Recommend September 2012 - (Page 39)

here’s a tip... Meet outside agent Emilia Casserly. She attended the Belize Tourism Expo (Betex) this year—that’s where I met her—and told me that, “It is so important for us to see and do what we are selling. During this trip, I have both visited and even stayed in a few places that are really not for my clients, and I have made several discoveries Opposite page: Poolside at the Hilton Papagayo Costa Rica Resort & Spa. that I can’t wait to sell.” Casserly is no newcomer to Belize. “Bound and determined” to learn to scuba dive “before I turned 50,” she got certiﬁed in Belizean waters, and now has a dive specialty niche. This year, Casserly took three families (parents in their 50’s, kids 18-21) on an adventure combining three nights at Caves Branch Jungle Lodge (“fabulous treehouse suites and a family-style meal”), with days spent on cave and waterfall expeditions, and four nights on Ambergris Caye at the new Coco Beach Resort (“lots of 2-bedroom villas for families and a huge pool”). All family members took a resort scuba course so they could dive to at least 40 ft., and some went spear ﬁshing, with the catch of the day cooked up for an island-bound lunch. other options range from exploring the underwater world on Glovers Reef to river cave expeditions. Of course, mom and dad, plus the kids, can also lie in a hammock, build sand castles or swim in the sea. Jaguar Reef Lodge offers a value-packed Walk On the Wild Side Family Adventure, a 7-night vacation including accommodations in 2-bedroom beachfront suites, all meals, three full-day adventure tours, free use of bikes, kayaks, sail boat and snorkel gear, all taxes and gratuities and roundtrip air (Belize City-Dangriga) or ground transfers between the international airport (PGIA) in Belize City and the lodge. The package is priced for a variety of family sizes: two adults or one adult with one, two or three children. A sampling: until Dec. 18, for two adults and two children, the cost is $4,572; starting Jan. 3, the family cost is $5,175; over Christmas-New Year, the cost is $5,875. The Lodge at Chaa Creek—anointed “World’s Best” eco-lodge awards from Travel + Leisure and National Geographic Adventure—occupies a private 365-acre nature reserve in the foothills of the Maya Mountains, a 2-hour drive from Belize City. In addition to its beautifully appointed cottage accommodations, huge pool, and full-service spa, its particular appeal to families is its bevy of activities that stimulate interest in the environment, culture, natural history and archaeology of Belize. Right on the property guests can go mountain biking, birding, horseback riding along miles of forest trails, canoeing on the Macal River, and visit the lodge’s Natural History Centre, Butterﬂy Farm, and Rainforest Medicinal Trail, with all kinds of tours available to Belize’s richest Maya archaeological sites and national parks. Mixing jungle and the sea, Chaa Creek offers a perfect, best-ofBelize, 7-night Family Vacation package. Four nights are spent at the lodge, with three days of activities and touring (ranging from a “Nature Rules Treasure Hunt” and a “Creatures of the Night Hike” to canoeing to a local village and a horseback ride to a Mayan site). Three nights are then spent at Roberts Grove Beach Resort in Placencia, including a guided snorkeling trip and a Monkey River Tour. Until Dec. 15, the cost is $2,540 pp dbl, with a kids’ price of $610 (6-11 years) and $1,150 (12-15). Included are accommodations, all meals, guided activities and tours, transfer to the beach resort, transfer by car to the lodge and airfare from the resort to Belize City. others can’t get enough of costa rica Two hotel members of the Greentique Hotels group, Si Como No Resort Spa & Wildlife Refuge in Manuel Antonio and Villa Blanca Cloud Forest Hotel & Nature Reserve, are offering a 6-night holiday chock-full of family-friendly values and priced at $700 pp dbl (Sept. 1-Nov. 14) and $790 pp dbl (Nov. 25-April 30, 2013), with no room charge for children under 12. At Villa Blanca, specials include 2-night deluxe casita accommodations, breakfast daily, a guided nature tour of the Villa Blanca Cloud Forest, free access to the Research Station, and a visit to the dairy farm to milk the cows. At Si Como No, included are four nights in superior room accommodations, daily breakfast, guided night tour of the Wildlife Refuge Amphibian Gardens & Crocodile Lagoons, half-day guided tour of Manuel Antonio National Park, and free access to the butterﬂy gardens. Both hotels include VIP movie passes to their private THX theater, showing two presentations daily. While the package does not include transfers, Villa Blanca is an easy hour drive west of San Jose Airport, under two hours by road to Si Como No, and a roughly 4-hour drive back to San Jose; while the hotels will assist with transfers at additional charge, a family will ﬁnd a car rental the best and most enjoyable way to link this destination triangle together. Additionally, there are daily ﬂights between San Jose and Quepos, air ﬁeld for Manuel Antonio. Villa Blanca sits on 1,900 acres of farm land and forest, and families enjoy ﬁreplaces in the casitas and welcoming lounge areas in the hotel, choices of trail hikes, cloud forest birding, canopy touring or horseback riding in the area. At Si Como No families have panoramic views of the Paciﬁc Ocean with a shuttle bus connecting the hotel to beautiful beaches and onsite pool and deck areas that include a waterslide and cascades. The resort also has a full-day Santa Juana Local Experience tour—guided wildlife watching, ﬁshing, horseback riding, local pueblo visit with lunch—and around Manuel Antonio, there’s plenty to do, including horseback riding, riding on the Rain Forest Aerial Tram, ziplining, as well as joining a Dolphin Discovery or taking a sunset cruise. For a more traditional all-inclusive resort vacation with no shortage of Costa Rica-style activities, a good pick is the Hilton Papagayo Costa Rica Resort & Spa, located just 11 miles from Liberia International september 2012 39

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Recommend September 2012

Editor's Notes
Hotel Desk: Omni Hotels & Resorts
Tour Talk: Adventures by Disney
Disney Fantasy
Atlantis, The Bahamas
Beaches Turks & Caicos
Great Kid-Friendly Resorts
Mexico with Kids in Mind
Belize + Costa Rica = Family-Friendly
Ancestry Travel: Family Roots & Routes
Orlando
Hotel-Free Stays for Ski + Beach Escapes
Kidding Around in Asia
It's All in the Family Israel

Recommend September 2012