koolzr

What location would we get the most bang for our buck in the Caribbean? Traveling with 3 boys and need to keep them interested. Looking for condo, villa, hotel all in one. thanks in advance

starfish1

We took our kids to St. Lucia and stayed at Windjammer Landing near Castries http://www.windjammer-landing.com/
Beautiful property, lots of activities, good food (we found the AI to be worth it - and we only had one teenage boy!) The island is worth exploring for at least one day. We took a cruise down the coast to go snorkelling and mountain biking. But if you just want to stay put, there's lots to do on site. While it didn't spoil our fun, my only complaint was that there was construction going on at the time we were there which made it somewhat noisy during the day. If you're interested you might want to check on the state of things now.

virginia

most bang for buck, tons for 3 boys to do (parents too), nice beaches, loads of condos and villas available. maya riviera - the coast south of cancun to almost belize.
you can dive/snorkel, golf/tennis, tour ruins, snorkel cenotes and tour caves, zip-line, horseback riding, atv jungle tours, fishing (deep sea or bonefishing), sailing, kayaking. plus 2 eco marine water parks, xel-ha and xcaret.
many lodging options. tons of all-inclusives, which might be good so boys could eat/drink whenever. or villas are great if your family likes to entertain itself.
we stayed in casa cavu on tankah bay. 3 brs with 2 beds in one so it might work for you.
you can look at casa cavu and find out pretty much everything you'll need to know about the area at www.locogringo.com

eileen

I realize this is the Caribbean board, but we just spent Christmas week in Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico, just north of Puerto Vallarta and it was the best "bang for the buck" and my children, 12 and 16, just loved it. And there are lots of condo resorts there -- we stayed at Paradise Beach Village, just great. I couldn't believe how inexpensive food/drinks were, dollar is strong against the peso, we were feeding our family of 4 at decent restaurants off the resort for about $40 for dinner. And we were able to bargain for things like parasailing and jetskiing, overall so much less expensive than the Caribbean. I love the Caribbean and been to lots of islands but when you are feeding hungry children it certainly helps not to have to pay through the nose! And the weather was superb, not a cloud in the sky every day. Great family destination. In the Caribbean, we found Aruba and Curacao to be more affordable than other islands. Aruba has lots of condo resorts right on the beach.

Caribzack

Windjammer Landing on St. Lucia had great food BUT, Big Rats, not just 1, saw many...even running on the rafters during dinner, room leaked when it rained, and bugs got in the unit! NEVER would return there...