Family-Friendly Southern Caribbean Excursions... Suggestions?

Hello fellow cruisers!

Although our Southern Caribbean cruise is one year away, I’m a natural planner, so I've been looking at options for our ports of call… any advice for the following ports will be greatly appreciated, especially if you’ve taken any of the excursions that I’ve mentioned here. Please keep in mind that we will be traveling as a family of 5... three adults, one 6-year-old, and one 1-year-old:

Old San Juan, Puerto Rico: I think that I'd like to visit either Aguaviva restaurant or Inaru restaurant, or both, if possible, and I'd like for us to explore Old San Juan, so possibly, a walking tour of Old San Juan. Any ideas?

Philipsburg, St. Martin: Had been thinking of visiting both Maho Beach and Orient Beach, but another cruiser suggested Le Galion Beach and the Butterfly Farm… do you know of any tours that offer both of those options?

St. Johns, Antigua: I think that I'd like our family to visit Dickenson Beach... I'm not sure if there are any other beaches/sights that we should aim to visit. Any suggestions?

Castries, S. Lucia: We are planning to book a tour with Spencer Ambrose, but haven’t yet decided between the West Coast Island Delights, or the Land, Sea, and Beach Adventure… My main concern is doing these specific tours WITH children as young as mine, as I think about the speedboat ride, and the strong smell at the volcano and sulphur springs? Would love to hear from parents who have been there, done that :)

Bridgetown, Barbados: I'd like our family to spend a decent amount of time at the beach, but I'd also like us to tour the island, coast to coast... I'm not sure if there is such a tour in which visitors can go coast to coast and still spend time at the beach. Please let me know if you know of any such tours/excursions. If not, what are the key sights you would recommend visiting in Barbados, along with the beach... and which beach do you recommend?

Basseterre, St. Kitts: Grey’s Island Tours’ Capital City Tour and Beach Splash or customizing a tour to see key sights on the island, as well as the beach… are there key sights you would recommend visiting in St. Kitts, along with the beach... and which beach do you recommend?

Thanks!

FYI, I also posted on the ports of call boards, but I think this board may have more parents who've sought similar family-friendly experiences.

You really need a guidebook...libraries have them...to do a bit of research on your ports....most of the "beachy" things require NO excursion at all....so, read up on your ports, decide what is important for you to see, and the book will tell you the best ways to do those things! With a family of 5, excursions can really 'break the bank"...

You really need a guidebook...libraries have them...to do a bit of research on your ports....most of the "beachy" things require NO excursion at all....so, read up on your ports, decide what is important for you to see, and the book will tell you the best ways to do those things! With a family of 5, excursions can really 'break the bank"...

Thanks! Yes, I definitely hear you about excursions being really pricey. I'll look at a few guidebooks to see what other options we have. Thanks for the suggestion!

Sometimes guidebooks don't help- the only ones available at my library were ebooks that I had to download a special program to read! And then, they didn't really help because they weren't written by people with kids. Check out the forums of the ports of call, you can always ask about family friendly excursions there. Your six year old is probably ok for many excursions, it's your one year old I'd be the most concerned about. Have you considered booking excursions for just two adults and the six year old? Then one adult can take care of your youngest, make sure naptime and meals happen on the expected schedule. Just make sure you rotate responsibility so everyone gets a chance to go on excursions!

PGPrendy,

I'm very interested to hear what others have to say and will follow your thread closely. Guidebooks are hit or miss but hearing from the voices (keyboards) of travelers who frequent this and other boards IMHO are far more valuable.

That said; I have been to two of the port mentioned and in the next two weeks will have been to two others.

St. Martin - Le Galion is as advertised the perfectly calm beach parents of little children are looking for. The amenities are limited to a little beach hut that offers drinks, burgers, sausages, salad etc. Washrooms are also available as well as chair and umbrella rentals. We took a cab from port and simply asked him to return pick us up at a designated time. The butterfly conservatory is on the same side road you'd take to the beach but imagine it would be a 10-15 minute walk. Could be wrong on timing but that's what it seemed like to me.

St. Kitts - Loved Carambola Beach Club. It was a 20 minute drive from port and offered all the amenities our group wanted from chairs, umbrellas, very nice restaurant, washroom, shower facilities. Your one yearr old would be happy hear but the six year old might be a little bored if they want water toys to jump around and play with during the day.

I'll be in Barbados and Antigua in the next two weeks and will report back on where we ended up and how we fared with our group (four adults and two kids [3.5 yrs and 1.5 yrs])

Sometimes guidebooks don't help- the only ones available at my library were ebooks that I had to download a special program to read! And then, they didn't really help because they weren't written by people with kids. Check out the forums of the ports of call, you can always ask about family friendly excursions there. Your six year old is probably ok for many excursions, it's your one year old I'd be the most concerned about. Have you considered booking excursions for just two adults and the six year old? Then one adult can take care of your youngest, make sure naptime and meals happen on the expected schedule. Just make sure you rotate responsibility so everyone gets a chance to go on excursions!

Thank you for the feedback on guidebooks. I'll take a look, but I generally consider someone's experience, especially someone similarly situated to some degree, i.e. a parent who has cruised with young children, to be more valuable. Your feedback confirms that initial instinct. I guess both resources have their benefits.

Also, funny you suggest the sharing of child care duties, as my mom is coming along with my husband and me in order to allow this to truly be a vacation :) However, I also want her to relax and enjoy the cruise vacation... she works really hard year round, and helps a lot with our children year round, so it'll be great to do this together! That being said, taking turns/shifts can work.

PGPrendy,

 

I'm very interested to hear what others have to say and will follow your thread closely. Guidebooks are hit or miss but hearing from the voices (keyboards) of travelers who frequent this and other boards IMHO are far more valuable.

 

That said; I have been to two of the port mentioned and in the next two weeks will have been to two others.

 

St. Martin - Le Galion is as advertised the perfectly calm beach parents of little children are looking for. The amenities are limited to a little beach hut that offers drinks, burgers, sausages, salad etc. Washrooms are also available as well as chair and umbrella rentals. We took a cab from port and simply asked him to return pick us up at a designated time. The butterfly conservatory is on the same side road you'd take to the beach but imagine it would be a 10-15 minute walk. Could be wrong on timing but that's what it seemed like to me.

 

St. Kitts - Loved Carambola Beach Club. It was a 20 minute drive from port and offered all the amenities our group wanted from chairs, umbrellas, very nice restaurant, washroom, shower facilities. Your one yearr old would be happy hear but the six year old might be a little bored if they want water toys to jump around and play with during the day.

 

I'll be in Barbados and Antigua in the next two weeks and will report back on where we ended up and how we fared with our group (four adults and two kids [3.5 yrs and 1.5 yrs])

Tagong,

Thanks for the info! I too consider parents' experiences to be more valuable than a standard guidebook, but I will look. I look forward to your feedback on Barbados and Antigua! Not that I have to tell you this... I'm sure you have this part under control... but have an awesome time on your cruise! :)

I'm subscribing to this because while my kids are older (youngest is 8), you still don't hear about a lot of kids being on excursions on the Ports of Call boards. My husband and I discussed whether we'd want to do group tours or private, and we decided to go the private route. Taxi rides for five people to a beach on many of the islands we're doing are going to come to $80-100 anyway, and our thought is that none of us have ever seen these islands before, and who knows when we'll visit again, so we might as well see what we can. If we really like some of them, we can return.

I will mention that the price for private tours for just my family aren't really that much more (maybe $50-75 more for just us versus the group tour) and we figure, we can pick and choose what we'd like to see and not have to wait if the group wants to linger at something that isn't really kid-friendly. I know a baby changes things quite a bit, though.

I didn't see the Butterfly Farm on any of the tours I looked at for St. Martin. There is the Wildlife Reserve/zoo in Barbados that my family will likely visit, in addition to swimming with the turtles and seeing both coasts. I think I saw somewhere that St. Kitts has a zoo of some sort as well. Two of my kids are boys and I know that they'll enjoy seeing some of the forts on the different islands.

I'm reading along, too. :)

Hi there! Yes, we're looking into a number of tour options as well. I'm not sure if this info will be helpful to you, but based on what you've said so far about the ports you'll be visiting, I've decided to share the info, so you can decide on whether it's helpful to you :) For St. Martin, Bernard's does group and private tours... I contacted him, and he is willing and able to customize a tour that includes the Butterfly Farm and Le Galion Beach. For St. Kitts, Grey's has not responded to my e-mail, so we decided to go with Island Paradise Tours there... Rosevelt called me directly, and we're excited about our St. Kitts beach day!

I'm subscribing to this because while my kids are older (youngest is 8), you still don't hear about a lot of kids being on excursions on the Ports of Call boards. My husband and I discussed whether we'd want to do group tours or private, and we decided to go the private route. Taxi rides for five people to a beach on many of the islands we're doing are going to come to $80-100 anyway, and our thought is that none of us have ever seen these islands before, and who knows when we'll visit again, so we might as well see what we can. If we really like some of them, we can return.

 

I will mention that the price for private tours for just my family aren't really that much more (maybe $50-75 more for just us versus the group tour) and we figure, we can pick and choose what we'd like to see and not have to wait if the group wants to linger at something that isn't really kid-friendly. I know a baby changes things quite a bit, though.

 

I didn't see the Butterfly Farm on any of the tours I looked at for St. Martin. There is the Wildlife Reserve/zoo in Barbados that my family will likely visit, in addition to swimming with the turtles and seeing both coasts. I think I saw somewhere that St. Kitts has a zoo of some sort as well. Two of my kids are boys and I know that they'll enjoy seeing some of the forts on the different islands.

 

I'm reading along, too. :)

Hi there! Yes, we're looking into a number of tour options as well. I'm not sure if this info will be helpful to you, but based on what you've said so far about the ports you'll be visiting, I've decided to share the info, so you can decide on whether it's helpful to you :) For St. Martin, Bernard's does group and private tours... I contacted him, and he is willing and able to customize a tour that includes the Butterfly Farm and Le Galion Beach. For St. Kitts, Grey's has not responded to my e-mail, so we decided to go with Island Paradise Tours there... Rosevelt called me directly, and we're excited about our St. Kitts beach day!

Just Following...

Our family is planning on doing the Eastern/Southern Caribbean next year as well.

PGPrendy,

 

I'll be in Barbados and Antigua in the next two weeks and will report back on where we ended up and how we fared with our group (four adults and two kids [3.5 yrs and 1.5 yrs])

Hi Tagong,

How are you? How was your cruise? :)

IN st kitts we took a taxi to ship wreck beach bar. it was 4$ each for the cab and2 chairs and one umbrella was 10$. this is a black sand beach. but the really cool thing is the monkeys come right out of the rainforest and try to steal drinks. during the hotest part of the day there are only a few monkeys but lots of mongoose. the beach has 2 side one for snorkling and once for swimming, there is also platfoms out in the water the kids can jump off of. it is a tiny beach but lots of shade. you can look up the monkeys on utube under drunk monkeys and st kitts

We did orient beach in st martaan. just so you are aware it is top optional. the older ladies go topless and an occasionally younger ladies so dont know if you want the kids exposed to this or not. the beach is awesome with gentel waves and beautiful. do not go to mullet bay, there was very bad erosion abd there is a 4 ft drop off from where your chairs are to the water. people were falling and hurting them selves.

\

old san juan has a free trolley you can hop on and off. the first stop is only a block from the pier. they run very frequently. http://www.touroldsanjuan.com/trolley-map/

IN st kitts we took a taxi to ship wreck beach bar. it was 4$ each for the cab and2 chairs and one umbrella was 10$. this is a black sand beach. but the really cool thing is the monkeys come right out of the rainforest and try to steal drinks. during the hotest part of the day there are only a few monkeys but lots of mongoose. the beach has 2 side one for snorkling and once for swimming, there is also platfoms out in the water the kids can jump off of. it is a tiny beach but lots of shade. you can look up the monkeys on utube under drunk monkeys and st kitts

 

 

We did orient beach in st martaan. just so you are aware it is top optional. the older ladies go topless and an occasionally younger ladies so dont know if you want the kids exposed to this or not. the beach is awesome with gentel waves and beautiful. do not go to mullet bay, there was very bad erosion abd there is a 4 ft drop off from where your chairs are to the water. people were falling and hurting them selves.

\

old san juan has a free trolley you can hop on and off. the first stop is only a block from the pier. they run very frequently. http://www.touroldsanjuan.com/trolley-map/

Thanks for this info, especially about the trolley in Old San Juan!

I'm doing almost this same itinerary with a 4 year old. (Our trip has Martinique in Place of St. Martin). I'm really enjoying reading everyone's suggestions!

You can actually walk if in good shape at this port- San Juan. One thing I highly recommend is buying a cheap kite and sailing it at the fort. Highlight of the trip for my daughter. They sell expensive ones in the gift shop or you can bring a cheap one with you.

We just did an excursion in St Maarten the week before last with our 3 year old - would highly recommend the Tall Ship Experience, we booked through Royal Caribbean. It was 3 and a half hours on the ship, all the staff on board were fab, my son got to pretend he was steering the ship for at least an hour and blow the ship's horn. Really relaxing for everyone.

They timed the trip so that we could see the planes coming into land at Maho beach - saw the big KLM plane, we got some great photos.

Google 'sailing ship Mercedes' and you'll find it.

We just did an excursion in St Maarten the week before last with our 3 year old - would highly recommend the Tall Ship Experience, we booked through Royal Caribbean. It was 3 and a half hours on the ship, all the staff on board were fab, my son got to pretend he was steering the ship for at least an hour and blow the ship's horn. Really relaxing for everyone.

 

They timed the trip so that we could see the planes coming into land at Maho beach - saw the big KLM plane, we got some great photos.

 

Google 'sailing ship Mercedes' and you'll find it.

That sounds amazing! I've actually seen it listed as one of the excursions being offered on our cruise, but I didn't look into it... well, now, I will. Thanks for sharing!

You can actually walk if in good shape at this port- San Juan. One thing I highly recommend is buying a cheap kite and sailing it at the fort. Highlight of the trip for my daughter. They sell expensive ones in the gift shop or you can bring a cheap one with you.

I like the kite idea! Thanks!

That sounds amazing! I've actually seen it listed as one of the excursions being offered on our cruise, but I didn't look into it... well, now, I will. Thanks for sharing!

It was a last minute addition for us, but so glad we did it - short walk from where the ship docked to where the tall ship is (told my wee boy it was a pirate ship, so he was delighted - it even had a pirate flag!).

We were greeted with homemade lemonade, other drinks/snacks need to be paid for, but they were pretty reasonable - $1 for a packet of cookies or Cheetos.

It's not an all action excursion, and I wasn't that excited about it in advance, but definitely a good memory from our cruise.

We have older kids (9 and 11 at time of cruise), but following. Slightly different islands for us, but also looking for good excursion ideas.

We are doing St. Maarten and also Barbados on our cruise - we thought about doing a catamaran snorkel cruise (older kids) on St. Maarten, but also saw there was a cave tour on Barbados that uses a tram - that might be something cool that even your 1 y.o. could do.

saw there was a cave tour on Barbados that uses a tram - that might be something cool that even your 1 y.o. could do.

It does look like a great tour for the boys.

We haven't cruised yet, but I, too, am a super-planner and have already researched what to do in port. Our itinerary only shares 1 port with yours, though, so here's what I found.

San Juan - We're going to head up to do the kite flying at Castillo de San Cristobal. From there, we'll try Parque de las Palomas (Pigeon Park.) There is a person there who sells pigeon feed for $1 a bag and the pigeons will flock to you if they see you have some. Not sure about a 1 year old, but our 9 year old will love it. There is also a splash pad near the totem pole in Plaza del Quinto Contenario. Haven't looked at a map to see if they're all feasible but that's my plan. I also found a place called Casa Cortes, which is a chocolate bar/food art place. Who doesn't love chocolate? The website is all in Spanish, though, so I'm having a bit of difficulty. Might have to call in a friend to translate for me.

Casa Cortes looks amazing! I speak some Spanish - so a brief translation:

(the entry page) Where two great passions meet: art and chocolate

A very brief summary of the history page -

Don Pedro Cortes founded the Cortes brothers in the Dominican Republic after realizing the value and quality of Caribbean Chocolate during the Great Depression. Don Pedro's son expanded the business. The Chocobar is a new gastronomic concept where Caribbean chocolate is the main star.