Help us pick a holiday destination

[crazyandlazy]

Hello

Which would you recommend for a first time family (all inclusive) holiday out of these:

Mexico
Thailand
Dominican Republic
Costa Rica

Or any others?

This will be our first time outside of Europe, we’ve only done Disneyland Paris as a family trip (which was really easy) and I will be travelling alone with the little ones, who are Junior school aged.

Thanks

Strokes/folks FogCutter. While you and I might feel it a huge waste to do AI longhaul (and I'd add AI anywhere in the world really unless it's for a couple of days on a bigger trip or you use it just as a base), everyone has different needs and tastes and what they feel comfortable with. How boring the world would be if we all wanted to do the same thing!

I wouldn’t fly west with children for a weeks holiday - will be ruined by jet lag. Fly east and they just stay up late and sleep in. Agree with looking at turkey/Cape Verde/Egypt if you’ve only got a week though - if you’re doing AI you could be anywhere - we recently came back from a lovely AI in Turkey but could have been in Greece/Egypt/canaries.

I don't think the OP has said how long she has got?

I would go to Costa Rica out of those destinations - rainforest, wildlife, ziplining and watersports.

However, it does depend a bit on what hotel and where. Can you say which hotel and where? Do you/your kids like wildlife, swimming, culture? Have you been on AI before? Have you got any budget for excursions?

My children both strongly prefer AI and we tend to eat there, do the activities and go out at least every other day all day but the going out can add a lot to costs - in Costa Rica it was £2k for 4 of us over 2 weeks though you could have done cheaper things. Thailand I think is cheaper than Costa Rica so you may get a better deal there but less wildlife. Not heard great reports about Mexico or DR but hard to know as different people like different things.

Is this a last minute booking for this summer for a week? That might explain why its cheaper than expected.

If so make sure your research weather conditions - its hurricane season in DR and Mexico, its Monsoon season in Thailand, rainy season in Costa Rica but was about 27C and sunny when we went in August with just some rain after 4pm each day. Currently an issue with some of beaches in Mexico so take care where you book. In Costa Rica we were on Pacific side and the beach was nice but a bit wild and the ocean was more suitable for stronger swimmers - mine were fine but they were older and strong swimmers. There was also quite a lot of watersports - jet skis etc going on so needed to watch closely. I would say it wasn't that suitable for junior aged kids to swim in, more for teenagers / young adults doing adventure sports holidays where we were.

Do check the weather before you book as most of your choices have a rainy season.

When I went away alone with primary school age DC I went with Mark Warner and it was brilliant. It's cheaper at the end of the school holidays. You may have to take them out of School for their first day back in Sept, but it's worth the savings.

Did you choose OP?

I'm in the same position but looking at Jamaica too.

We are going in September which is hurricane season though so might be a terrible idea.

We are just back from Mexico (Riviera Maya) AI and I'd definitely recommend it!

Sargassum was mostly all cleared multiple times a day by hotel = not an issue
AI was fabulous - place we stayed had choice of 20 a la cartes included, didn't feel the need to eat out at all
Went on loads of trips - swimming with whale sharks in Cancun, dolphin croc and sea turtle spotting and snorkelling in Sian Ka'an, swimming with turtles in Akumal, etc
Some organised through hotel, some under our own steam
Collectivos (local bus type minivans) run all the time between Playa del Carmen and Tulum, cheap easy air-conditioned way to get around

Ignore the AI snobs! I travelled widely pre DC and have found AI great with our kids, who are suckers for a buffet and organised sports. They make a great base, and certainly on the Riviera Maya if you have some extra funds there are many fabulous trips you can do outside the resort easily.

Oh and the hurricane/rainy season business = we are just back and had one afternoon/evening of rain. Rest of two weeks was wall to wall sunshine.

I wouldn't go long haul just to sit in an AI resort - what's the point? Going to any of those places (apart from the Dom Rep), the whole point is to explore the wonderful sights and experience some of the culture. If you want an AI holiday I'd go to Greece or Turkey. Lovely weather, huge choice of hotels, no jet lag and no tedious long haul flight to get there.