Seeking a Dream Vacation with My Children

I took my daughter (3) to the Dominican Republic. They have various all inclusive hotels that have "kids Clubs" and activities that keep them occupied all day and some nights. WE had a blast. Gordeous weather, good food, drinks, and wonderful enviroment.

We went to Beaches, Turks and Caicos. The kids LOVED the camps. They wouldn't even do anything with us. They even stayed for the night action. We checked up on them throughout the day to see if they wanted to sail with us etc. It was a no go. To much fun with the counselors and other kids. We even got to eat alone on some nights. I heard the Beaches in Jamaica was nicer. Check into it. My kids still rave about it. They were 7 and 5 at the time we went. My husband and I said that was the best vacation for us all. We even felt like we had one!

I have to say check out the Franklin D Roosevelt Resort in Runaway Bay Jamaica. We haven't been there but it is deffinately on the must do list! They give you a vacation nanny included in your package!! They have all kinds of kids activites etc. and you get the nanny :-) Thier site is http://www.fdrholidays.com/fdr/frank_resort.html

Good Luck! You'll find something that fits your budget and needs :-)

M.

We've gone to disneyworld a few times with our kids and we absolutely love it. I know the cruises have kids clubs and stuff.

If you were interested in Disney Cruises or Disney vacation, check out www.wishestravel.com. They've booked us before and were GREAT!

What about Puerto Rico? they have rain forests, beaches, boating, fishing, museums. plenty for everyone and go to a spa while your husband watches the kids. or stay at a hotel with childcare if you're comfortable. then you and your husband can get at least one night to yourselves for dinner and a salsa lesson! look into a loft room for more privacy or a condo. And you're still in the US. When I save enough for my family of 5 that's where we are going.

LOL, I didn't know we could use the words "dream vacation" and "kids" in the same sentence!

Maybe check into Disney. They've got some great packages available...especially for this time of year. Also, what about the indoor water parks. There's one in upper NY and the there are the Dells in Wisconsin. If you want to be a bit more extravegant, try Sandals in Jamacia. They have "baby sitting" available, so your kids get the most out of their vacation and so do you.

And hey, if you're bringing the kids, can I go too??

M.

Well, if you have $$ then Disney is great - REALLY great! I was a total disbeliever about disney, but it really does have something for everyone - it's not just disney, epcot, universal etc. are all amazing parks!

For less $ we went to Grand Bahama Island, which was FUN. We swam with dolphins and went to a lush national park for hiking and stayed at Our Lucaya (which bumped our room up nicely, but I wouldn't count on THAT to make your vaca special lol!). There's a kids center which I wouldn't use all the time, but they have movies and stuff for an afternoon away for you and your partner. Amazing restaurants, too. Other islands are a bit more $ because they're warmer and more touristy (tho our lucaya is major tourist with like 7 pools and so on). So every island south you go is a bit more money - GBI is a bit shorter in flights, too.

Good luck!!!

I would definately look into the cruise ship vacations, there are a lot of great options and many that are kid friendly.

HI there,

I can't say this is necessisarily affordable, but a resort called BEACHES (do a google serach or try beaches.com) is a family friendly resort in the carribean...I believe Jamaica and Turks & Caicos...they have sesame street characters, babysitting and camps for the kids while mom and dad can have some serious relaxation beach time!!

Also there are the Disney cruises and other regular cruise lines that have "camps" for kids during the day so aprents can have some fun. try icruise.com for good prices on cruises....a non-Disney cruise might be the most affordable...if you ahven't cruised yet...you've got to try it. Carnival tends to have good prices...never tried them...I've tried Royal Carribean...GREAT cruises!!

Good luck

Last year my husband and I took the kids to the Club Med in Florida, it is GREAT for kids and for you too, because you drop the kids off at the camp and you do whatever you want, and the kids loved it !!! is in Sandpiper, FL

Hi H.,
Why not a cruise???? I am a travel agent and would love to discuss the options with you! Your kids are the perfect age, and you and your husband will get some quality time together!
C.

hello

a good tropical vacation with a family is the divi divi villiage in aruba- it's an all inclusive resort and has 3 pools, yummy snacks and igunas everywhere that keep the kids very entertained the water is crystal clear and they have lots of daily shows and even a rock wall for the kids to climb- lot so of great options... and very tropical

I don't know, but yeah I've seen the Sandal's Family vacation commercials and they always advertise babysitting at their resorts. I've wanted to take my daughter on a disney cruise ever since I had her... although people have told me that the disney ones are a waste of money, to go on a regualr cruise line that caters to kids.

There are a couple of things that I can think of. Sandals has a family oriented vacation spot called Beaches. That is set up for families and it also allows for adult time.

The other thing (which is my personal favorite) are cruises. I try and do these at least every other year and have been doing them since my son was about 3. Most boats have day programs for the kids so they can have fun (which usually don't cost anything extra) and almost if not all have babysitting options for the night time and usually you get a break when you have more than one child. Carnival is supposed to be a good boat for kids, I did one of theirs last year. Plus you get to stop at a few different tropical locations and soak up the sun.