Caribbean Family trip: Which one do you recommend?

[DougD72]

I have been to all of those islands except Brac. I am assuming the 5 and 12 yr olds are the nondivers. Of all the choices, Provo has the best beach by far of all your options so if you are beach people that would be my recommendation for an island. One of the dive knocks on Provo is long boat rides. They can be long but I find it worth it and they don't have to be. Dive Provo's 1 tank PM off Grace Bay is a couple hours and the diving is fine. A two tank off Grace Bay will likely take all morning to 1 PM ish. Check Dive Provo's website. I don't know anything about the resort based dive op.

Curacao has decent beaches as well and very good diving and if you are looking to stay at a resort I would recommend taking a look at Lion's Dive Resort.

Little Cayman may be too quiet for the family and limited dining and shore activity options. I would save LC for a dive dedicated dive trip.

Bonaire is also a good choice but I would wait until the kids are ready to get certified. There is no place better for kids to start diving IMHO.

Whatever you decide, enjoy your trip.

Actually me and my 12 yo are the divers. She is both AOW and Nitrox. My wife and the 5yo would be the non-divers, but they both snorkel. Given your travel experience.....if I also threw Ambergris Caye or Isla Mujere into the running would either of them be better than T&C or Curacao?

 

[FishWatcher747]

I'd recommend Curacao. Someplace like Lions Dive Resort. Right on the beach for snorkeling and diving. Grab a tank and go diving. Honey we'll be back in an hour, we are going diving. How convenient is that?

 

[bmag78]

Can I ask why you recommend against using their dive operation? Given that the dives are included in the price of the resort, using an outside operation at $200 per day per person for two people could quickly add $2,000 in additional costs for five days of diving.

Generally they're a "cattle car" dive op with crowded boats. A large percentage of the clients are casual divers which is perfectly fine. But...
Divers are mandated to follow the guide in large groups and tend to be shorter and more conservative profiles due to inexperienced divers .... Like 30 minutes.
The majority of their dives are in Grace Bay and Northwest point which is also fine but going to Turks for diving and not going to West Caicos Island and possibly French Cay misses what's generally considered to be the best diving there.
I've also seen them do some pretty weird stuff like live drop a dozen divers on top of another boats divers and do a drift type dive under two other boats without telling the other boats. A few other things too
They don't have the greatest rep on the island.
I've heard people see a surface marker buoy and say "I guess beaches is out here again".
I'm sure some people here might have had a nice trip with them. I also understand the finance angle.

 

[tkaelin]

Actually me and my 12 yo are the divers. She is both AOW and Nitrox. My wife and the 5yo would be the non-divers, but they both snorkel. Given your travel experience.....if I also threw Ambergris Caye or Isla Mujere into the running would either of them be better than T&C or Curacao?

I have no experience with either. Congrats on the 12 yr old diver. Mine were 12 &15 when they were certified.

 

[DougD72]

Generally they're a "cattle car" dive op with crowded boats. A large percentage of the clients are casual divers which is perfectly fine. But...
Divers are mandated to follow the guide in large groups and tend to be shorter and more conservative profiles due to inexperienced divers .... Like 30 minutes.
The majority of their dives are in Grace Bay and Northwest point which is also fine but going to Turks for diving and not going to West Caicos Island and possibly French Cay misses what's generally considered to be the best diving there.
I've also seen them do some pretty weird stuff like live drop a dozen divers on top of another boats divers and do a drift type dive under two other boats without telling the other boats. A few other things too
They don't have the greatest rep on the island.
I've heard people see a surface marker buoy and say "I guess beaches is out here again".
I'm sure some people here might have had a nice trip with them. I also understand the finance angle.

You aren't the first person whose said they have a really conservative diving operation, and that they tend to stick to beginner sites of 60' or less.

Which is disappointing to learn because their website has a map of dive locations, half of which are labeled as advanced and run as deep as 100 ft. So I assumed they were running boats to both beginner and advanced locations.

 

[mbs]

We had originally been considering Bonaire because of the amazing diving, but other parents had warned us about lack of shore based activities....and a mostly rocky shoreline.

Bonaire might still do it for you... Take a look at The Plaza Resort and Toucan Diving. The resort is all inclusive and this year they really stepped up their game food-wise. But of course you can visit some of the great restaurants on the island as well. But nice to have the option for easy breakfast and lunch to stay on site. They have a sandy beach and a very nice pool. Check out the interesting course they offer for 5 year olds! Uncertified divers

 

[Ontwreckdiver]

(Cross posted to general travel forum as well. If that's not allowed then mods please delete.)

In Jan 2025 we are doing a 7-10 day family trip. Two divers and two non-divers.
Im considering either Turks and Caicos Beaches Resort since the diving is included or Curacao (Marriott or Sunscape).
Mandatory needs are:

1. Good diving
2. Great local food options (I hate traveling and then being fed nothing but American/Western food).
3. Good snorkeling for the non-divers.
4. Great shore activities also for the non-divers or on non-divers days.

Kids are age 5 and 12.
Thoughts?

Edit: Have also been considering Little Cayman and Cayman Brac, so I thought I would include that in the running as well.

Me and my non diving wife stayed at Sunscape Curacao last Oct. yes the resort is a little older but most of the rooms have been renovated, our A/C wasn't the greatest but it worked, most of the staff were good, only the Blue water grill had bad service, our room was cleaned everyday, the ladies at the Sun Club bar were great, and they just recently renovated the buffet. It's a 3 star resort, so if you go in knowing that you won't be disappointed.
We went to Mambo Beach Blvd. to eat most of the time, it is less than a 10 minute walk from Sunscape.
HOME | Mambobeach We ate most of our meals at the Greenhouse restaurant. THE GREENHOUSE CURACAO
It is a lot cheaper for us (from Canada) to get a all inclusive package to Sunscape and eat off the property than book Lions Dive and flights separately, so we would go back to Sunscape and eat our meals at Mambo Beach Blvd again. We also didn't care for the look of the rooms at Lions Dive. It is also on a public beach surrounded by shops, restaurants and bars.
Sunscape has the best snorkeling I have seen right off the beach in front of the resort.
Diving
I would never dive with Ocean Encounters, I emailed them and they said they put 25 to 30 divers on a boat. That's way too many for me. Also they are affiliated with the Curacao Aquarium & swim with Dolphins prison. I dove with Goby Divers, they picked me up and returned me to Sunscape every dive day and the most we had on the boat was 6 divers, they would store your gear for you. Homepage - Goby Divers Curaçao
The island of Curacao has a lot of history and lots to see topside. We did a private island tour with Let Lucy Handle It, she will ask what you want to see and where you want to go and customize a tour for you. Let Lucy Handle It | Willemstad Curaçao

 

[Ontwreckdiver]

Can I ask why you recommend against using their dive operation? Given that the dives are included in the price of the resort, using an outside operation at $200 per day per person for two people could quickly add $2,000 in additional costs for five days of diving.

I addition to bmag78's post. Divers that regularly dive with Sandals/Beaches pay to become "elite" divers. They pay about $200 and have to take around 5 courses for this. If the boat is over full ,the "elite" divers bump the other divers off the boat.

 

[ColoDale]

Cozumel might fit the bill. Lot's of restaurants. Diving and snorkeling plus whatever tours if you want.

Not sure why Grand Cayman is not on your list. Last time I was there (been awhile), there were plenty of good restaurants and decent diving. I am not sure if you can dive stingray city now. Though it is expensive on GC.

If you want more topside stuff then you have to choose somewhere that has a bigger population and tourism.

We just got a letter saying Sandals Emerald Bay, Little Exuma, Bahamas was converting to a Beaches starting Aug 15. We stayed there during a soft opening years ago and liked it. You might call them and check the opening date and what they offer (soft opening - hint). It was a Four Seasons hotel. We have not been to any of their properties lately but they are always nice and better food than Mexican AI.
The beach there is very good but not much snorkeling - it is mostly sand.
The diving is not bad but I would not say world class. I did dive a little blue hole there with an outside dive op. I doubt Sandals would take their divers into it.
We most always dived with an outside dive op. If you search SB there are plenty of discussions on Sandals diving. Their dive operation is not bad, it is professional but highly structured.

You could try Nassau Bahamas but I was not impressed overall with the diving. On the other hand, lots of sharks. The Bond wrecks are were becoming piles of rubble. More so by now no doubt.

Other places I have been to have smaller populations and we were farther from towns so less to do other than dive - which was the point really.

 

[DougD72]

Bonaire might still do it for you... Take a look at The Plaza Resort and Toucan Diving. The resort is all inclusive and this year they really stepped up their game food-wise. But of course you can visit some of the great restaurants on the island as well. But nice to have the option for easy breakfast and lunch to stay on site. They have a sandy beach and a very nice pool. Check out the interesting course they offer for 5 year olds! Uncertified divers

Thats sounds great! Thank you!