter walds11
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Ok...I have a 9 and 6 year old. 2 years ago I went to St. Lucia and the year before that to the DR. I was at Coconut Bay in St. Lucia and Club Med in Punta Cana DR.
We felt Jamaica was not a family destination....and all inclusive is the way to go, it makes a family vacation soooooo much easier than going it on your own.
Club Med is mid priced and Coconut Bay is lower end of mid-priced. Of the 2 facilities Club Med blows Coconut Bay out of the water. Of the locations of the 2, St.Lucia is much better than Punta Cana if you have any desire to go off resort and check things out. Punta Cana is a half day of travel away from any of the DR activities whereas you can see all of St. Lucia in a half day and if you spend the whole day you can dig deeply.
St.Lucia has some very nice high end resorts as well if you want to spend that kind of money, so does Punta Cana for that matter, but many of these are no where near as child friendly as the two I named.
I am considering going back to Club Med Punta Cana again this summer as they re-did the place and we enjoyed it so much. The few negatives about Club Med, IMHO, are that (1) the resort is located on the corner of the island where the Caribbean and Atlantic meet so it is not that axiomatic crystal clear for miles water; (2) the beach is man made, although you'd be hard pressed to figure that out, the resort is on a kind of rocky section of the beach and it was cleared and filled with sand; (3) there are waves, well ripples really, and many people don't view the Caribbean as having any waves at all; (4) the resort is just over from the airport so you will see planes coming and going (to me this was a positive because you are literally moments in your resort provided cab back and forth from the airport...and the planes are few and far between); (5) the desire to get you active at Club Med gets a tiny bit intrusive...sometimes you dont want to eat with strangers.
If I am about to insult anyone here I am sorry...but Club Med is a French owned resort, and Coconut Bay is British owned...the gastronomic dichotomy between the two couldn't be more apparent. While Club Med is by no means a high end resort the food is excellent to spectacular and constantly changing (one night at dinner they had 3 fresh caught yellow fin tuna at the dining hall entry that they were slicing off the fish into sashimi to order as you entered!). The alcohol and bar selections at Club Med are superior as well. Coconut Bay was boring, acceptable food and poor, almost unacceptable bar fare. I will say thought that the kids LOVED the swim up smoothie bar, although it took only moments for me to realize that that facility meant that we were all swimming in smoothie the whole vacation.
Here is my little one at the Club Med pool...do you think she was enjoying herself?
Here is a boy my kids made friends with, while I love the shot, Im giving you this to illustrate what the water at Club Med looks like:
I'm a huge fan of Tortolla. Big enough so there's plenty to do, not soley reliant on tourism so there's less poverty than other islands, and rocky waters so there's less cruise ships. I stayed at Long Bay Beach resort and had a semi-inclusive plan that worked out great. I love the BVI and am going back next year.
I really loved the Dominican Republic. It really had a great, laid back atmosphere. It was not as touristy as say, Mexico, but at the same time it did not have the crime and whatnot that is often found in Jamaica. Most Dominicans we met were very friendly, and helpful. We stayed at the Sirenis resort, and it was absolutely perfect: a nice quiet place to spend a week relaxing on a fantastic beach. I loved the fact that they had a big BBQ on the beach for lunch every day. Also, one of the two buffets served traditional Caribbean food, which was amazing. I mean, who wants to go on vacation, and have it be exactly like home?
Although the DR is a gorgeous vacation spot, be wary as there IS crime, and the most crushing poverty when you step off of a resort. For the most part, the people are very friendly and warm, but it's very necessary to have your wits about you when you leave the resort. I had a bittersweet experience at a resort right outside of Punta Cana. It was beautiful, but it's very sad that the foreign-owned resorts bring in so much tourist money, none of which is reinvested in the local community. Yes, the tourists spend a small amount of money in the surrounding community, but the resorts are designed so that you don't have to leave if you don't want to. Most of the money stays in the resort. You have people starving right on the other side of the fence in some cases. We would fill up a backpack with hot dogs and papas fritas and take them to hungry people right outside of the resort at which we were staying in Bavaro. Of course, this is more of a problem with the resort industry itself, and not localized to the DR.
The bad press in Mexico is due to the drug wars going on. The cartels are fighting each other as well as the police/feds, and anyone who gets caught in the middle. Particularly gruesome murders have been on the rise, so that's driven away tourists. But I wouldn't worry too much about that in the resort towns.
All-inclusive is definitely the way to go if you would like to save money...but be careful and do your research before making any commitments. Tripadvisor is good resource for this.
Good luck!
The bad press in Mexico is due to the drug wars going on. The cartels are fighting each other as well as the police/feds, and anyone who gets caught in the middle. Particularly gruesome murders have been on the rise, so that's driven away tourists. But I wouldn't worry too much about that in the resort towns.
All-inclusive is definitely the way to go if you would like to save money...but be careful and do your research before making any commitments. Tripadvisor is good resource for this.
Good luck!
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I looked at Club Med based on Brodirt's review. I was tickled when I saw all kinds of postings on the site for 7-day Carribean trips starting at $799 per person. So I put in some dates to for a dry run on for my wife, daughter and I for 5 days at Punta Cana and it came back... $5800. That's with a $1000 credit knocked off. Ouch!
Any recommendations for a family-friendly trip for about half that? I'd like to do a week for about $2500-3000.
Any recommendations for a family-friendly trip for about half that? I'd like to do a week for about $2500-3000.
First....where did my pictures go??? Re-post below.
Second, it was just under $4k with air for my family of 4 in August 2006. Im not sure what the economy has done to CMs target consumer, but that price seems very high. We were looking at a few unknown name resorts on Punta Cana through Costco and they were in your target price range...take a look at their on line site.
- Thread starter
- #8
Thanks guys. Looks like Cancun is the best bang for the buck, both airfare and all-inclusive resort prices.
Anyone stay at Gran Caribe Real Cancun?
Oh, and I guess I have to watch out for hurricane season, June 1 to Nov 30, with Aug to October being the peak months. I was planning on going in early July.
Anyone stay at Gran Caribe Real Cancun?
Oh, and I guess I have to watch out for hurricane season, June 1 to Nov 30, with Aug to October being the peak months. I was planning on going in early July.
Not sure if it's quite what you're looking for, but have you been on a cruise before? I've just started going on them and they're fantastic!
If you sail from Florida there are plenty of options for Caribbean ports of call and lots of cruise lines offer seven day packages. So far I've sailed on NCL once (the Sky which was supposedly refurbished...was not overly impressed with my trip) and Carnival three or four times. I know they have a reputation for being a 'party boat' and I always heard they were loud and full of drunk people but that really wasn't the case. There were a decent number of drunk people but they were all at the karaoke bars which is good for some entertainment.
The downsides to cruising is you don't have a lot of time to explore the islands once you're there and you can pretty much guarantee you're going to be in the middle of the most touristy part. On the plus side, there are usually some good excursions that you can go on. Oh, and they are all-inclusive...except for alcohol. You can always sneak that onboard, if you were so inclined.
Anyways, I have a cruise coming up in August that's just running down to Cozumel from Tampa and I have a honeymoon cruise in November that's going to Grand Cayman, Cozumel, Belize, Roatan, and I think a private island or something. We booked one of the nicest suites (category 11...I think they go up to 12) and it was $3,000 for seven nights, I believe. Granted that's only two of us but that should give you a good idea.
Oh yeah, and I see plenty of kids onboard and they all seem to be having a great time. There are even kids' programs where you can drop them off and they go around the ship doing activities for the day. A lot of the children seemed genuinely excited and I overheard children on more than on occasion asking their parents when they could go back.
Disclaimer: never been to an all-inclusive resort, so no idea how this compares. I've also only sailed NCL and Carnival so far. Cruising seems to provide great bang for the buck! Of course, I live near Tampa so I just have to drive to the port...
If you sail from Florida there are plenty of options for Caribbean ports of call and lots of cruise lines offer seven day packages. So far I've sailed on NCL once (the Sky which was supposedly refurbished...was not overly impressed with my trip) and Carnival three or four times. I know they have a reputation for being a 'party boat' and I always heard they were loud and full of drunk people but that really wasn't the case. There were a decent number of drunk people but they were all at the karaoke bars which is good for some entertainment.
The downsides to cruising is you don't have a lot of time to explore the islands once you're there and you can pretty much guarantee you're going to be in the middle of the most touristy part. On the plus side, there are usually some good excursions that you can go on. Oh, and they are all-inclusive...except for alcohol. You can always sneak that onboard, if you were so inclined.
Anyways, I have a cruise coming up in August that's just running down to Cozumel from Tampa and I have a honeymoon cruise in November that's going to Grand Cayman, Cozumel, Belize, Roatan, and I think a private island or something. We booked one of the nicest suites (category 11...I think they go up to 12) and it was $3,000 for seven nights, I believe. Granted that's only two of us but that should give you a good idea.
Oh yeah, and I see plenty of kids onboard and they all seem to be having a great time. There are even kids' programs where you can drop them off and they go around the ship doing activities for the day. A lot of the children seemed genuinely excited and I overheard children on more than on occasion asking their parents when they could go back.
Disclaimer: never been to an all-inclusive resort, so no idea how this compares. I've also only sailed NCL and Carnival so far. Cruising seems to provide great bang for the buck! Of course, I live near Tampa so I just have to drive to the port...
- Thread starter
- #10
I was on a 4 day Bahamas cruise. It was ok. I would rather just go to one place and veg. Don't forget that I have to add in the cost of airfare from Philly to the port.
Not sure if it's quite what you're looking for, but have you been on a cruise before? I've just started going on them and they're fantastic!
If you sail from Florida there are plenty of options for Caribbean ports of call and lots of cruise lines offer seven day packages. So far I've sailed on NCL once (the Sky which was supposedly refurbished...was not overly impressed with my trip) and Carnival three or four times. I know they have a reputation for being a 'party boat' and I always heard they were loud and full of drunk people but that really wasn't the case. There were a decent number of drunk people but they were all at the karaoke bars which is good for some entertainment.
The downsides to cruising is you don't have a lot of time to explore the islands once you're there and you can pretty much guarantee you're going to be in the middle of the most touristy part. On the plus side, there are usually some good excursions that you can go on. Oh, and they are all-inclusive...except for alcohol. You can always sneak that onboard, if you were so inclined.
Anyways, I have a cruise coming up in August that's just running down to Cozumel from Tampa and I have a honeymoon cruise in November that's going to Grand Cayman, Cozumel, Belize, Roatan, and I think a private island or something. We booked one of the nicest suites (category 11...I think they go up to 12) and it was $3,000 for seven nights, I believe. Granted that's only two of us but that should give you a good idea.
Oh yeah, and I see plenty of kids onboard and they all seem to be having a great time. There are even kids' programs where you can drop them off and they go around the ship doing activities for the day. A lot of the children seemed genuinely excited and I overheard children on more than on occasion asking their parents when they could go back.
Disclaimer: never been to an all-inclusive resort, so no idea how this compares. I've also only sailed NCL and Carnival so far. Cruising seems to provide great bang for the buck! Of course, I live near Tampa so I just have to drive to the port...
For those looking at All-Inclusive resorts in Cancun, I can not recommend the Sun Palace enough! My wife and I honeymooned there and it was incredible. Unfortunately, for those travelling with children, it is an 18+ couples only resort.
For Cancun look into the Dreams resorts (I stayed at Dreams Tulum and loved it, but Dreams Cancun is supposed to be very good as well) and Moon Palace. Both resorts are truly top notch -- good food, very friendly staff, clean rooms, and beautiful accommodations, including beach and pool. If you do go to Tulum (an hour or so south of Cancun by vehicle, and yes, the resort handles transfers) make sure to take a half-day or full day to check out the ruins at Tulum. It was one of the key Mayan cities/forts, and is really incredible. If you want some photos send me a PM. We were going to get married at Dreams Tulum until family issues forced us to move it back stateside. Moon Palace was our alternate.
The wife and I also stayed at Vallarta Palace in Puerto Vallarta. That was also very nice and very fun, but not quite as luxurious as the other two I mentioned.
As for violence, yes, Mexico is in the midst of some real problems. However, most of them are in the border areas (Juarez, Tijuana, etc.). I wouldn't worry too much about Cancun, especially if you are primarily interested in going to and staying at your resort. Avoid seedy areas, only take licensed cabs, don't wander alone at night -- all advice you should follow any time, but especially now.
The wife and I also stayed at Vallarta Palace in Puerto Vallarta. That was also very nice and very fun, but not quite as luxurious as the other two I mentioned.
As for violence, yes, Mexico is in the midst of some real problems. However, most of them are in the border areas (Juarez, Tijuana, etc.). I wouldn't worry too much about Cancun, especially if you are primarily interested in going to and staying at your resort. Avoid seedy areas, only take licensed cabs, don't wander alone at night -- all advice you should follow any time, but especially now.
Dittto on cruises especially those longer than 7 days; weeds out the boozer cruises. Cruises often include airfare or you check airfarewatchdog.com for prices. Whole World of Travel @ cruisewwt.com 800-458-3636 is a travel agency with whom we have been booking cruises for about 20 years and we have not found anyone who can match/beat their prices.
Puerto Vallarta, Mazatlan have been excellent bases for single destinations.
Richard
E
Ermejol
I'll reccomend that you look into this hotel, http://www.occidentalhotels.com/grand/PuntaCana.asp in DR. I'm sure you can take your family here for the 2,500 or 3,000 you are looking to spend. Please check the hotel and research the prices. I can be of great help when booking as I am a member and can sell some of my time. If interested let me know.
In a nother note. Right now, you must be careful when traveling, specially with your kids. Mexico is not greatly recommended at this time, so I will stay away. The Occicental chain also has great hotels in Mexico that I can send you to, but I will not recommend them at this point. I my self don't feel safe to travel there, so why recommend it. I'll tell you this, I can't wait to go back to this hotel, http://www.occidentalhotels.com/grand/Xcaret.asp. It is perfect for the family. So, look into DR, even if you don't like the Occidental chain and don't contact me, it will probably be the best options at this time. It is also the best deal for your money. Good luck. I need a vacation too, thinking on going to Punta Cana my self.
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- Thread starter
- #15
These are the only Cancun resorts that I'll stay at because they were absolutely increadible and children are not allowed. Actually, the wife and I will be spending 1 week each at the two resorts. Can't wait!!
1. Maroma Resort and Spa
2. Excellence Playa Mujeres
1. Maroma Resort and Spa
2. Excellence Playa Mujeres
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