cthree

Having trouble planning...

I could lounge on a crystal blue beach for 5 days straight. Stay in a palapa with white washed walls. Eat fresh fruit and sleep. To me, a number of Caribbean islands look splendid.

But then there is my husband...not that keen on a beach vacation because he doesn't actually like being in the sun for very long! He thinks it's hot and boring. He'd rather hike, bike, explore plantations etc.

Which is all fine and good except now we throw in our 2.5 year old boy. Who can't really "hike" for very long. We can't take advantage of the snorkeling, diving, etc. unless we split up...which doesn't sound that fun.

What we do agree on is happily exploring interesting towns, eat good friend, watch sunsets.
Any ideas of how we can find the right balance? We don't have oodles of money to spend on places like Grace Bay at TC. We don't like the idea of resorts with kiddy pools and Disney babysitting areas. But I also don't want to have to rent a car and drive 5 hours somewhere into the boonies to get somewhere off the beaten path...Tricky, I know.

Caroline

qwovadis

jamaica.bookit.com places like roundhill.com rockhousehotel.com beach adventure Dunnes
River Falls hiking zips rivers plantations
Blue Mountains.

Cheap flights down on Sprit.com for me.

Have fun!

virginia

i would not take a child to rock house. it's on a cliff. of course there are railings, but i'd spend the whole trip in panic mode never taking an eye off my toddler.
and i hate to say it but unless your husband is willing to carry your son the entire time you are hiking (it's hot, humid & your boy will wilt quickly) i think he may need to give that wish up.
i think you could do a snorkel excursion. one snorkels while the other hangs on the boat, then swithch off. you'd still be together all but 45 mins or so.

there is a great deal to do on barbados that would be suitable for your family. a resort like: http://www.bougainvillearesort.com/index.cfm might work well for you as the units have kitchens which would be quite useful for breakfasts & some lunches a/or snacks. you can save by having cocktails on your own balcony or patio.

TPAYT

Barbados does sound good for you.

Another good fit might be St John---easy to get to, fabulous National Park over 2/3 of the island. There's tons of rentals that might fit the bill.

Check out http://www.vrbo.com/vacation-rentals...virgin-islands

or google St. John rentals for many more.

wliwl

I never encourage people with young children to consider St. John. Too much packing and unpacking the car, no services on most of the beaches, very little oceanfront accommodations, expensive restaurants that mostly lack children's menus, villas with pools a toddler could drown in, etc.

Frankly, I'd do a week in Sanibel with her husband and the 2.5 year old.

kellybeaches

Hi cthree,
Are you open to renting a villa vs staying at a hotel? We've been doing this for years since our kids have been babies with no problems. If the pool at your villa is an issue, all villas on St. Martin (french side) are required to have pool alarms.

We rented a villa on Virgin Gorda when our daughter was 8 months old, on the beach with a pool (the pool had an elevated 3' beautiful stone wall around it) and it was a wonderful time. Virgin Gorda is a bit tougher to get to than a lot of the islands with larger airports, but the Baths are beautiful to explore!

We also stayed on St. John at a villa when our daughter was 2 and loved it (got a pool with a fence/gate around it), and we're heading back there this June with our daughter who is now 6 and our 3 year old son-actually a week on St. John and a week on Tortola-both at villas. Villas are great with kids as you really have a lot of space to yourself, plus your own pool, or you can rent beachfront depending on which island you go to-we rented beachfront on Sapodilla bay in Provo last August and it was wonderful.
trip report:
http://www.fodors.com/community/cari...gust-13-21.cfm

St. Martin may also fit your bill. Lots to do as far as hiking goes (Loterie Farm-hiking and ziplining), fun beach bars (Orient, Grand Case, Pinel Island), day trip to Anguilla for your beach needs, Phillipsberg and Marigot for shopping, Sunset Beach bar for watching the planes land which I'm sure your little guy would love, and more. Here's a link to my trip report from St. Martin. Good luck!
trip report:
http://www.fodors.com/community/cari...-7-15-long.cfm