Kellyb22

Thinking of taking the family somewhere warm ,white sandy beaches and blue water in Mid-Feb 2010

My kids are 8 and 7, and have never been out of the country.
So a kid friendly resort all-inclusive is what I'm looking for?

Need any ideas of where the best deal might be? Thinking Jamaica? But open for ideas?

Also a way to convince the hubby it's OK to bring the kids!

Thanks

RoamsAround

Check out Beaches Resort on Providenciales in the Turks & caicos. This is one of the best "family resorts" in the Caribbean. You kids are the perfect age to fully participate in the "Children's Program" where they'll meet lots of kids their own age thereby giving you and your husband plenty of free time to enjoy all types of adult activities.

mrknowall

Barbados is my favourite island i have been to many caribbean island before,Barbados has the cleanest water and very nice beaches,me and my wife has book a nice villa on the west coast,for $840usd per week with free car, self catering is better for me i just dont do hotels.

virginia

on jamaica look at: http://www.fdrholidays.com/pebbles/
beaches on provo is very nice. provo is flat/arid & great for snorkeling/diving but not much else for activities, while jamaica is lush/hilly & would offer excursion options (river rafting, zip line, coffee plantation, etc)
there are also 3 beaches resorts on jamaica: http://www.beaches.com/general/resorts.cfm

the maya riviera coast of mexico (cancun south to tulum) has tons of ai's and is generally speaking less expensive than the islands. you might look at any of the resorts on this page: http://www.beachdestinations.com/Riv..._Friendly.aspx
and i would personally suggest http://www.occidentalhotels.com/grand/Xcaret.asp as it's connected to a fabulous ecomarine park with tons of things your kids will love called xcaret: http://www.xcaret.com/
the area offers a plethora of activity: zip line, cenotes, fishing, snorkel/dive, ruins, playa del carman for duty free shopping, atv jungle rides, horseback, & more. good overview of the area on locogringo.com

have dh look at these sites. he'll see that you can spend as much or as little time with the kids as you wish & that kid friendly does not mean disneyland. < or is that not his objection/concern?

if you have not started passport apps for the kids i'd get on that asap. if by chance your dh is not the father of your kids you'll need written permission from biodad to take kids out of country.

Welbourn3

We took our kids to St. John. It is one of the US Virgin Islands, so for us that was not "out of the country" but it was nice to leave the mainland Anyway, our children loved it because there was lots of easy snorkeling, with an amazing array of sea life to enjoy, even at shallow depths of 3' (small squid, rays, barracuda, flounder, sea stars, conchs, etc.). St. John is low key, with lots of natural wonders to enjoy. One place we stayed was Estate Concordia, which also had activities and a pool for the kids, and was very inexpensive. Their website is www.maho.org.
Good luck, Valerie

Tuxedocat

I would echo Wellbourn3's suggestion of Estate Concordia on the more affordable end (but mind you, it is more like comfortable camping and not resorty, all-inclusive thingy.) The closest thing to an all-inclusive on St. John is the Westin resort which is very family-oriented and definitely great to bring the kiddies. I would not cling to the resort, though. The best part about leaving your home surroundings is the opportunity to explore, and STJ is such a great island for families to explore together.

HappyCheesehead

Just curious, Kelly, are your kids on spring break already in Mid Feb (if you are from the US)?

Caribheart

We loved our trip to Gran Bahia Principe in Runaway Bay Jamaica last December. We have a 5 year old who is very very active and loves the Caribbean....so we were really pleased with the private beautiful child friendly beach to the left side of the resort....(the one in front not to be mistaken). The pool that wraps around the resort but also the two children's pools where my son could swim(ish) and stand while we did not have to panic from our chairs close by, watching with Pina Coladas. There is a kids club but we dont use those - no need my son is active but easily amused. There was a nice playground and the meals worked well for our son. But best of all for all of us was the outdoor lunch restaurant with the Jerk bbq and steel drums. It was comfortable with lots of opportunities for my son to enjoy himself - in fact we ofte enjoyed two hour lunches with beverages while he explored the restaurant, the staff, the beach area of just played with his toys at the tables etc....

Just our best recommendation for AI experience with kids. AS a side note we are returning to St.Kitts Timothy Beach Resort this winter though....also another fantastic option...one bedroom condo with pullout queen couch in the living room.