Anyone been to Beaches Family Resort?

[newbymom05]

OK, hearing the commercial every day before Sesame Street has completely brainwashed me--I want to go! I have an almost 4 y/o and a nursing 9 mo old. Am I crazy to think that's a good vacation idea? I'm curious about the kids club thing too--is it any good? Please, share experiences if you have them!

[kdescalzi]

Sorry, I have not been there, but we had seriously thought about it the last couple of years. We decided against it only because the flights from Canada were so very expensive. I just wanted to let you know that we just got back from a trip to Kauai, Hawaii and found the most family friendly condo and wanted to pass it on. It is called the Outrigger Waipouli resort and condos. We had our whole family go so we rented a condo that slept 6 plus ds. It was huge and very luxurious for only 295$ a night!...and that was again for 6 people. It has an amazing pool/waterslide area for kids. Just wanted to pass on my good find. We would definately go back there! Ds had a blast!

[miasmommy]

We've never been there but it sure looks AWESOME... My DD isn't a huge Sesame St. fan but hey, who couldn't love the warm weather, pools & Elmo????

[mistymama]

Well dh and I got married at Couples Swept Away in Jamaica, and there was a Beaches nearby. It looked fun!

I did lots of research on the resorts and from what I read the food isn't quite the same quality (but neither is Sandals from what I've read) but isn't horrible either. It sure looked like fun ... water slides, all kinds of fun water sports. Dh and I are considering going with ds. We LOVED Couples, but it's adult couples only and we really want to take ds.

BTW, it was Negril, Jamaica we went to. AMAZING beaches.

[newbymom05]

DH would love Hawaii but I'm not the best flier. My dream vacation is a month in Europe, as in a cruise to and from Europe. But anyway, I'll remember that for the future. Maybe once I stop b'feeding and xanax is an option, 'cause Hawaii is a long flight!

I love Jamaica. The last time we went (pre-kids) we stayed at the Ritz Carlton in Negril (off season, great deal) and it was great. I love all-inclusives! But I would rather do something more kid-friendly now.

[ABmom]

We were thinking of Beaches or Club Med for families last year. We were told that it is expensive compared to to your regular resorts but worth the price for all the convenience of having a baby/children program on site so you can spend your days without the kids around. Our neighbour went and she had mixed results. Her youngest 7mos and oldest 7yo loved it but the middle one 2yo was miserable (wanted to be with the parents.) And the food is adequate, nothing fancy unless you want to pay more. I think it really depends on your children personalities. Do they adjust well to having someone (resort staff) take care of them while mommy and daddy are relaxing?

We did end up going but just rented a huge condo (pool & watr sports) with dh's cousin. The kids (8, 4 & 12 mos) had fun on the beach, pool, etc and the adults just took turned babysitting. It was definitely cheaper than going to the resort.

Good luck whatever you decide. Everyone deserves a vacation, especially mommies!

[AllyRae]

Originally Posted by ABmom

We were thinking of Beaches or Club Med for families last year. We were told that it is expensive compared to to your regular resorts but worth the price for all the convenience of having a baby/children program on site so you can spend your days without the kids around. Our neighbour went and she had mixed results. Her youngest 7mos and oldest 7yo loved it but the middle one 2yo was miserable (wanted to be with the parents.) And the food is adequate, nothing fancy unless you want to pay more. I think it really depends on your children personalities. Do they adjust well to having someone (resort staff) take care of them while mommy and daddy are relaxing?

Wait...it's a family resort, but the little kids have to stay in daycare? That doesn't sound so fun to me, especially if they are miserable because they want to be with their parents....

Is that a "must" or just something people do? I was looking into Beaches a couple years ago (for a "sometime in the future" kind of thing) but I'll stop looking if it's one of those things where little kids get hidden away in a daycare/"kid camp" most of the time....

[ABmom]

The use of the daycare facility or kids' programs is not a must but it is available for parents who wish to use it for an extra fee. I can see why it is popular with some families as the parents can relax on the beach knowing that their children have kids-appropriate programs geared for them.

Personally I don't like strangers taking care of my kids at a young age but when they are older (8+ yo) then we might consider it.

[Dandelionkid]

I was just talking to DH about this. I would never feel comfortable leaving kids with strangers in a chaotic, kid-filled environment until a lot older. Would be concerned about adequate supervision, abuse etc and would not be able to relax.

[mistymama]

Well from what I observed of the Beaches in Negril, most families we hanging out together on the beach and doing water sports. They had one of those huge banana things you ride on that gets pulled by a boat .. *I* wanted to do that darn thing!

I know if we went with ds, I might leave him in the kids club thing if he really wanted to for a little bit, or maybe if dh and I wanted to do a romantic dinner or something. But most of the time we would be together as a familiy, snorkeling, chilling on the beach. I think most people are the same way. The kids club is more of an occasional babysitter (if needed) and certainly not necessary at all.

[AllyRae]

Oh whew...I thought the kids had to go (otherwise, I couldn't figure out why that one poor kid that was posted about had to spend his vacation so miserably when he wanted to hang out with his family). I'm glad to hear it's different than that...because one day if the money is there, it does look like a fun vacation!

[newbymom05]

Maybe I'm wrong, but I thought the kid's club was fun structured activities you pick and choose, not a place to park kids while parents enjoy a pina colada. Hmmm...pina colada... I thought I saw on their site that there were specific activities at specific times, like make a kite at 11am, etc. Maybe there's also a daycare type set up that costs extra?

[LittleBlessings]

I was also looking at beaches and thought it looked like fun for a first family vacation and liked that everything is included

[Miasmamma]

Originally Posted by kdescalzi

Sorry, I have not been there, but we had seriously thought about it the last couple of years. We decided against it only because the flights from Canada were so very expensive. I just wanted to let you know that we just got back from a trip to Kauai, Hawaii and found the most family friendly condo and wanted to pass it on. It is called the Outrigger Waipouli resort and condos. We had our whole family go so we rented a condo that slept 6 plus ds. It was huge and very luxurious for only 295$ a night!...and that was again for 6 people. It has an amazing pool/waterslide area for kids. Just wanted to pass on my good find. We would definately go back there! Ds had a blast!

I just googled them, and I had to leave the site b/c I wanted to go soooo bad!! DH are talking about starting to save to go to Hawaii when our kids are older, after seeing that, we are starting now!

[ABmom]

Originally Posted by newbymom05

Maybe I'm wrong, but I thought the kid's club was fun structured activities you pick and choose, not a place to park kids while parents enjoy a pina colada. Hmmm...pina colada... I thought I saw on their site that there were specific activities at specific times, like make a kite at 11am, etc. Maybe there's also a daycare type set up that costs extra?

The best thing to do is to call the resort and inquire about this. I know that several of the resorts/hotels dh and I been to (before we had kids) offer babysitting services even though they were not Beaches or ClubMed for Families. We were told by our travel agent that the appeal of places like these were the fact that children have programs/activities geared toward their age groups throughout the day and parents don't have to coordinate anything. Usually the children can be there from 9am-6pm.

[newbymom05]

Originally Posted by ABmom

The best thing to do is to call the resort and inquire about this. I know that several of the resorts/hotels dh and I been to (before we had kids) offer babysitting services even though they were not Beaches or ClubMed for Families. We were told by our travel agent that the appeal of places like these were the fact that children have programs/activities geared toward their age groups throughout the day and parents don't have to coordinate anything. Usually the children can be there from 9am-6pm.

Thanks for the info. I don't know who I'm kidding, we'll be "vacationing" at Grandma's house this year, lol. But the last line of your para, is it me or is that kind of sad? Can you imagine a "family" vacation where the kids are in daycare the whole day?

[Teensy]

We're considering going to a Beaches at some point.

We stayed at a Sandals once and thought it was fabulous fun. I would love to be able to go SCUBA diving one day with DH while the kids enjoy their activites. I don't know that going out diving would take the full 9:00 - 6:00, but it could certainly take a big chunk of the day. I would not feel bad about having a day where the children took part in separate activites from their parents - they'd have fun, we'd have fun, and we'd have lots to talk about at dinner that night.

[mistymama]

Originally Posted by newbymom05

Thanks for the info. I don't know who I'm kidding, we'll be "vacationing" at Grandma's house this year, lol. But the last line of your para, is it me or is that kind of sad? Can you imagine a "family" vacation where the kids are in daycare the whole day?

Guess it depends on the kid. I know that if the kid's day activities were fun, I would be having to BEG ds not to go and spend time with us.

I am dying to go back b/c dh and I had such a wonderful time snorkeling & I have no doubt ds would LOVE it. He can already snorkle in the swimming pool & has his own gear. The waters in Jamaica are so mellow, I can't wait to take ds back there and watch him have a blast snorkeling with us!

But I can totally see him wanting to play with kids his own age and ditching us!