World Traveling Friends....

[petey111]

Ok. If you don't care about giving someone advice on where to travel, don't read any further. LOL

We are going on vacation in March. It was supposed to be last spring for our 10 year anniversary, but with all the house moving and such, it got put off. So it's a special trip. Here's what we want and things to consider:

1. We want to lay on the beach. I want a pretty beach with soft sand that's not busy and crowded.
2. We want all inclusive.
3. We want good food and drinks.
4. We don't want a lot of family/kids. More romantic.
5. I don't want a hotel-y or mega resort feel. More of a bungalow step right onto the beach feel.
6. I really would like to try snorkeling.
7. We don't need a lot of activities, but some options would be good: kayaking, eco tours, neat historical sites...that kind of thing.
8. We are pretty private people.
9. My husband doesn't really travel well and whatever this flight will be will probably stretch the limit for him. (Probably 8 hours is the limit for him!)
10. Obviously, we are not millionaires. But we don't want to go stingy and cheap either.
11. I don't want a real commercial place. Jamaica feels that way to me and so does the Dominican Republic. (But I don't know...I've never been there!)
12. We do not travel often at all. So I am fairly clueless about stuff.
13. We don't have to, but can use some points that my in-laws have through their timeshare stuff (RCI, Interval, and Diamond).

Here is our "paired down" list of 9 places. Does anyone know any of these, been to these places, have any advice???? (*whew* /marathon post!)

Cap Maison - St. Lucia
http://capmaison.com/

Windjammer - St. Lucia
http://www.windjammer-landing.com/default.asp

Bay Gardens - St. Lucia
http://www.baygardensresorts.com/bay-gardens-beach-resort-spa/property-overview.html

Grand Pineapple - Antigua
http://www.grandpineapple.com/main/antigua/an-home.cfm

Breezes - Curacao
http://www.breezes.com/

The Reef - Grand Caymen
http://www.thereef.com/en/reservations/allInclusivePackages.html

El Dorado Royale - Playa Del Carmen
http://www.eldoradosparesorts.com/hotels/el_dorado_royale/

Powell Pointe Resort - Cape Eleuthera - Bahamas
http://www.capeeleuthera.com/index.php

Old Bahama Bay - Bahamas
http://www.oldbahamabay.com/index.asp

P.S. - How do we have a smiley riding an elephant, but not one on the beach or swimming or snorkeling??

 

[petey111]

Holy cow. I did not realize St. Lucia was that long of a flight. Or Antigua or Curacao. *sigh*

 

[janedee]

I've only been to one of those places - Playa del Carmen but not the all inclusive that you mention. It is a very busy place but a lot of fun. Unless they have a private beach it could get pretty crowded.

We've talked about going to St. Lucia but living on the west coast makes it a long way to travel. I understand the island is beautiful though and has great diving.

 

[clarabear]

I went to Grand Cayman from a cruise ship and I don't think I would go back. I did love Jamaica and would love to go back. I have heard the Costa Rica is amazing. Any vacation spot you go will be touristy to some degree. One good thing about resorts is that they have rules for the peddlers and they can't come onto the beach unless asked. If you are interested in Mexico I would recommend Zijuatenejo. It has everything you said I believe but it is a smaller fishing village. They don't have a dock so cruise ships have to tender (send small boats full of people to shore). A lot of people go to Ixtapa only a few miles from there because that is where all the resorts are.

 

[helenh]

Oh wow! What an exciting list!

 

[petey111]

Hmmm. El Dorado is adults only. I don't know if that means private beach or not!

 

[petey111]

Oh...and he could NEVER stomach a cruise!

 

[clarabear]

I'm ready to not cruise and pick a destination. We are debating punta Cana or costa rica right now. I liked cruising to find out where I want to go back to. I would get onto a site like rci and they will have a list of the amenities. They have a ton to look through and you don't have to be a member for a lot of the resorts they list. If you need a password to look through it let me know.

 

[mum2gnt]

Well I used to work in the travel industry in England. I used to sell heaps and heaps to the caribbean. I have also travelled all over the world (from the travel industry).

All inclusive (AI for short)..............how can I say this politely??? Some AI resorts attract what we in Australia call "cashed up bogans" - not all but heaps and heaps and heaps in the caribbean. They love the eat as much as you like and the drink as much as you like. These resorts also tend to be massive and very very commercial. I stayed in one "Jamaica Jamaica" and it was just dreadful (even had a beer tap on the beach).
The "adults only" type resorts can attract the hoon types too.
Sounds to me like you don't want that. BE CAREFUL!!!

Also be careful with the time of year you are going. March in Caribbean should be great though. But watch the weather. If you go to a beach place the last thing you want is full on rain!!

I once stayed in the Seychelles in a tiny bed & breakfast cottage right on the beach run by a lovely French speaking lady who served us breakfast every day. We got a taxi or walked to restaurants or she would cook home cooked food for us in the evenings. Very very private and cheap as chips compared to some of the resorts (Le Meridien was next door). I would take that over any AI commercial resort.

The other thing to bear in mind is that if you want exclusive / private beach (public ones you can be hounded by locals) / villa/cottage / fantastic location / etc - you would have to pay for it. An example would be Nekker island http://www.neckerisland.virgin.com/ or Turtle Island, Fiji http://www.turtlefiji.com/ - but you said you weren't millionaires, so they are off!

If this is going to be a holiday of a lifetime - or even if it is just an expensive holiday - you want to get it right. The only way to do that is to get tips from people who have stayed at these places. I am not sure where you are located. If I were you, I would look on www.tripadvisor.com and places like that or Expedia, etc. They have write ups by people who have stayed there. Do a search on the resorts you've listed and see what they say. Also, see if there is a tour organiser in your country that specialises in the Caribbean. talk to them. I was one of those but sold Asia.

I am a big fan of jamaica. I loev the people, the colourfullness, the dancing and music in the streets, the buzz - but most of all I loved what you could do there. Horse riding in the Blue mountains (even if you have never horse ridden), the many many waterfalls and rainforest surrounding them. The beaches and outer islands are amazing. I would go back to Jamaica any day just for that!

It depends if you want to see some of the country too.

I think you should cross Play Del carmen and Curacao off your list though........!

Good luck!

 

[petey111]

Wow. Thanks for the awesome advice!!!

I had crossed Jamaica off my list because it sounds busy and commercial. But maybe we should reconsider it. My husband is a pretty private person and doesn't like lots of crowds and party type things.

I've been on Trip Adviser a lot. The El Dorado got pretty good reviews. And it's not very big. In fact, one common complaint in the reviews was that it was too quiet for people. Which is probably not bad for us. LOL

I might just take a second look at Jamaica.