Family Vacations

We are 6 days away from our Spring Break and I could NOT be more excited! This week we are crazy busy with school, sports, and social activities, not to mention Brian is away and I'll be a single mom. Spring Break is the light at the end of the tunnel. I can't wait for sunshine and to just lay on the beach with my book and a cocktail. I've had vacation on my mind so I got the idea to review the places we've visited on our family vacations. Maybe one of these will be a fit for you and your family!

Dreams Onyx Resort & Spa in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic

This is where we're going in less than a week. I can't review it yet since we haven't been, but I'll explain why we chose it. When planning these vacations, I usually don't have a particular destination in mind and I'm not very picky. I just want somewhere warm, near the beach, within budget, and prefer an all inclusive when traveling with the kids. I like an all inclusive because if Jack ordered $20 chicken fingers and didn't eat them, I would be so aggravated about wasting money, and that would it would dampen my vacay mood. This way they can get whatever they want, whenever they want, and we don't have to think about it. Dreams Onyx checked all the boxes for us. My next door neighbor and friend Jen went there with her family last year and they recommend it, so that sealed the deal. I've been reading the reviews on TripAdvisor and I think it's going to be great!

Iberostar Selection Cancun

We went here for Spring Break last year with 5 other families, plus ourselves. Our group was 12 adults and 11 children. Bananas! It was so much fun. Here's my thoughts on this Iberostar:

Pros: The food overall was pretty good...some restaurants were better than others. Their buffet was great, it had a huge selection and was right by the pool. We'd pop in there throughout the day for breakfast, lunch, snacks, etc. The swim up pool bar was spot on, we were their best customers. We rented a cabana next to the pool just a few steps from the beach that served as a home base for all the families. The resort was big enough to have plenty to do but small enough where the kids could run around and be contained. We felt like it was safe and they could go to the slides by themselves. Our kids ranged in ages 8-12. They had an amphitheater with nightly entertainment which was fun. 

Cons: The beach was pretty but the water was a little rough and the bottom rocky. Not rocky like pebbles but big boulders here and there. We spent most of our time at the pool but did swim in the ocean a few times during our stay. The rooms were clean and spacious but a little tired and outdated. They could use a refresh. However, we hardly spent any time in our room so it didn't really matter. I also had an issue with my transportation from the airport, but no one else did. The hotel did correct it and give us a free transfer on our return. Here's some pics from our trip:

Royalton Riviera Cancun

We went to the Royalton in Cancun, another all-inclusive for February break in 2018. My friend Jenna had been there twice and recommended it. Looking back at these photos I can't believe how little Laura and Jack are!

Pros: Our room was bananas. Hands down the nicest room we've ever had. We were Preferred Club which meant we had a butler to help with reservations and room service. One night they filled our bath tub with balloons and surprised the kids. My friend Katie happened to be at the resort at the same time as us, staying in the adults-only section. I got to sneak away and hang with her sometimes.

Cons: The beach had a LOT of seaweed. The Kids Club was okay, not that exciting. You had to be 4 years old to go, and Jack was just a week away from turning 4 so.....we lied. We said his birthday was 1-3-14 instead of 3-1-14. The resort does make copies of the passports but we they didn't catch it. The food was fine, unremarkable. We had a great time but we're probably not going to go back. 

Beaches Turks and Caicos

We went here in January 2017, which seems like a decade ago. The kids were only 4 and 2 (although closer to 5 and 3 since both have March birthdays) and it was our first time taking them on a plane. I remember it being amazing! Beaches has four villas or resorts within the resort to choose from. We stayed at the French Villas. The best advice we got was to book a ground floor room with a walkout patio. This was we could put the kids to bed and enjoy some wine right outside with the door cracked so we could listen for them. 

The Kids Club was fantastic. Beaches has a Sesame Street theme and there had fun activities planned, such as baking cookies with Cookie Monster and dance parties. The first day we dropped them off for an hour and then gradually increased it each day so we could have adult time. In the afternoons the four of us would hit the water park, which was so much fun! We had such a wonderful experience I don't have anything negative to say, other than it was very expensive. We were able to swing it because we used miles for the flights, and at that point we weren't locked into the school calendar. I've always wanted to go back, but our friends went recently and did not have the same experience. They said there were excessive lines for the restaurants, the resort seemed understaffed, and the food was disappointing. I've heard that it hasn't been the same since the hurricane and post-Covid. 🤷