jbenitez7399

looking for beach front Caribbean family vacation (2 adults, 3 kids - 16/14/10) that has plenty of relaxing by the beach but also some hiking, waterfalls, nature for late November 2022 (US thanksgiving week). Any recs? basically we wanted to go to Hawaii but it's too far for the week.

Must:

• fly direct from Miami or Ft Lauderdale
• ocean front
• nice (not necessarily luxury because of $$, but not budget either) - would be ok with $12k for 5 ppl incl airfare and hotel

Could be:

• all inclusive, but not necessary, only if tasty and good Watersport offerings
• 5-7 nights

thank you!

RoamsAround

First, please clarify if you actually mean a "direct" flight from Fort Lauderdale or Miami or do you mean a "non-stop" flight. In airline parlance a non-stop flight is just that, a flight that goes from point A to point B without stopping; a "direct" flight is one that makes one or more intermediate stops between your originating airport and final destination.

Second, if you are looking for waterfalls you have to choose a mountainous island and even then the waterfalls may not be as numerous or easy to access as you might like. That virtually eliminates all of the flatter, arid islands like the Bahamas, the Turks & Caicos, Anegada, Anguilla, Barbuda, and a few others.

So, if seeking waterfalls and a non-stop flight from Miami of Fort Lauderdale you best options are to look at Puerto Rico, Jamaica, the Dominican Republic, St. Lucia as those will have the most waterfalls and some waterfront hotels that should be in your price range. If going All Inclusive is a high priority for you consider Jamaica or the Dominican Republic as they have some of the highest concentration of All inclusive resorts in the Caribbean. For what it is worth, there are no true All Inclusive Resorts in Puerto Rico (although there are a few resorts that offer some type of pre-paid food plans) and the All inclusive on St. Lucia tend to be on the pricey side so might exceed your budget.

St. Kitts has non-stop flights from Miami few AI's and plenty of nature and hiking but waterfalls are few, far between and not easily accessible. You could also easily take a day trip to its sister island of Nevis where you'll find lot's of old world Caribbean history, plenty of hiking, nature tails and a few waterfalls.

Antigua is another island you can reach non-stop from Miami. It has much of what you are seeking but I'm not really sure about waterfalls. Someone else might be able to shed more light on that subject.

With 3 children you might want to consider staying in a condo rather than a hotel or resort since most hotels/resort rooms can only accommodate 4 people and getting two separate rooms will probably exceed your budget. A condo will give you plenty of living space, separate bedrooms for the parents and kids, a kitchen so you can prepared some of your meals (if you want) and usually a washer and dryer so you can pack light (again, if you wish). Many condo's have some of the same on-site facilities and amenities as hotels or resorts. All of the islands mentioned above have a very good selection of "condo resorts" that will be in your price range.

balthy

A direct, stopping flight is a flight that stops enroute to drop/pickup passengers but retains same flight number and passengers remain onboard during the stop(s) (if thats not their destination)
A direct, non stop flight is just that.
A direct flight can mean either of the above.

I'd add Grenada to your list. It has the best of all worlds, waterfalls, hiking and beautiful beaches, esp Grand Anse. There are a couple of AI hotels on Grand Anse worth considering. I'm not much of a condo fan on islands like Grenada, St Lucia, Antigua, its hard work to go shopping there for groceries. On Americanized islands its fine, there are grocery stores similar to home, or the French islands, Martinique, Guadeloupe etc, they are great for staying in a cottage or apartments and doing your own things as their supermarkets are the same as in mainland France. And they are wonderful islands for gorgeous beaches plus a jungle interior with waterfalls, volcanos. I would highly recommend those islands if it is not outside your comfort zone, language wise. Some parts of Martinique reminded me of Hawaii with dark sand beaches. Mostly though they are white/light/beige sand but in the volcanic areas it is dark

Barbados is worth consideration too, the beaches on the west coast are beautiful, there are many AI hotels to choose from although this is an island where a condo would be great, bit more developed than some of its neighbours.
Antigua is great too but does not have the waterfalls, hiking etc. The beaches are absolutely stunning though.
St Martin is another option, has mountains plus great beaches, good island for staying in a condo.

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