It's been years since we went to Cozumel but it was a very relaxing place. We stayed out of downtown but it was a short, easy cab ride. We were within walking distance of a state park, very good snorkeling. We brought our own gear.

We rented a car and drove around the island, even had an off road adventure. We had a Suzuki Side Kick, 4WD. The people were very friendly, food was very good.

I was there a number of years ago, thought it was pretty cool that the police on foot patrol were armed with slung submachine guns.

So we are actually doing a cruise out of Galveston to Mexico and Honduras on Royal. I don't really care about getting off the ship however there is some cool stuff to do if you do some recon online.

I'd look at lines and try to align the ship with the things you guys like and your budget. If there are kids involved, you'll likely want Royal Caribbean, NCL, or Carnival. I have my favorites but don't want to taint your pick. If you guys arent taking the kids that changes stuff a bit but again, a lot of stuff goes into all that.

Hope that helps.

That is the height of hurricane season.

I had a cruise stop in Cozumel some years back that was pretty nice. There were a bunch of us and we hopped in a few cabs and headed about 15 minutes to a little beach... pretty sure it was Playa Palancar. Free access beach with bar and restaurant, place to rent snorkel gear, chairs and umbrellas, etc. It was a very nice beach with lovely water, not crowded, and with good food service.

If you like chilling on the beach, I highly recommend. I kinda doubt I'll ever go on another cruise, but I would definitely do a trip to Cozumel.

well, that changed to St. Lucia LOL (fiancee choice) I will post a new thread or just continue it here

Any experience with SL ?

We went to a Sandals on Saint Lucia for our honeymoon, albeit a long time ago. Went in mid October, when it rains approximately 20 days out of 31 cause it is a tropical rainforest climate.
I got taken down by the water… ice cubes in mixed drinks. Caribbean travel demands Imodium!
You won’t necessarily have to go off resort for a few Cubans, the beach peddlers mostly have the genuine article. Prices are negotiable.

Well, belay my last! I’ve no clue about St. Lucia, but good luck and congrats!

I had a cruise stop in St Lucia years ago. It’s a very mountainous island. No flat land. We did a taxi tour. It wasn’t awesome but snorkeling was good, bought a bunch of whole nutmeg with the mace still on it for cheap. Watched people sit in volcanic mud with each other which seemed pretty gross.

We went to St. Lucia for an anniversary 10 years ago. Landed on the south side of the island and had to be driven to the resort on the north end. Took an hour of windy roads-Mrs Mike remarked about the UNICEF tents set up for the locals.

We stayed at La Toc a sandals resort. We chose that one because they had several restaurants on the campus. There were others nearby that we could have visited but didn’t leave the resort.

Make reservations as soon as you can, otherwise you will be eating bar food. Iirc we could schedule them a few weeks out. We didn’t bring a phone on that trip, but you should check into costs with your carrier before you go.

Some of the German tourists didn’t care that no one else was naked and they made it a nude area near the pool, the staff didn’t stop them.

Everything is expensive, Tylenol, sunscreen & other things were available at the resort store.

Been there once pre-covid and Zika. I imagine I would start with a stout bug repellant, the mosquitos loved me.

Kidding aside went in late Jan and weather was still hot, it is close enough to the tropics to not worry about hurricanes. We stayed in a villa near Marigot which is now closed, likely went private. You can tell it is a volcanic rock with pretty poor population, the east side is windy and shore is not hospitable, the interior somewhat hard to access. The west side of the island is where most things are, and I rented a car to get to the out of the way places, suggested by the villa owner. Had a boat excursion which left out of the bay, it was wonderful, which took us to see most of the stops on west side. If you're into the wilderness side, you can see Rainforest adventures (quite an inland drive), and a bird sanctuary/nature trail. Also enjoyed the National Trust Park near the northern end. I believe Castries harbor is the very touristy area, it's where cruise ships come in.

There are no natural sandy beaches. the resorts have sand shipped in for you, and the pictures. Did I mention it's a f'in rock? They have a rule about the "queen's skirt" everything along waters edge is public. If you are not a guest do not expect to walk up and into and enjoy most resorts.

There are now more resorts along the coast, and some used to share boat excursions and snorkeling so check to see if that is still true. Most food, gas, and amenities are quite expensive. So you can go out of the way places, or get parked in your favorite resort. Almost 2 different places.

wow, THIS has been informative, I was thinking it was a tropical paradise from the pics on the Sandals site, but it seems to be more rock than beach...I still have time / money to choose a different location, we are going in early Jan 2025 and

I am open to any suggestions for a tropical destination that has an all inclusive resort and nice beaches

quote:

Originally posted by golddot:

I am open to any suggestions for a tropical destination that has an all inclusive resort and nice beaches

I stayed at Kamalame Cay. Absolutely, by far, the best place I have been to, in sixty years of visiting many venues in The Bahama Islands.

https://www.kamalame.com

Second place goes to Stella Maris, not as private, not quite so luxurious, but still great.

https://www.stellamarisresort.com

V tail, I like the looks of the kamalame, I am working on a 5k or so budget, is that an option in my price range ?

quote:

Originally posted by golddot:

I like the looks of the kamalame, I am working on a 5k or so budget, is that an option in my price range ?

I can not give you a definitive answer, you'd need to communicate with the resort, or do some "what if" reservations on their website.

I was there about ten or fifteen years ago, on somebody else's dime.

I was a contract pilot, flew a company's plane there, and they decided that it would be cheaper to pay for me to stay there, than it would be to pay the operating expenses for me to deadhead back home with an empty airplane, and then pick them up later.

I had one of the lower price cottages. I believe it was around $800 / day, all inclusive -- outstanding food, top shelf booze, a golf cart came with the cottage.

The second option, Stella Maris, is also great. Not quite as pampered for the guests, but a lot to do, and cars or scooters available for rent to explore the island and check out some of the other settlements.

I have stayed at Stella Maris several times, both as "hired help" (pilot), and also have made a couple trips with my wife and kids, at my cost.

If I were younger and less mobility-limited, I would not hesitate to go back to either of those two.

quote:

Originally posted by golddot:
V tail, I like the looks of the kamalame, I am working on a 5k or so budget, is that an option in my price range ?

We just came back from Sandals Negril in Jamaica and it was just at $5k for 5 whole days. And it was one of the best resorts I’ve been to, and I was island hopping in the CG and as our vacations for decades. Mind you it’s a 1 1/2 hour drive from Montgomery bay, but totally worth it. The resort was between hedonism iii and a small strip of personal property then 300yds to a Beaches(also owned by sandals) so you could walk over to BEACHES and eat there or use their pool.

not quite looking for the lewdness of hedonism and jamaica lol

Any sandals resort sounds good, she is not interested in going off resort , neither am i

The only lewdness we saw there was a grandma who had just gotten her new titties, and she ran every morning topless. Jogging from hedonism and back half an hour later. She was easily avoided.

LOL, noted ..thats the good stuff

We went there precovid and stayed at Bay Gardens on Rodney Bay. We loved it. The beaches were great and the water was perfect. We went in January and it was a low of 78 and a high of 82 everyday with a short afternoon shower. Most of our time was just relaxing at the resort, but we did do a jungle tour and we went to Castries (didn’t care for it).

Its been several years, but I can’t recommend Big Chef Steakhouse enough. The food was amazing and service was even better. We had already ordered and were waiting for drinks when a waiter walked by with the most heavenly smelling appetizer. I said to my wife that we should have ordered that. 5 minutes later, out comes our waiter with that appetizer - no charge. He just overheard us and wanted us to try it.