Vacation ideas

Parent Cafe
41

<p>I prefer Cozumel to Cancun. It’s less of a party city. You may still run into the spring breakers tho. What about St Thomas or St John? Both are beautiful!!!</p>

<p>I had never even HEARD of Turks & Caicos until last year, but I know of several families who have recommended it recently.</p>

42

<p>Aruba. Mexico still has issues with crime.</p>

43

<p>"Miami - is that Iberostar place in Cozumel all inclusive? "
Yes, it is AI, as Dad II said. Not only food AI, it is AI activity wise from our prospective. Everything is on a beach, all that we are looking for, including plenty of books to read for you readers (I am not the one. My H. reads them than tells me story while we are walking on the beach and beautiful grounds)
here is our list of activities:

  1. Walking on a beach before breakfast, all down to 3rd hotel, it is all open and, yes, if you wish, you can swim anywhere too
  2. I swim laps in a pool after breakfast while nobody is there and while H. reads the books (they have left over collection, they do not pitch books left by visitors, at one point of time H. managed to pick 3 books in 3 different languages, 2 of which he could read, but not the 3rd one, he did not realize that it was in German, we laughed forever about it).
  3. We go snorkeling throut the day. Tons of fish right under the pier, including baracudas, just awesome. No need to hurt yourself walking thru reefs off shore, they have stairs right from pier, so you step right into water full of fish
  4. We play pink pong throut the day. Very handy in case of rain, it is under cover.
  5. Having free drinks all day long and snack all day long. 2 weeks is usually 7 lbs for me. They come off after few weeks at home on your regular diet. Food is great, but I am not big fan of meat. Salmon all day long, cooked various ways, desert is way byond any expectations, ice cream is nothing that you can get here, way way better…so I load up several times a /day. Breakfast includes freshly squized juices, both fruit and veggie
  6. I am not a reader, so I paint pottery for several hours every day right there on a beach. Huge fun, lots of people at the same table, different ages, all having fun.
  7. there are various activities at the pool and on a beach, games, beach volleyball, dance lessons, but we do not participate, just not our preference. Plenty of people do though.
  8. All kind of vendors (pirmarily jewlerly) are coming frequently, no need to shop in downtown).
  9. there has never been any crime in Cozumel. They deport them at the first slightest delinquency. The island survives only because of tourists. they did not even let Trump to build casinos there because of potential crime activity. This of course does not quarantee what might happen in a future
    10… we go for 2 weeks in March, next March is scheduled already, they are usually fully booked, so we do it ahead of the time. Many come back. But if you like fancy rooms, it is not a place for you, it is very old, no fancy anything. No great evening entertainment either, I have been to places with much better, but it is not our first priority.</p>
44

<p>It would be lovely if there truly was some place that had a history of absolutely no crime. Sadly, it’s unrealistic.</p>

45

<p>As was suggested, Wailea on Maui is similar (though further from NY) and has no crime that I’ve heard of. They also don’t have people approaching you when you are there for the resort. If you don’t want to stay at the pricier places, there are less expensive places a bit further away or by checking out condo rentals to consider but you can still enjoy Wailea with a short drive. Many other spots in Hawaii, especially neighbor islands would be lovely.</p>

46

<p>One of our favorite trips was to the Phoenix area and staying at the JW Marriott Desert Ridge. There are 2 on-site golf courses, a fantastic pool area with a really nice lazy river, shopping across the street, drives to the Grand Canyon, Sedona, etc. as well. No ocean or beach but the pool area is very nice. The grounds are great for walking and weather at the end of March should be warm enough. San Diego is one of my all time favorite places to go as well. </p>

<p>One thing I don’t like about Florida (among many things:D) is that it seems like all of the hotel rooms are just damp-leaving them feel unclean. We’ve been there many times and its just something I noticed. If you do go to Florida, we really liked the Marco Island Marriott. The beaches in that area a HUGE, plenty of golf around the area along with shopping, etc.</p>

47

<p>Just came back from Vegas. It was a lot of fun! We are not gamblers at all so spent zero time in the casinos other than to walk through them. Other than being bothered a little bit by the air quality in some of them, it was overall a great time!
Forgot to mention that there is golf on Vegas. The Wynn has it right at the hotel and the Wynn is gorgeous!!</p>

48

<p>If you go to Vegas, bring high-quality walking shoes! You walk and walk and walk and walk…</p>

49

<p>^Vegas is all completely different. It is not a vacation by any defifnition, it is visiting. Extremely crowded, yes, you better walk there than any transportation, you will be walking a crowd, better hold hands, very easy to get separated. I felt like I needed vacation after this vacation but it is worthwhile to visit once.</p>

50

<p>Vegas is a wonderful vacation spot. Everything is on a grand scale. Big hotels, pools, restaurants, walks, activities, shows, etc. if you want beach it’s not the place, but if you want variety, shows that are not necessarily available in NYC, a trip to the Hoover dam, etc its fun.</p>

51

<p>The Pacific Northwest. Whidbey Island, in particular. Just gorgeous. Wonderful whale watching company that guarantees whales. Island Adventures, out of Anacortes. No need to take a ferry. Fly in to Seattle and drive up to Anacortes, stopping at the Boeing Factory for a tour on the way up. You do have to make reservations for the Boeing tour. We also loved Snoqualmie Falls, site of Twin Peaks. Breathtaking. Also went to Microsoft and a Nintendo repair store, which was full of Nintendo memorabilia, if you have video game aficionados in tow.</p>

<p>End of March is spring break, so I would avoid any beach area. Even Disney is peak season at that time.</p>

52

<p>A slight change from the original question. Once you decide where to go, where do you make your reservation?</p>

<p>We have been using an agent we have never met. Found them 6 years ago on line and have been buying the AI vacation package from them ever since. </p>

<p>THis year, they are giving us a returning customer discount, allowing us to pay later etc.</p>

53

<p>OP, I recommend Atlantis Resort in Paradise Island, Bahamas. There are lots of activities for everyone. You don’t need to leave the resort. </p>

<p>Atlantis has an amazing water park, Ocean Club’s golf course, beaches, pools, casino, marina, a nightclub for teens serving non-alcoholic drinks, its own movie theater, dolphin, stingray & sea lion interaction and of course, the stunning aquarium exhibits and marine habitats scattered all over the place. Atlantis has 6 accommodations. One of them, the Cove Atlantis, has its own adult pool with lovely cabanas. The resort offers a variety of dining options from chef Bobby Flay’s Mesa Grill to the casual Bimini Road.</p>

54

<p>Kaanapali Beach at Maui has a bunch of hotels you can pick. The Kaanapali golf course is just across the beach. Sheraton is located at Black Rock which is a popular snorkeling destination. I was able to swim alongside a green sea turtle and touch its shell. What an amazing experience. Lahaina is a good place to learn how to surf for the kids. You need to rent a car so you can explore Maui.</p>

<p>St. Thomas’ Magens Bay is a stunning beach but it gets crowded. You can go beach hopping at St. John with Trunk Bay as the most popular destination. </p>

<p>Aruba is a lovely place and I love Palm Beach and Baby Beach is cute for young kids.</p>

55

<p>Isn’t the real challenge finding a place where everyone, including a 14 yr old boy and 21 yr old young woman, and of course you and your husband can all have a great time? Too bad you can’t take a cruise. My view on a big family cruise was; maybe not anybody’s number one choice but certainly the number one choice for everyone as a group, just because of all the varied activities.</p>

56

<p>The Atlantis resort offers that but you’re not all stuck in a ship. And there is no golf course in a cruise ship. Mini-golf yes but no golf course.</p>

57

<p>Late to the party, but you have similar vacation needs as we do: DH needs golf & I need a beach. I prefer a swim up bar :slight_smile: Our past 3 vacations have been great: Jamaica: Hilton Rose Hall Resort & Spa; Mexico: Barcelo Riviera Maya; and Wild Dunes Resort in Isle of Palms, SC.</p>

<p>So the one complaint I have about AI locations is that usually the family ends up in one standard hotel room vs. our US beach vacations where I make sure to end up with a 2 BR suite. If you’re looking for, um, alone time, it’s difficult to make it happen unless you make an effort to find suite style rooms that are really separate, and not just partitioned open rooms.</p>

58

<p>Maui was great because it is small enough that you can get to all parts of it easily. We were there for a little over a week, and we spent about half of the days on the beach/relaxing, and the other half driving to see the island. There is everything from a fishing village (Lahaina) to a dormant volcano, to a lava-covered beach, to a rainforest with seven linked pools (I remember swimming in them). The beaches are spectacular and the waves are huge. </p>

<p>I was there on my honeymoon years ago, and learned later that my favorite ballet dancer, Merrill Ashley, was there for her marriage/honeymoon, at the same time, staying at Hana (lava-covered beach).</p>

59

<p>@RobD, you can easily have couple “alone time” while the kids are at the Kids’ Club and the tweens/teens are hanging out with other teens by the beach or pool or teen club. I agree though it’s best to have suite rooms.</p>

60

<p>^^^Absolutely true! But since my kids aren’t that social, it didn’t always work out as planned. But that won’t be an issue after August (empty nest here we come.)</p>