But where to stay?<BR>My husband and I, and our 9 year old daughter and 13 year old son plan to vacation in PDC in early August. We just can't decide where to stay! The kids have never been to an island before, so we want it to be a great experience. We aren't sure about all-inclusives - we like to try new restaraunts. Although, the inclusion of water sports might lean us that way. We want a good pool, a nice beach, and hopefully be able to walk to town. Snorkeling onsite would be a plus, but not a necessity. Any suggestions? Mid to upper-mid range would be good. Also - any package &quot;company&quot; recommended (or NOT recommended?)<BR><BR>Thanks so much - the information on this board is great - but I'm confused! <BR><BR>Theresa

Hi Theresa,<BR>I have been to this area 3 times and think it is great. we have taken our son and he loved it. The first time we took him we stayed at the Porto Real. This was not an all-inlcusive plan. The room was beautiful, very big with very nice Mexican inspired furniture. The pool was huge!!! the beach directly in front of the hotel has boats moored. So you have to got to the right or the left of the hotel to swim in the beach. This property is within walking distance to town. The restaurants in town are really great. So many to chhose from.<BR><BR>For all-inclusives I would suggest the Iberostar Quitzel or The gala Resort. Both are close to town and both have wonderful kid's activities. They are both rated about a 5 but for some reason the Gala resort is always a little less. If you have any other questions feel free to e-mail me at [email protected].<BR><BR>Happy Traveling,<BR>Jill

Umm... Playa Del Carmen is NOT an island. Perhaps you're thinking of Cozumel?<BR><BR>Very few resorts at PDC have good snorkeling right off the beach. They do have wonderful white powder sand, though.<BR><BR>The good thing about an all-inclusive resort is that there are snacks and drinks available all day. This can be a good thing with kids. If you do want to venture into town to try other restaurants, it's only a short cab ride away.

We stayed at the Iberostar Toucan and loved it. I think you could probably walk to town, but it's pretty far; easy to get a cab. I have to say, though, that our kids didn't enjoy visiting the town. They preferred the resort and our day trips to Tulum and Chichen Itza.

We just got back from the Barcelo Maya resort, about 10 miles south of PDC with our 11 yr old son and 14 yr old daughter. It was very nice. My kids loved it. It's a huge mega resort, beautifully landscaped. It is AI, but with kids, it makes it a very easy and relaxed vacation. Food was always available, the property seemed very safe and there was a lot to do if you should chose. My son was the only real activity oriented person of the 4 of us. He was involved in basketball, soccer and ping pong contests, and even played bingo. They give prizes to winners at the evening show. In the pool there were always kids playing volleyball or basketball. There are 2 pools, we stayed at the 'beach' resort side. The pool was a very large freeform shaped pool. There were always lounge chairs available and shade. The beach was very nice as well. Non-motorized water sports were included (kayaks, sailboats, wind-surfing, boogie boards, etc.). They also had tennis courts that seemed always available, mini-gulf and a 4-hole pitch and putt course. Golf club and tennis racquets and balls were also available at no cost. The beach is quite large and the neighboring resorts are quite a distance away (not easily walkable), barely visible. There is a pier with some decent snorkeling also on the property. The food was decent. You really have to get a good look at all areas of the buffet or you can easily miss something. We preferred the food they cooked on the spot, as opposed to the steam-table type dishes. Both types are always available at all meals. The a la carte restaurants were un-impressive. The same food as the buffets, just served a la carte. The room was OK. Clean &amp; quiet, but short on drawer space with 4 people in it. Also we had to ask for extra towels almost everyday and it took about 4 calls to the front desk to finally get our rollaway bed which we requested at reservation time (the room had 2 double beds). All in all we enjoyed this place. We would consider reutning but would also look into other alternatives (I personally like to try new places). We've been to the Gala and Sun palace, and preferred this over those 2.

We have stayed at Iberostar Queztal two times, once we had our 9 year old with us. The pool is HUGE! It has one end where it gradually goes from ankle deep to waist deep...great for kids. My son loves the AL included free icecream all day. The beach is great. They have sailboats and watersports for free. Also, each day the kids can try to scuba in the pool for free. We went to Xehl-ha to snorkle which was a lot of fun...the first time we rented a car and drove ourselves to Xehl-ha. The jungle at Iberostar has monkeys that are so cool. Kids and adults love it. Also, the rooms have a king size bed and twin bed for one child. The bathrooms are nice...big marble shower. The food was &quot;average&quot;. You can take a taxi to town for a nominal price. They also have bikes you can rent. I would definately go back. We used a travel agent booking through funjet or apple vacations to get the best deal.<BR>Enjoy!<BR>Cyn