Mariarosa

Hi! Originally, we had planned on leaving our 2-year old son with Grandma for a week and going skiing in March. That was until I got pregnant (planned, but did not expect to happen so soon!). We still want to have a last hurrah, before 2 little kids make travel even more difficult than what it is now. My husband is a very active guy and would like to go skiing. The problem is, I won't be able to ski now and will need to stay somewhere with other things to do. Our previous trips to Utah and Colorado have really fallen short on anything beyond the skiing realm. Ideally, a bit of sightseeing (not far - don't want to drive a lot), shopping, spa-ing, lounging. No nature stuff for me, I don't want to slip and fall while pregnant. I've been to Vermont and liked it quite a bit (Manchester area and south). Would Stowe have other things to do? How about other places in New England? Or should we go north to Canada? Any resort recommendations?

Our other option is to scratch skiing completely and go to Europe, but with only 1 week, the trip may just be too tiring. A final option is the Caribbean, but I would really only consider food and water "safe" destinations that have major medical facilities, and we just returned from Puerto Rico (which so far seems like the only option) so I'm not sure where else we could go.

dfrostnh

For a snow area you might consider the White Mountains of NH. We're not having much snow but the ski areas are making it. You should be able to find resorts/hotels with spas esp in the North Conway area. In North Conway you would also have the benefit of outlet shopping and no sales tax. If you choose a ski area on the other side of the state convenient to Route 93, there's an outlet mall at exit 20 in Tilton (Tanger Outlets). Although the Grand Mountain View in Whitefield is nice, I wouldn't go that far north since shopping wouldn't be so good.
The US Virgin Islands shouldn't pose a health problem. St John offers a variety of accomodations and many beaches to choose from. Snorkeling at some beaches is great without going out on a boat. Take an island tour, evening sail, and possibly a day trip to British Tortola for an island tour. St John is a short ferry ride from St Thomas so even a day shopping on St Thomas is easy.

POlson

How about Santa Fe/Taos N.M.? Hubby can ski, you can shop, take a cooking class, go to the galleries and spa. Some wonderful dining options too.

trippinkpj

I like the Santa Fe/ Taos idea. My DH piped in Telluride. Maybe DebitNM will pipe in as she's familiar with both of those areas.

girlonthego

San Francisco would be a nice trip. Good food, sightseeing, weather pretty mild.

In Caribbean, Aruba has good water right out of the tap. There is lots of watersports right off the beach that your active husband could do. You could lounge on the beach and go to the spa!Aruba also has great restaurants and some gambling.

Scottsdale AZ has some great resorts that would pamper you and your husband could play golf. Good weather in March as well.

jersey

How far along in the pregnancy will you be? If not very advanced, check with your OB. They might give you a thumbs up on the skiing. I skied when I was pregnant with my last child. But I was only about 14 weeks along.

Do you prefer cold or warm weather? Because if you like warm weather you could go to Hawaii where there are lots of active things to do that you could participate in. Snorkling, for example.

Congrats on the baby.

MarySue

Be careful of going to high elevations when you are pregnant. We went to Denver and Breckenridge when I was about 5 months pregnant and I could hardly walk down the street without getting out of breath. The thin air really affected me. I have been to higher places not pregnant and had no problem.

Catbert

I would suggest going to Yellowstone. We stayed in West Yellowstone last March and took a fantastic snowcoach tour into the park. We saw a ton of wildlife; bison, elk, bald eagles. You can also go on a snowmobile tour if you prefer. There is great cross country skiing in the area which may be doable for you. You can also snowshoe. If you want to add a ski day or two, it's not too far to drive to Jackson Hole (and it's a beautiful drive).

TTess

The title of your query is too funny!

LLindaC

Ha ha...lol I liked the title too! We went to Banff in March and it was a great time to go! We ate at good places, good shopping and everything in the stores was DIRT cheap being cusp season. Nothing was crowded and we went up the mountain on the gondola, drove the Glacier route, had lunch at the Fairmount, and di many activities. Cross country skiing is an excellent idea! I ran and swam every day of my pregnancies and had a very easy time during and after. We stayed at the Rimrock which I loved. It has a spa, indoor pool, great food, a free shuttle to town. Right behind it they have the hot springs pool and the gondola.

LLindaC

and it was 50 degrees when we went first week in March!

lmoneylsauce

First off...congrats! I second Santa Fe as it's gorgeous and there are spas, cute boutique shopping & lots of sightseeing stuff downtown like museums if you're into that stuff. It is also a good jump-off point for outdoor activities for your husband.

Is there a reason you aren't considering California, Hawaii or even Bermuda? These could both provide adventure, relaxation & sun--and are much better than Puerto Rico in my opinion.

I love Jackson Hole, but the shopping is not spectacular and the real reason people go there (as to any ski town) is primarily to ski and/hike/party which you can't do right now so this may not be the perfect option for you.

What if you stayed in Vancouver & your husband drove to Whistler to ski during the day? Not a bad drive for him each day and you'd be in a fun city with plenty of spas, fabulous hotels, and fun & convenient sighseeing attractions. Same goes for Quebec or Montreal as there are a number of places to ski nearby.

Mariarosa

Hi! Thanks, lots of ski + something else ideas that I need to look into (Conway Valley, Taos, Telluride, Banff). Love the idea of a cooking class!

Jersey, to answer the question, I'm currently 10 weeks pregnant. If we go in March, I'll only be 4-5 months pregnant. I just don't feel comfortable skiing pregnant. I'm only a Level 7 skier, so I don't have the expertise to stay totally out-of-trouble. Plus, I've been hit a couple of times from behind by snowboarders (sorry snowboarders, I know there's plenty of good ones out there, but my worst experience have been with them). Once, it was in Blue Mountain, PA (if you're in Jersey, you probably know Blue Mountain!). My husband saw everything from the top. The boarder caught a patch of ice, couldn't hold his edge and came flying down on me. Knocked me hard. I gave him such an earful about how we are actual people on the mountain, not some obstacle or thing.

Anyways, keep all these great ideas coming!

jersey

Gads, Mariarosa, I know just what you mean. Although I no longer ski due to a knee problem, I have seen some spectacular wipeouts. Even the pro's fall sometimes. Best keep that little one safe and I really like some of those ideas above. Personally, I have become a warm weather person and would rather go snorkling. Floating in water when you're pregnant feels so cool. And you and your husband could do more things together. Either way, have a good time and relax, caring for babies take a lot of energy. Especially when you have a little one at home.

LLindaC

even though I mentioned Banff and loved that, we honeymooned on Tortola and I think the British Virgin Islands are the very best in the Caribbean. They are safe, easy to get around, won't be packed with Spring Break people, beautiful water, hiking, snorkeling, beach walking. We stayed at Long Bay- great choice. Took ferry to the other islands around there, Jost, Virgin Gorda. Had great sunsets in little beach bars. Heaven. St John would be a second choice.