Selecting The Right Family Vacation

When choosing a family vacation there are lots of things to consider including climate, available vacation time, how much you want to spend and whether you want to drive or fly.  If you only have a short weekend, you might want to consider a quick city getaway or even a short three or four day cruise.  We have done both, and they can really give your family a nice break from the daily grind.  With short weekend trips you may even want to consider options where you can drive instead of flying.  Flying can be quite the hassle these days, and if your time is short, you may not want to risk 8 hours in an airport while your flights are delayed.

With a week of vacation time, you can do almost anything...within reason.  There are excellent vacation packages and hundreds of cruises to choose from that leave on both Saturday and Sunday, making it very convenient.  You will also find that many hotels offer you a package rate when you stay an extended period.  Look for hotels that give you free nights when you stay 3, 4 or 5 nights.  Even if you do not see it when booking, be sure to ask.  I always say, "Good things come to those who ask."

If you have vacation time, you may want to consider an international vacation.  This is the perfect time to visit Alaska, Europe, Asia or even the South Pacific.

7 Must-See Places to Take Your Kids

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A New Player on the Block

Hyatt Hotels entry into the all inclusive resort market has been somewhat under the radar of most people. They have eased into the market with resorts in Cancun(adult only), Rose Hall Jamaica, Puerto Vallarta and Cabo San Lucas. The last 3 resorts have both an adult only section(Zilara brand) and family section (Ziva). Unfortunately the Cabo San Lucas resort was heavily damaged shortly after it opened by Hurricane Odile and will re-open this summer.  Their concept is the evolution of all inclusive. So I was intrigued by an invitation to visit the location in Rose Hall, Montego Bay Jamaica. I jumped at the chance to check out a luxury family resort only 15 minutes from the airport. With little ones, do you really want to take that long drive to Negril or Ocho Rios especially if you are not staying a full week. Plus this property had been a former Ritz Carlton, so I wanted to see what they did with the renovations and additions to see if they maintained the elegance of the property.

First I did use Club Mobay to fast track through immigrations and customs and was escorted to the Hyatt Ziva/Zilara airport lounge to wait for my included transfer. It's a 15 minute trip from the airport to the resort. Each brand has it's own entrance and lobby. I was staying at the Ziva side and was met by Travis who took my bag and escorted me inside to check in. I was handed a much needed adult beverage after my long flight and checked in. I was escorted to my room by Travis with my bag. I was in a Ziva Ocean View Junior Suite, which was quite large at 656 sqft and in the new addition to the existing hotel.

 

 

The pool area for this section is brand new, it consists of an activity pool(think water volleyball and they do have water spinning classes in the morning also) and a relaxation pool with the swim up bar and water lounge chairs. And around the pool are the covered beds, which will let you take a nap without getting sunburned and they are for everyone, not just people in the "club" or "butler" rooms like at some resorts.

No getting up really early and calling for dinner reservations! The Italian, Brazilian and Asian a la carte restaurants do not require reservations. The buffet is very elegant looking with indoor and outdoor seating. I only ate breakfast there, but it is well laid out even though the bread station is behind a wall. Food is very high quality with some international touches, like baked beans for our friends from the UK and they also had a couple of Jamaican items also. The open air restaurants for both hotels were excellent. They also have a couple of places to get your lattes. Also no need to grab a cab and go to Schotchies to get your jerk chicken, because the resort has a great jerk shack on site.

For entertainment they do put on a nightly show and have a late night English Pub style bar for the night owls. There is a roof top Moroccan style bar, as well as an open air bar and piano bar opened in the evening.

They do have all the other amenities that you would expect from a top level all inclusive; spa, fitness center, 24 hour room service and kids club.

Now the adults only guests from Zilara can come over and use the Ziva facilities(it's really just one resort) but to be honest most everything is over on the Ziva side. When we were there the Zilara pool was more crowded than the Ziva pool.

For the balance of 2015, when staying 3 or more nights you get a complimentary round of golf at either Cinnamon Hill or White Witch, which is always on every Top 10 Caribbean golf course list.
The beach is more lagoon like, so it is safer for kids to swim.

All in all I think this will be a great family resort for those looking for an upscale resort within close distance to the airport, which is great for shorter stays. Who wants to spend a 4 day weekend trip with long rides to a resort? It would be a good choice for a destination wedding, where everyone could be at the same resort. Families in Ziva and the bride & groom and adult guests at Zilara. Also with the meeting room space and the food quality, it would work well for business meetings/events also.