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My fiancee and I are looking to go to the Carribean for 6 nights. We are looking for a great all inclusive hotel for 6 nights in a price range at or under $2500 for this upcoming March.
We are also looking for an island which offers a lot of exciting day excusions. We enjoy nature, sightseeing, hiking, etc, along with spending time at the resort enjoying beaches and pools.
We are not really drinkers or partiers, so the extent of "nightlife" at the resort, or number of bars is not really a concern.
So far, our travel agent has been pushing St Lucia. However, I am not crazy about the resorts there. Our choices seem to be between a cheaper end Sandals resort, which looks very nice but maybe too fancy for our tastes (and is upper end of our price range). Or hotels such as Coconut Bay Resort, which has a lot of negative ratings from travelers, especially related to their beaches and tons of seaweed and rought surf.
Since our travel agent seems fixated on this one island, I thought I would see what other people might like!
(PS, really not interested in Jamaica, Aruba, or Mexico at this time).
PS, really not interested in Jamaica, Aruba, or Mexico at this time.
You just eliminated some of the biggest all-inclusive countries. I am not an all-inclusive fan, however there are tons of them in the Dominican Republic. Other islands have a handful, like Barbados, Curacao (they have 1), Antigua, etc. I would first focus on an island that suits your needs then find the resort after that. The islands are very different from one another.
Have you considered the Dominican Republic? I think Puerto Plata area on the Atlantic side of the Dominican Republic would suit you... there is a jungle there with amazing hikes, you can do the 27 waterfalls tour through the jungle jumping down the waterfalls which is awesome and also there is good whitewater rafting.
Plenty of all inclusives around Puerto Plata and it's a better value for your money compared to other Caribbean destinations!
I would also suggest considering Dominican Republic in general as there are many all inclusives- gorgeous and very reasonable. Also in St Thomas (US Virgin ISland) we went to Wyndham Sugar Bay in April and thought it was great. Not super deluxe, but absolutely enjoyable and relaxing. They have different options but we did choose all inclusive and were very pleased with it. It included EVERYTHING
.Sugar Bay Resort & Spa (East End, St. Thomas) - Resort (All-Inclusive) Reviews - TripAdvisor
We loved St. Lucia, but the flight and drive to the resort were extremely long and tiresome. The island is beautiful, and the hike up to the volcano is breathtaking! I've heard great things about the Puerta Vallerta area of Mexico for an all-inclusive, off the beaten path and out of the party atmosphere of Cancun.
6 night package deals aren't very common in my experience. Check out All-Inclusive Vacations | America’s #1 Tour Operator | Apple Vacations - they're great for all inclusive deals but they mostly have 3, 4 or 7 nights. They also have great last minute deals but I don't know if you want to wait a month before honeymoon to book it.
Keep in mind organized excursions are not included in all-inclusive deals and can be expensive so if you're trying to keep to a budget, make sure you consider extra expenses like this.
I also recommend checking out the Dominican Republic. It does tend to be better value - less expensive for the same Caribbean and resorts.
For example, at the moment Apple Vacations has a last minute deal for a 5 "apple" (star) hotel in Punta Cana (DR) called Ocean Blue for 7 nights, only $889 per person (flying out of JFK, I notice you're in NY). That would be $1778 for both of you, which would leave you with about $700 of your budget left to spend on excursions or anything else. Of course it's a last min deal so at the moment it's only available for dates through November and the start of December. But if you're interested, check back around late Jan or Feb, they should have March dates available then.
Why not look into a cruse? My first trip the was to Barbados for 5 days. I saw the cruise ships come and go from the port. I started talking to the passengers and found out that a cruise cost 1/2 of the resort charged and they got to see a new island every day.
I have been on 4 cruises now and I can’t imagine taking a vacation to the Caribbean any other way!
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