Looking for Vacation Suggestions

[MV]

Hi All,

My family would like to take a 3-4 week vacation for my birthday [it's a minor milestone] in February or March. Someone suggested a cruise around Tahiti; however, I'm not so sure it'll be that different [in certain aspects] from Hawaii or the Caribbean which I'm already familiar with. It would be great if anyone could suggest vacation ideas that they have enjoyed. I have 3 kids, ages 1-4, so the destination/s would have to be safe [in terms of crime and medical care], and warm this time of year. This seems to point to regions in the Southern Hemisphere or near the equator. We live in California so it would be nice to visit a place that would not be reminiscent of here. Many thanks!

[Ashok Arora]

It's got to be all about the kids at this age. Don't expect them to appreciate culture/sights/shopping. Do they the like the beach and/or swimming? If so take them someone with guaranteed warmth. Asia has some lovely places to visit e.g Langkawi in Malaysia. We just got back from Goa in India and it was wonderful. Wherever you go make sure you stay in the best hotel you can afford.

A couple of useful links for you:

http://www.cntraveller.com/

http://www.lhw.com/

[Richard in NC]

If you can deal with the cold, how about an Alaskan cruise. I've done Carribean cruises and want to do an Alaskan cruise. Do 10 days to 2 full weeks to get some time near Denaili, etc.

[JoeClothing]

Cayman Island Islands would get my vote if money was no object. Weather is perfect, zero crime, no poverty, plenty of places to eat, and tons of things to do for the kids.
If you need a place to stay, I recommend Ritz Carlton Grand Cayman.

[MV]

Thanks. I'm seriously entertaining a trip to Singapore -> KL -> Langkawi. The Four Seasons Langkawi looks spectacular. Our only fear is our 11 month old contracting some disease -- dengue fever, malaria, etc. Is this a cause for concern? If not, any recommendations for things to do, places to stay and eat, would be great!

India sounds wonderful, and is somewhere I have always wanted to visit. Many of my friends say it can be a rough place with younger ones. We thought of maybe trying the Palace On Wheels train. Not exactly roughing it, but it might be easy as we'll have three kids with us. Any thoughts? Should I just wait till they get older?

Originally Posted by Ashok Arora

It's got to be all about the kids at this age. Don't expect them to appreciate culture/sights/shopping. Do they the like the beach and/or swimming? If so take them someone with guaranteed warmth. Asia has some lovely places to visit e.g Langkawi in Malaysia. We just got back from Goa in India and it was wonderful. Wherever you go make sure you stay in the best hotel you can afford.

A couple of useful links for you:

http://www.cntraveller.com/

http://www.lhw.com/

[ard]

Australia?

Kid friendly, not too 'california', different enough to be interesting, but not too different to make it challenging. Go up north and you have some nice tropics, great barrier reef, etc, etc.

I was also in Fiji many years ago, not sure how stable the political thing is now, but tourists never were much of a target.

You might look into some of the kid-friendly Club Meds too.

At this age they will remember nothing- and will appreciate everything. (They'd prefer Disneyland to Malaysia, right?) Pick a place that will make YOUR trip easier and more enjoyable.


Make sure you get trip insurance including emergency evacuation coverage- just in case.

[Disci]

Hi MV

Perhaps Singapore and Malaysia would be better from the point of view of cultural awareness.

Of course, I'm biased, and also see the benefit in ard's suggestion of my home country of Australia. Here are a few amateur notes about my home state of Queensland, home of the Great Barrier Reef, Gold Coast, Whitsunday Islands, etc:


1. SOUTHERN COASTAL QUEENSLAND (approx equivalent latitude as Miami) a) GOLD COAST:

Plenty of websites, e.g., http://www.goldcoastinformation.com.au/

This site:

http://www.myfun.com.au/

highlights (and is devoted to) most of the major theme parks (Seaworld, Movieworld, Wet & Wild Water World, etc.) on the Gold Coast (less than an hour south of the state capital Brisbane)

Seaworld has its own accommodation resort too:

http://seaworldresort.myfun.com.au/

The Gold Coast is also the home of:

http://www.dreamworld.com.au/content/home_v4.asp? and

http://www.whitewaterworld.com.au/content/www_home.asp?

B) SUNSHINE COAST

The late Steve Irwin’s Australia Zoo, 45 mins north of Brisbane, in the Sunshine Coast hinterland

http://www.australiazoo.com.au/

M5Dal’s nice shots (http://www.m5board.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=98126) were taken in this region.

On the Sunshine Coast, 1 hour north of Brisbane:

http://www.underwaterworld.com.au/

2.
Northern Great Barrier Reef city of Cairns
Skyrail:

http://www.skyrail.com.au/

Kuranda scenic railway (links to the Skyrail):

http://www.traveltrain.com.au/2/experience_traveltrain/queensland_trains/kuranda_scenic_railway/overview.asp
http://www.kurandascenicrailway.com.au/

3. CENTRAL COASTAL QUEENSLAND: Great Barrier Reef / Whitsunday Islands, adjacent to the coastal towns of Airlie Beach and Shute Harbour.
See, e.g., http://www.whitsunday-tourism.com.au/

One of the major cruise companies for day cruises and/or trips to islands:

http://www.fantasea.com.au/

This may be all too much like SoCal, but I've included it just in case MV. Best wishes with your decision. (Sorry if setting out looks messy: I typed it in MS Word first, then pasted into the thread).

Regards

D

[Disci]

Here are a few pics too.

Regards

D

[MV]

ard, Disci,

Thank you both for the advice. Disci, I really appreciate the time you took to put together your suggestions. We just found out from our pediatrician that Southeast Asia is essentially out -- she's against it because our youngest can't receive some necessary vaccinations until later this year :-(.

Australia is definitely on our list; however, we are now looking into a Tahiti-> New Zealand trip. From what I hear, they are both very safe. New Zealand being a time warp back to the 1950's [please note, this is meant to be very positive], and Tahiti, a suburb of Paris that's off the metro. Has anyone been to either? If so, what did you think?

[unfoundhorsepower]

How about Aruba.........safe and great