jersey

My husband and I have raised five children, so we love kids. But since our youngest is now in college we prefer to vacation in quiet without the lovely little ones around.

Suggestions for middle price range vacation? We snorkle, walk, like history, and a nice glass of wine with dinner. We've stayed at PI, Bahamas, PR, and Nevis. We like to try new places and thought we'd throw this out there and see what others think. Also, we've never done a all-inclusive because we like to get out and visit the island and it seems the value of an all inclusive is staying on the property. Comments?

Thank you for any input.

karameli

I'll throw in a vote for Aruba. It's quiet, and mostly couples-oriented -- we saw very few kids while there. I stayed at the Radisson on my honeymoon two years ago and loved it -- that and the Hyatt were the two nicest properties in our opinion. Great for snorkeling, walking, and EATING. Not a ton of historic sites though. But you can usually get a cheap flight and an excellent hotel for under $200. Good luck!

beachgirl86

We loved the Radisson in Aruba, and I would def. recommend it, but there were lots of kids in Aruba.

We went to Anguilla this past June and stayed at Ku. This was a perfect choice for romance and privacy. We saw very few children vacationing here compared to other places we have gone (Aruba, Hawaii, Vegas).....LOTS of couples.

Check out www.anguillaforum.com

ONZGO

There are no all adult resorts in Aruba, so if you are looking for something totally all adult you may be disappointed in Aruba. The Bucuti is about as close as you can come to an all adult resort. To us we found Aruba very Americanized and touristy and lacked a real Caribbean feel and lacked in its own history and culture. Too many high rise hotels and American fast food places and restaurants. Felt like we were on a beach in the U.S. instead of some Caribbean island.

We really enjoyed St. Lucia. It is very beautiful and lots of history and culture. The same with Antigua and both have a realy Caribbean feel to them.

jersey

Thanks for the suggestions. I am intrigued by St Lucia and would like to hear more if you could help. Thanks.

Carola22

We know both Anguilla and Aruba quite well, and like both. The previous poster is right though, Aruba is very Americanized. Still, Bucuti is very quiet, and they 'do not encourage children' so there are no or very few children. The beach is so huge that even when the hotel is fully booked you won't be bothered by anyone else.
As for Anguilla, it's still much less touristy than Aruba but changing rapidly. A golf course has been built (why?? Why all these golf courses on tropical islands? Very harmful to the environment!) and lots of construction is going on on Meads Bay. If you go to Anguilla, I really recommend the Rendezvous Bay Hotel. It's right on a fantastic quiet beach, very friendly staff, just wonderful.
I don't know anything about St. Lucia, except that as opposed to Anguilla and Aruba it's 'lush' and 'tropical'. I'm not that interested in going there, though - read a lot of reports about poverty and a 'third-world atmosphere'. Not what I'd want on my vacation - but of course you should wait for comments from people who have actually been there!

sleeepy

Personally, given your description, I think you would LOVE St. Lucia. It's very peaceful and absolutely beautiful. You can do as much or as little as you want. There is so much to see and do that should you get bored, it'd be your own fault. We left our children at home - missed them terribly, but had a GREAT time.

The northern end of the island has the most "life" and best beach area (Rodney Bay), but the Southern end of the island is where you will go to see the Pitons, Botantical Gardense, etc. and where some really nice resorts are located as well (but you'll find good resorts at each end). There is good snorkeling and diving, rain forests all over, a nice little museum/hike on Pigeon Island at the North end, LOTS of history (St. Lucia changed hands between the British and the French FIFTEEN times!!) - no lack of history for sure. There are plantations to visit, rum distilleries . . . it's a great place.

You will find much more information, especially on resorts, on tripadvisor.com in the St. Lucia forum.

iw

Sorry to jump in, but my husband and I also prefer to vacation w/o kids and Aruba was loaded with them. I have been thinking about St. Lucia....does anyone know how it would compare with St. Kitts/Nevis? We love those islands for the quiet atmosphere and the un-developed feel to them compared to the hustle and bustle of St. Martin and Aruba. Any thoughts?

iw

ttt

ejcrowe

jersey, does PI stand for Paradise Island or Peter Island for you?

I agree with previous posters that St. Lucia might be good for you. Take a look at www.tikaye.com for a nice mid-range place to stay on the island. It's a fairly isolated resort, but it's midway between the two focal points of the island.

If you liked Nevis, St. Kitts might be a good place to start. Ottley's Plantation runs some nice package specials, and while the snorkeling isn't great, it will be somewhat better than what you saw on Nevis.

iw, I've not yet visited St. Kitts, but I can say that St. Lucia is definitely not like Aruba or St. Martin in terms of hustle & bustle. On the north part of the island where the all the resorts are it would feel busier than Nevis. But the southern part of the island is like Nevis in that it's lush, mountainous, picturesque, and without many large developments.

St. Lucia was the first place I visited in the Caribbean, and I think it pretty much determined which type of island I prefer to visit--the more lush, more mountainous, less developed, and lacking in the long stretches of blinding-white sand. I've not yet revisited St. Lucia (but I will, eventually!), but in my memory the roads were really rough, hilly, and with blind curves. Much harder to get around than on Nevis, where we bebopped around in our rental car. Now that I've had some experience driving in the Caribbean (Nevis, Tortola, Vieques, Grenada), I might not find St. Lucia as intimidating as I did then.

I suspect that because things are so spread out on the southern part of St. Lucia that it tends to be rather resort-driven and that folks stay more resort-bound there than other places I've visited. Which is not to say you can't do your own tours and try out a different restaurant each day--but it seems that it takes just a little more effort to do that there than other places I've been. Does that make sense?

jersey

Ej-yes it makes sense and I do think St Lucia is where we'll be headed. In fact, Ti Kaye just returned my e-mail about reservations. Also prefer the lush vegetation although I will eventually visit all the other islands. Can or do people rent jeeps at the airport? Or do people usually just rent taxi's or tour operators? I like the idea of renting a jeep and exploring.

Thanks to all for your input.

Oh, and PI is Peter Island.

Kawag

We have had the pleasure of enjoying much of the Caribbean over the last 10 years. Two years ago we tried the Sandals Grande in St. Lucia for a couples only vacation. The Sandals properties are all-inclusive but we loved it so much that it was the first time we didn't leave the property to tour around. There is plenty to do there and next time I will definately drive around a little more. At Sandals you can snorkel every day (all included) and the boat is stationed right at the beach. There is a lovely little hike to the top of a hill right beside the resort with a beautiful view. As you know it is lush and the cove by the resort attracts sailors and their fabulous boats which adds to the whole amazing view from the beach every day! Just something to consider looking into. Good luck!

ejcrowe

Jersey, since PI represents Peter Island for you, you might want to take a look at Biras Creek on Virgin Gorda. (www.biras.com) It is not moderately priced, but it is comparable with the prices at Peter Island, and all meals are included in the rates. It's not adults-only, but it is adult oriented, and it would be quite quiet. It's a Relais & Chateaux property, so the food is quite good. Virgin Gorda is an easy island to get around on your own if you wanted to. Snorkeling at The Baths and Spring Bay would be a must-do. There's the old copper mine to see, and you can hike to the top of the peak for great views. It's also easy to day-trip to other islands from there. Biras even gives you Boston whalers to explore offshore cays for snorkeling and bicycles to explore the extensive property on your own.

As for renting cars at the airport on St. Lucia, yes they are available. I probably wouldn't do it myself, because even when I drive on an island, I don't like my first time behind the wheel to be right after stepping off the plane. I prefer to have a rental car delivered to my hotel. It is possible there are rental companies on St. Lucia that would drop off at Ti Kaye, but I am not knowledgable on that point.