Reports and advice on stays at hotels, resorts – any form of lodging
Welcome to Beaches Resort in Turks and Caicos — the family resort of the Sandals brand — where the littlest vacation goers like Milo Greenspan rule. Milo may only be four but he drove his family’s vacation decision — straight from Chicago to this resort. “He’s been asking for the last two years to come to Elmo’s Beach,” explained his mom Catherine. “And if he’s happy, I’m happy.”
The bride and groom say their vows in front of the sea under a canopy billowing in the wind, their guests sitting in front of them on white-covered chairs. There’s no one else on the beach.
It couldn’t be more romantic or beautiful. I’m watching from my balcony of my room at the Gansevoort on Turks and Caicos, where the wedding couple and their 80 guests have been ensconced for the last few days.
We’re stretched out on the white sand beach staring at the turquoise water. We didn’t have to fight for beach chairs and though I’m told the Gansevoort Turks & Caicos (www.gansevoorttc.com) is sold out this weekend courtesy of a wedding. It is only 91 rooms. Neither the beach nor the drop-dead gorgeous pool (have you ever seen cushioned lounges that rest in a few inches of water?) are crowded.
Milo Greenspon may only be four but he drove his family’s vacation decision—straight from Chicago to Beaches Resort in Turks and Caicos.
The concert goers are swaying to the music, clapping and crowding the stage so they can reach out and touch their favorite stars. Their smiling parents are right behind, video cams and digital cameras in hand. That’s because these concert goers are toddlers and preschoolers, many in diapers. Their stars are Elmo, Burt, Ernie, Cookie Monster and the latest to join the Sesame Street gang Abby Cadabby, a fairy in training. They sing and dance for the kids for an hour
We sit on the deck overlooking the ocean, palm trees and St Lucia’s most famous site–The Pitons, the two tall lava cones that differentiate this Caribbean island. We’ve stopped at Jalousie Plantation, spread over a 192 acres on what was once a working sugar plantation just outside the town of Soufriere in between Pitons. We are staring right at the mountain—right next to us!
It’s not even 10 am and already they are handing out the rum punch! We’re on a catamaran courtesy of Carnival Sailing that will take us from the north part of the island where we are staying at The Landings resort to the town of Soufriere (which translates to “sulfur in the air,” we’re told). Along the way we have spectacular views pf St Lucia’s claim to fame — Petit Piton and Gros Piton.
Tangerines, star fruit, breadfruit, wild watercress. We’re not perusing a menu in St Lucia. We’re touring a local farm owned by The Richards family for more than 40 years. Isaac Alphonse, the purchasing manager for The Landings, the 120-plus unit new resort where we are staying
There’s something to be said for direct flights to out of the way places. We are taking Jet Blue’s new nonstop service from JFK to St. Lucia, a small island near Martinique and Barbados. But instead of taking all day with connections in Miami or San Juan, we arrive in a little more than four hours. Nice!
I’m perched in a wooden treehouse lazing on a cushy double mattress atop a white sand beach along Mexico’s Riviera Maya. Overlooking the turquoise Caribbean Sea, I’m about as far away from holiday hoopla and craziness as I can get when the beach butler comes by to see if I need anything.
Check out the lights! Four million–really–blue and green and clear ones on trees and buildings. Welcome to Dollywood. Of course it is named for star Dolly Parton who grew up in a two room cabin not far from here, pigeon forge, TN—you can even see a replica of the cabin where she grew up with 11 brothers and sisters and it seems one bed.
I haven’t stopped eating—corn fritters made from corn meal milled at the historic Old Mill that is on the National Register of Historic Places–continuously operating for 170 years. I started the day at The Log Cabin with country ham and fresh biscuits.
Trivia question: What is the most visited National Park? (Hint: It isn’t Yellowstone, Yosemite or the Grand Canyon) It’s Great Smoky National Park—more than 550,000 acres that straddle Tennessee and North Carolina that attracts more than 9 MILLION visitors a year.
The Living room is beautifully decked out for the holidays with greenery, wreaths and a tree in all its glory. On the mantel in my bedroom, Santa shares space with golden elk and garland festooned with bright red holiday balls and ribbon. Even the lamp is tied with a big red and gold holiday bow and there’s a poinsettia (albeit a silk one) in the bathroom.
We learn it is the only place—and the place—for a traditional English Tea. In the 1840s, Anna, the 7th Duchess of Bedford, wanted a snack for tea and thinly sliced bread and butter.
Not sunny, but not raining. Just 66,000 people live on this pristine island—actually a series of about 360 small coral island, which is part of the British Commonwealth. Yes, we see businessmen wearing Bermuda shorts, knee-high socks, and shirts and ties to work. Hedges are manicured and lawns mowed. Houses are painted a rainbow of colors—bright orange, green and blue, pastel pinks and yellows.
I smile remembering two other kids about the same age who were equally proud of themselves for making it to the top of Vernal Fall, also their first “big hike” in Yosemite.
Who says kids and romance don’t go together? Even in a place as famous for honeymoons as Bora Bora, families’ rule, especially as Air Tahiti Nui continues to offer kids free deals on flights. There are also great hotel deals
This is my four year-old cousin Hannah Sitzman’s first Broadway production and she loves every minute of it — from the costumes and sets to the music to the black tee shirt which spells out “Shrek” in pink sparkly letters. I especially loved the magic of the costumes.
A Denver Post reader told me she was “seething” when she read the column I wrote about Bora Bora being a good bet for families…