Young Couple Looking for a Vacation Destination
 

I am a 23 year old female looking to take a 5 night vacation at the end of November with my boyfriend for his 23rd birthday! I will be flying out of Minneapolis, MN, and he will be flying out of Grand Rapids, MI. We need something affordable, looking for around $1.000 total per person including flight and everything if possible, so $2,000 total. We were thinking an all-inclusive vacation may be fun as neither of us have ever tried that. We are looking for something on the ocean with beautiful scenery, and as for the atmosphere we are looking for something relaxing/romantic but with the potential to also have a lot of fun and party a couple of nights. Any recommendations/ideas would be much appreciated!

Your budget is a bit low since it includes flights. You will usually find the lowest prices for all inclusive resorts in the Domincan Republic and Mexico.

Your total budget is low. With the storms and hurricanes, hard to plan anything in the Caribbean. Look at travelzoo.com for some ideas. It is usually cheaper to book things separately, but that can give you some ideas to begin with, including Mexico.

Thank you all! I will definitely look into Mexico as well then. I may end up having to just up my budget. Do you think $3,000 total for the both of us would be more logical?

Agree, your budget is low for 2 people since you'll probably spend 40% to 50% just on airfare alone. This makes it very difficult for anyone to give you recommendations for specific resorts. The best we can do at this juncture is steer you to a destination that might have something in your price range.

As Sassafrass pointed out last week Hurricane Irma played havoc on many Caribbean islands and today Hurricane Maria is rearing it's ugly head through the northern Leeward islands so best to wait a few days until you can more accurately assess the situation. Regardless, with the exception of the Dominican Republic and possibly Jamaica most resorts in the northern Leeward Islands will be out of your price range (even if they weren't damaged by the hurricanes).

You are going to find the most options in your price range will be in Cancun, Playa del Carmen and Cozumel (all in Mexico and all of which have been spared the wrath of both Irma and Maria). The Dominican Republic also will have a few All Inclusive in your price range but right now it's somewhat in the path of Maria - take a wait and see attitude if you are considering that island.

You may find some good package deals for All Inclusive in the Mexican destinations I mentioned on Airline websites. See what package deals are available in your price range then come back here or check reviews on TripAdvisor to help you select the particular resorts that interest you.

http://www.cheapcaribbean.com/

Is a good website because you can search by various parameters, budget, locations, etc.

I agree about Mexico being likely easier to fit your budget than any of the Caribbean islands. The Mayan Riviera as mentioned but also the Pacific Coast (I like Puerto Vallarta a l9t).

Negril Jamaica is one place I'd recommend checking but I don't know about the AIs there (but plenty of inexpensive hotels, cabins, etc.) You fly into Montego Bay.