Looking for the Perfect Beach Vacation for Family of 6
 

Forgot to tag this the first time...
We are a family of 6 (2 adults, 4 daughters ages 10,11,13,15) looking for that perfect beach vacation destination for April 2010. I've looked at many posts and can't seem to filter it all! Our requirements seem simple enough: warm, great beach and snorkeling/diving. We're not looking for an all-inclusive as we'd like to explore the area and expose the girls to a little culture along the way. We are active and adventurous but definitely love our beach time. We have both Marriott points and a timeshare exchange through Interval International that we can use for lodging. It looks like Aruba and the Virgin Islands lead the way for family vacation travel and we haven't ruled out Hawaii. Please share any and all experiences....any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks so much!

We have been to the Aruba Marriott and the Grand Cayman Marriott. Both were very nice family friendly islands. They are both more desert like, but have lush resorts and beautiful beaches. Both islands have excellent food. The Aruba marriott is huge and would have more for your kids with lots of pools. The Cayman marriott is small, but very nice. Caymans has better snorkeling. Aruba has more action.

If you are coming from the east coast, Hawaii is a long trip, but wonderful. We went spring break two years ago from Virginia. Our girls were 13 and 14 at the time. We spent two nights in Honolulu at the Hilton Hawaiian Village and 7 nights on the Big Island at the Hilton Waikoloa. Both resorts were great and perfect for families. The Marriott Waikoloa was being renovated while we were there. It is right next door to the Hilton. The Hilton is much larger, but the Marriott sits right on a beach and had a fun luau. We loved the Big Island. There are giant sea turtles that swim right by you. :) You need a good 10 days to make the trip. If you are west coasters, then a week is fine. The kids take awhile to adjust to the time change, but we flew in at night and arrived in the middle of our night, but about 9pm Hawaii time. We had a man with a limo take us with leis to greet us to the hotel. It wasn't much more than taxi service and everyone thought it was cool. We were all so tired and had tons of luggage! We are usually not so extravagant! I knew we wouldn't fit our luggage in cab.
Hawaii was great and your kids are good ages to enjoy it. The Marriott Lihue in Kauai was one I was looking at and there is also a Marriott in Maui that looks good too! We were using Hilton points on our trip. Definitely saves money.
Good luck!

One more thing, of all the places, Hawaii will give the most cultural experience. Honolulu is like a Japanese city on a beach. Also, there is Pearl Harbor and the Hawaiian culture to enjoy everywhere.

Hi There
We have taken our four children (8-13)to St Kitts a few times and have stayed at the Marriott, but the best experience for us as a family was when we rented a large private villa. It was right on the beach, which we had to ourselves most of the time, with great snorkeling. We saw some wonderful fish, rays, and our son said he saw a turtle too. Next time we go we plan to put the older two kids on a Padi course.

There was also loads to explore, eg rain forest, volcano hikes, and the island is steeped in history. A real bonus was the friendliness of the Kittitians

See the St Kitts Tourism website for more info
http://www.stkittstourism.kn/index.asp

Plus this is where we stayed
http://turtlebeachhousestkitts.shutterfly.com/

Hi, I have been to many of the Caribbean Marriotts and am also an Interval Int'l member so maybe I can be helpful. First of all, put your II requests in now and provide lots of different resort options if you only have a certain week. I have put in for Caribbean & Hawaii in the past and not gotten it. Also, if you are not a Marriott timeshare owner, do not request all Marriott resorts through Interval because it is almost impossible to get them because Marriott owners always get priority. We have stayed at the Aruba Marriott Ocean Club with our kids, they loved it. Also stayed at La Cabana (LCB) a while ago, it still has a high II rating but several years ago it was really run down so check reviews. I also like Costa Linda (CDA) in Aruba. You are correct that your best chance for a trade is Aruba as there are so many there. I would also recommend two resorts in Antigua -- Verandah (VRN) we stayed there last year, not on a trade, and it is a good resort for kids but kind of far away from things, you definitely need a car. Also check at St. James Club (VGS) is is operated by the same company and we saw it from a boat trip, it looked nice and gets good reviews. In Hawaii, we stayed through II in Maui at the Embassy Vacation Resort, it now has a new name, the code is EGK, EG1. It was very nice and in a great location -- between Kapalua and Kaanapali, short drive to each and only about 10 minutes from Lahaina. We also stayed at the Marriott Waikiki which the kids loved. Marriott St. Kitts is worth checking out, it's a mega-resort with lots to keep the kids busy. Our favorite Caribbean Marriott is the Curacao Marriott, we liked Curacao a lot, more culture than Aruba (which is very Americanized) easy to get around, interesting beaches, decent snorkeling, good restaurants. You are probably not going to consider Mexico right now but I have to recommend another II property we stayed at in December and great for kids -- Paradise Village Resort near Nuevo Vallarta. Weather great, facilities wonderful and the food/drink was so much cheaper than Hawaii or Caribbean. We were feeding our family of four dinner at restaurants for $40 including drinks which was a bargain compared to other destinations. If you ever want to stay stateside, two II properties we love -- Eagles Nest in Marco Island and Hyatt Beach House in Key West. Have fun!

Thanks all for the great infomation.

Girlonthego - we would be traveling from Michigan so definitely a long trip to Hawaii but we don't mind, and would plan at least 10 days.
Since we've never been to Hawaii, would you recommend trying to island hop or just staying put? I was seriously considering Kauai because it seems much more lush than the others. We'll also be going over spring break and although it is inescapable would like to avoid the very popular (crowded), did you find the Big Island too crowded at that time?

Cariblover - I hadn't looked much at St Kitts but will check out the sites you provided. I love the idea of a little diversity in the terrain. The desert landscape was one of the cons on my Aruba list...

eileen- Thanks for all the great II information. I'm starting to feel the pressure to decide on a location and lock it in whether we use Marriott points or try to trade. I couldn't agree with you more about Hyatt Beach House - we love it!!

Our original plan was to spend 4 nights at the Hilton in Waikiki and 5 nights on Kauai at the Marriott Lihue. There was incredible flooding in both Waikiki and on Kauai that spring. So much so, that there was 50 million gallons of raw sewage dumped right in front of the hotels in Waikiki beach three days before our trip. So, I changed the entire trip. We spent only two nights in Waikiki and then 7 nights on the Big Island which I knew nothing about. We loved the Big Island. It was so strange looking, not tropical really. It had miles and miles of black lava rocks with white graffiti on them and white rocks to make graffiti. There were waterfalls and a volcano (that was not my favorite part really). It had fabulous snorkeling. We swam with giant turtles at the Hilton and also down in Kona area. I would return in a heartbeat.
We didn't go to Kauai so I really can't comment on it. We went to Mauai about 15 years ago and stayed at the Marriott on Wailea (it was a rennassaince back then I think). It was in a really nice area with beautiful hotels/resorts. The Grand Wailea was a nearby hotel that had just about everything. I believe that is owned by Hilton now. I liked Maui. We need to go back there!
Personally, with 4 kids, I think it would be easier to go to one island for the 10 days. You get there, you unpack and you just enjoy. Rent a car and tour around. Each island will have its own entertainment. I think Kauai will be the quietest. With 4 kids, I would go for an island that offers more activity. If you can't fly directly into one of the other islands, I would plan to spend one night on Oahu and then move.
No, I didn't find Big Island busy. The hilton beach was small and got a little crowded around easter, but other than that, we had no problem going anywhere on the island. I would recommend getting a book on Hawaii and read about each island to see what each island has to offer. You will find your perfect island trip. It is a great experience to go to Hawaii and your kids will enjoy it!