Aruba or St. Lucia with a 18 month old?

[LexyLou]

We were thinking of taking a "babymoon" before #2 arrives. Probably sometime between April and June.

We know nothing about the Carribean, honestly....

We need somewhere where we can either get a suite with a real crib (not a pack n play) or a place where we can rent a condo with a kitchen.

I think we'd like to do a resort which has some type of babysitting or activities with kids. We don't plan on leaving DD much (if at all honestly) but it might be nice to just go to one or two dinners for 1 or 2 hours alone...so maybe a condo is out?

What's better with a kid, St. Lucia or Aruba? What should we look at or avoid in both places?

[laura]

I would say Aruba is better w/ a kid b/c it is much cheaper than St. Lucia so if it ends up not going at all as planned (Ella sick, crabby, whatever), not a huge loss. That said, I have not been to St. Lucia, but we did go to Aruba in May and April/May is considered off season so it's only about half capacity anywhere. Each day at the pool we saw a woman and her twin toddlers playing around in that area, and some days they had the pool largely to themselves. If you avoid Easter week, hopefully you will have similar luck in April. Then again, cheaper could mean more Spring Breakers in Aruba (?) but I have no clue about that in actuality. In Aruba you could do a condo type set up but at a resort; I know for sure the Marriott there is half condos, so you could still utilize the resort services IIRC (like babysitting) but have a kitchen, BR, etc.

We booked our honeymoon through www.vacationoutlet.com when we went and we got a great deal; I know they do charters from the NY area, too. However, for some reason you will get a significantly better deal if you call the number on their website vs. just booking on the site - not sure why, but it's true. HTH!

ETA: My MOH and her husband take their baby to a place semi off the beaten path in Mexico. (I mean off the beaten path like they fly into Cancun but they don't stay in Cancun for SPRING BREAK, WOOHOO! They just go to a slightly more remote area, and they do the condo thing right on the beach. I'm not sure where exactly they stay but I'm going to be talking to her about it soon anyway b/c they're headed back soon. If you want me to find out where, let me know. I know she said they got a great rate this year and I think they are going in March.

[LexyLou]

Thanks L!

I was just looking at the Marriott as I got your notification. i didn't see any mention of condos on their website and their suites don't really look like suites but I'll check out the link you posted.

Why is April/My off season? Is the weather decent? I thought the fall was hurricane season there.

Oh, did you guys rent a car?

[laura]

I think it's considered "off season" b/c the temperature is so mild there all the time that they have a heavy late summer/fall/winter and spring is pretty much downtime there - which also helps price-wise. Aruba is technically outside the hurricane belt, so it is said to not be affected by hurricanes. Not entirely sure how true that is, but that's what they say. The weather is definitely decent, it's about 80-85 and sunny pretty much all the time, I think.

On the Marriott, they consider the condo part sort of separate, so I think it's the Marriott Aruba Ocean Club, instead of the Stellaris Resort and Casino that is the regular hotel part. Basically it is a bunch of towers at one resort and some of the towers are condos and some aren't.

We cabbed for the most part to and from downtown, but I think we only went downtown twice. We ate mostly in the resort area, where you can walk to pretty much all the other resorts, straight down the beach (we stayed at the Wyndam on Palm Beach). We did rent a car for one day to go see the natural bridge (which I just heard collapsed last year!) and to explore somewhat; the island is very small so we didn't need much more time to see most things. We were able to rent a car right at our hotel, though, they had a desk in the basement, so it was very easy. But you easily could rent a car for the whole time, there's no problem parking as far as I know, and it's easy to get around there.

ETA: Maybe this link works? http://marriott.com/property/propertypage/AUAAO

[sem426]

My cousins own timeshare at the marriott on aruba. they go every year with their 2 kids (3.5 yr old and 14 mos). they have a full kitchen and 2 bedrooms. i'm pretty sure you can get a nightly rate in those kind of rooms. you can search on the marriott website under marriott vacation clubs (that is the timeshare/condo portion).

the weather is always good in aruba (although it's windy) aruba is below the hurrican belt since it's closer to South america, so even in aug-oct it's good there.
i would not suggest renting a car. i've been there 3 times (pre DD) and never saw the need. you can take taxis everywhere and they aren't too much $.

[bensgirl1222]

I'd go with Aruba! We went this past may and had THE.BEST.TIME! We would have gone again on our honeymoon but we want to try something different this time around. We stayed at the Radisson and let me tell you...it was the best resort there (IMO). They renovated everything and one of the best restaurants we ate at was in our hotel, called the Sunset Grille. Amazing food. Let me know what you decide!

[LexyLou]

Thanks sem. I'm having a hard time finding information about suites or condos through the marriott's website. They have like 8 million hotels in Aruba but I'll try vacation club!

bensgirl-Does the Raddison have suites? I'm trying to book through Orbitz and it's only giving me options for regular rooms.

[sem426]

lexy- here is the link to the 2 marriott properties that are vacation clubs.

http://www.vacationclub.com/resorts/ab/default.jsp

http://www.vacationclub.com/resorts/ac/default.jsp

[skb]

Hi Lexy. I've been to Aruba and stayed at the Radisson. You'll basically need to take a cab from the airport to the strip of resorts. The cabs are not marked as "taxi" but are regular vehicles. You can walk bewteen all of the resorts and eat at the restaurants associated with those resorts or a couple nearby. If you want to go to town you would require a cab again. But honestly I wouldn't say that there was very much to see in town or very much in the way of shopping. The water, weather and beaches were beautiful. The nights seemed fairly quiet. It was very small! I think if I was travelling with a small child I would investigate the medical system too.

[bensgirl1222]

Yes the Radisson has suites. AMAZING suites! The taxi from the hotel i think was around $40? Maybe less than that. But thats the farthest you'll go unless you go to the Flying Fishbone, which was a cool experience and the food was great! But it was kind of out of the way. We ventured into town to eat at El Gaucho and had drinks at Iguana Joes which was tasty! We also partied at Carlos & Charlies which was fun too (although you probably wont bc ou'll have a little one). But we mostly stayed around the resorts, laid on the beaches all day and had awesome dinners! Here is some things we got from alot of people online and took with us and was VERY helpful! Dont know what we would have done without it.

$- Under $50 (incl. drinks)
$$- Under $100 (incl. drinks)
$$$- Over $100 (incl. drinks)

Things to remember:
 Get the breakfast package at Laguna’s
 Use the bus service as much as possible **clean and cheaper than taxi’s and the run every ½ hour outside most of the hotels**
 SPF 50 or 35 with SPF chapstick
 Balashi is their local beer and much cheaper than the imported beer
 Radisson rents float rafts for $5/day
 Do NOT eat at Waterfront Crabhouse—apparently the food sucks
 Do NOT go with Mi Dishi Tours. Go with DePalms.
 Someone said ask for a room at the Aruba Tower in an even # on a higher floor, if possible.
 Keep doors LOCKED!


Food:
 $$ El Gaucho- steaks http://elgaucho-aruba.com
 $$$ Flying Fishbone- steak & seafood http://www.flyingfishbone.com **make reservations for right before sunset (at a waterside table) and if you are renting a car, eat there that day as the cab ride is $30 to get there**
 $$$ Sunset Grille (at Radisson)- steak & seafood http://www.arubaradisson.com/restaurants.html **share sides-big portions and dress nice**
 $$ Ristorante Bella Luna- Italian meals **within walking distance of hotel, great food & atmosphere**
 $Que Pasa- funky little pub downtown
 $ Salt & Pepper- within walking distance of hotel, small and informal. Good for lunch.
 $$ La Trattoria- at the lighthouse
 $$ Madame Jeanette- surf & turf, a la carte **make reservations days in advance**
 $ Hosteria de Vittoria- Italian food, good wine & romantic setting
 $ Blossoms- Typical Japanese steakhouse in US
 Pago Pago- Steakhouse (at Wyndham) **need reservation**
 Azull- **make reservation**
 $$ Papiamento- Romantic, great setting & service
 $ Iguana Joes/Crazy Joes- Great food. Drinks that will knock you on your ass.
 Mambo Jambo- Good frozen drinks and lunch food.
 $ Pizza Bob’s- read that the pizza is really good here
 $ Gilligans- beachside food. Good for lunch.

Things to do:
 Rent Jeep (4 wheel drive) and Explore island
 Kukoo Kunuku booze bus- Booze bus around town (a lot of people recommend this) http://www.arubatattoo.com/kukookunuku
 Sunset Cruise through Red Sail- Huge Catamaran with open bar & appetizers **relaxing & beautiful**
 Snorkeling with DePalms Tours
 Jet Skiing
 See the Natural Bridge
 Tattoo Party Boat- 3 level boat, catered and drinks
 ATV Tour
 Couple’s massage


Some of these things we did or didn't do but this is what we took with us to help us in our decisions :)

[bensgirl1222]

Oh and alot of people say they had trouble getting a palapa on the beach at the Radisson but there was ALWAYS tons of palapas there and the beach was never crowded on our end of the beach.

[bensgirl1222]

Oh and the natural bridge is no longer there :( It fell.

[LexyLou]

Wow, Jess! Thanks for that list!

[bensgirl1222]

No problem :) It really helped me out when i was planning our Aruba trip.

[bensgirl1222]

Oh and there was one place that I would not recommend eating. Its called Driftwood. Its downtown and we heard it was good but it was not good at all. We LOVED the Sunset Grille, Flying Fishbone & El Gaucho. VERY GOOD!!!

Oh and we also used Delphi for our snorkling trip & our tubing. They were very nived and not over pirced. They are located right outside of the Radisson on the beach.

[KGif]

Popping in to second the suggestion for dining at "Flying Fishbone". We ate there when we were in Aruba last year and OMG was it amazing. Both the food and the views. I'd definitely go back.

We are actually considering a return trip to Aruba in the Spring. For people who have stayed at the Radisson - did you book directly thru the hotel? Just wondering what the best way is to go about booking a room.

[EJM]

We went to Aruba in June 05 (maybe the second week of the month) before DD was born, so I guess that would have made me 4.5-5 months pregnant. I was surprised, there were tons of pregnant women and children.

Aruba is below what is considered the hurricane belt. It was very hot, but I spent all day by the pool in the shade and it was fine as there is a nice breeze. We did go downtown one afternoon and I broke out in a heat rash. :rolleyes:

We stayed at the Ocean Club using credit card reward points, so it was free. I thought it was fine since it was free, but in looking at the room rate it wasn't worth as much as it would have been. We had a basic room and it was large, definitely room for a crib, but there was no separation of any kind. I think the Surf Club is exclusively timeshare and was more families. There were plenty of kids at the Ocean Club, just not as many as the Surf.

The only downside to Aruba being pregnant is most of the activites I found we couldn't do -- horseback riding, off roading etc. It was fine by me, we went to relax, it wasn't what I would consider an active vacation. We did have a massage, but since I was preggers it didn't end up being worth it and was nothing like the pre-natal massages I could get here.

The Ocean Club is the furthest hotel from anything, although we opted not to rent a car. We spent a decent amount in cab fare, and what would have probably made the car rental worth it. If I was going back with DD, I would definitely rent a car so I could have her carseat in it.

[bensgirl1222]

We stayed at the Radisson and booked it thru the hotel itself. BUT...I have a friend who works for the Radisson and got us 50% discount so I couldnt really tell you if its cheaper or not.

I do agree with ELM that being pregnant, there isn't much to do but eat, lay on the beach (under a palapa), drink and some water sports. No sights to see etc... Unless you dont mind just lounging around :)

We wanted to go back for our honeymoon but since I'm pregnant, we decided to go the "sight-seeing" route. And its very hot but you get the tradewinds which makes it totally bearable (sp?). Brings LOTS of suncreen ;)