Tropical Family Vacation

January 11, 2006 1:36 PM

My wife and two kids are trying to plan a vacation to somewhere warm to get out of New England in March - but we're tough to shop for.

We'd like to avoid later February when prices are high for school holidays. We come with lots of caveats.

Kids are six and two. We're all vegetarians - actually leaning towards raw food recently.
We'd like somewhere that can support our food habits (by eating on site or shopping nearby).
We'd like a pool (as well as presumably an ocean) for safe kid swimming.
We'd like activities for the kids nearby to keep them somewhat occupied.
We don't care about "nightlife", we prefer that mix of quiet/solitude with access to activities that is hard to find.
Our budget is something like 3K for a week somewhere.

Does this place exist? We went to Sanibel/Captiva a few years ago and I'd rank it as pretty good for what we were looking for. I'd hope to do better though. We also don't want to blow our whole budget on flights.

posted by dhacker to travel & transportation (16 comments total)

San Diego? If you're not looking for something exclusively overseas and are okay with renting a car for the week it's a nice place to visit. Lots of beaches, hotels with pools, vegetarian food. In March it's still warm enough for the beach (especially if you're used to New England weather), but you don't get hit with all the tourists.
posted by booknerd at 1:39 PM on January 11, 2006

If you can live without the beach, you should come to Colorado. You would have no problem eating in Boulder, the weather is fantastic, and the mountains have a ton of the mix of quite/solitude you seek.

Plus, it can be done for way less than $3,000 for a week.
posted by Sheppagus at 1:54 PM on January 11, 2006

Check out the S. Carolina barrier islands. My wife and I did a week there a few years ago. Rented a condo right on the beach, did a lot of our own cooking, walked out to the beach every morning and swam with dolphins swimming about 30 feet away from us.

Some of the condos had pools and tennis courts.

It's about an hour from Charleston, where you'll find stuff to do. There's also a bunch of plantations around there. You can tour a couple of them and notice how they all claim that thier slaves were treated humainly.

Easy flight from Boston.

We went through Great Beach Vacations
posted by bondcliff at 2:04 PM on January 11, 2006

I second bondcliff. When my sister and I were little we went to Kiawah Island which has a lot of small condos that are walking distance from a very pertty beach. Nice places to walk around, totally different nature from New England and flying up and down the coast doesn't play hell on time zone stuff and the pocketbook. We rented bikes and weer pretty independent, but did all of our cooking/laundry on-siet.
posted by jessamyn at 2:13 PM on January 11, 2006

Bermuda is surprisingly close. It's a warm, tropical paradise.
posted by equipoise at 2:37 PM on January 11, 2006

Sedona, AZ. It's gorgeous there, and should be easy to accommodate your dietary needs. Can't speak for kid activities, but it's a nice, mellow place in northern AZ, well worth a visit. No ocean, though. :-)
posted by pdb at 2:39 PM on January 11, 2006

Turks & Caicos is a wonderful choice -- my husband and I were there a few years ago and are heading back in April. Unbelievably perfect beaches, not too overdeveloped, safe and relatively clean (not at all like some Caribbean islands where you shouldn't venture off your resort). There were quite a few restaurants, but also an American-style grocery store where you can get anything you need. Beach condo rentals are available, as are hotels and all-inclusive resorts (to which you can buy day passes for the activities/meals even if you're staying elsewhere). The cost isn't terribly prohibitive either compared to many tropical vacations.
posted by justonegirl at 2:41 PM on January 11, 2006

I'll third Bondcliff. We used to go to Hilton Head Island when we wanted to get o ut of the cold when I was a kid living in CT with my family.
posted by SpecialK at 2:46 PM on January 11, 2006

I second Bermuda, but I'm not familiar with the veggie-friendliness of the island. I have been told that most foods on the island are imported from the States, so freshness/rawness/localness may be an issue for you. The wife and I did 4 days at a very nice hotel including all meals for $2000 in '98, so you may be at the upper end of your budget, too. The weather and beauty and warmness of the locals can't be beat, though.
posted by Rock Steady at 4:30 PM on January 11, 2006

South Carolina sounds nice but I'm worried that it won't be warm enough. I looked at some properties and while the area does seem to fit everything I asked for it may not be hot enough.
posted by dhacker at 4:37 PM on January 11, 2006

early March is traditionally far too cold in South Carolina to be enjoyable--even the drunk Spring Break kids in Myrtle Beach have enough sense to stay indoors.

You might try flights to the Central American region, which can be surprisingly well-priced at that time of year from the East Coast, generally. The Bay Islands of Honduras or the cays of Belize come to mind. However, neither is as close as Bermuda.
posted by soda pop at 4:56 PM on January 11, 2006

dhacker writes "South Carolina sounds nice but I'm worried that it won't be warm enough. I looked at some properties and while the area does seem to fit everything I asked for it may not be hot enough."

Tomorrow's high here in Columbia, SC is going to be 72F. It's been fairly warm all week and we're all wondering when the weather is going to start sucking again because this warmth in January is almost unheard of. If you're looking for lay on the beach weather, you might want to head further south, as beach weather doesn't typically show up until mid to late April.
posted by chiababe at 6:51 PM on January 11, 2006

This is probably a long shot, given the distance you'd need to travel and the ages of your kids ...

Your requirements made me think of this thread about visiting the south coast of the Big Island, specifically my suggestion of the Kalani Retreat (last posted comment).
posted by rob511 at 8:54 PM on January 11, 2006

How about Disney World? (I'm serious.) I recommend the "Polynesian Beach Resort" section. Bazillions of restaurants of every kind you can think of either there or within an easy (free) bus ride, and plenty to do for a week. There's a lake there you can swim in, and a swimming pool as well. It should be well within your price range.
posted by Steven C. Den Beste at 9:39 PM on January 11, 2006

Come to San Antonio. It can be touristy, but there is also something special about the city, once you get away from the Riverwalk (not to put-down the Riverwalk).
posted by jsteward at 11:47 PM on January 11, 2006

Continuing on San Antonio. Sea World, Six Flags, Zoo, Texas Hill Country. Also, with Austin 1 hour north, there's a lot to choose from in South-Central Texas.
posted by jsteward at 11:49 PM on January 11, 2006