Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The cheapest option is very rarely the nicest.

Ok, so within the nicest one, the most affordable one.

I realize I’m on DCUM but I’m a normal person. Royal Caribbean might be the best for us, not Beaches Turks and Caicos.

We cruise with Royal Caribbean frequently, OP, Loyal to Royal, as they say. I’d be happy to answer any questions you have.

It looks too costly now to cruise as a family of 5.

The easiest is a Royal Caribbean Cruise. All-Inclusive (well, excursions, alcohol and fine dining are extra) but my 8yo loved the kids club. My 2 young teens would not leave the teen club. So DH and I could do whatever we wanted and had to "force" the kids to eat meals with us.

We got 1 balcony room and an interior across the hall. Made the 8yo sleep in our room.

Disney might be "nicer" but it costs a lot more. I didn't want to do a Carnival type cruise, so RC fit the bill.

Costco. Great deals. Always on point. Good policies.

No Vrbo or AirBnb too many fees and a pain.

Are you flying or driving from dc area?
Do your kids have passports?
What is your general budget all in for the week?

Assuming you have a spouse so it’s 5 of you?

Do you want the kids in a separate or adjoining room, or you all share 1 big room w two queen beds w a rollaway bed?

How self service are you? Would a Vrbo/airbnb work?

Anonymous wrote:Looking for Feb 2026. Kids will be 10,9,5.

Want a kids club, prefer all inclusive?

Options:
Cruise
All inclusive Caribbean?

Something else?

Want a vacation (island?) not a trip (Europe).

Check Costco offerings for your week(s). IME it offers the best value for middle-and-slightly-higher tier AI resorts. It also sells cruises.
CheapCaribbean.com has great deals, but be wary of the "cheapest" options. Always cross-reference reviews with Tripadvisor and Expedia.
We use Expedia a lot and I've booked very nice AI Caribbean vacations through them, sometimes with "exclusive" discounts.
With 3 kids you'll probably get the best bang for your buck if you go to Jamaica or DR.

Anonymous wrote:The cheapest option is very rarely the nicest.

Captain Obvious weighs in.

For a cruise, I’d just look at a few cruise websites. Then, when you know what you want, call Costco and they will give you thousands in Costco cash to book through them. My advice for cruises — whatever is the newest ship to be built will be almost twice as much. So avoid that. Generally speaking, ships and itineraries matter more than cruise line. Go out of Florida for the best cruises. Try not to pick the oldest ship. Check to see the age breaks for the different cruise line kids clubs and make sure you’re okay with it, because they are strict. If your youngest is by themselves, will they be okay with that?

For reports, I might check Costco to see what they have. But one of the biggest price swings for a family of that size will be airfare so I might narrow down to places with affordable airfare. For February you probably don’t want Bahamas but also don’t need to avoid the hurricane belt, so Puerto Rico, st Thomas, Cancun, Jamaica etc would all work. Do you really want a kids club? That will limit you significantly. We went to the Beaches Jamaica with the water park when the kids were that age and it was pretty fun. Nice beach. Decent food. All inclusive. They also had a five person family suite — which is fairly rare. All inclusive (and also cruises) are really tough for families of five because things are priced by the room so you pay more for 3+2 is more than (4x1.25) if that makes sense. So for either one you may want to google places that have 5 person suites (assuming you have a partner coming with you—if not, it’s all much easier).

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The cheapest option is very rarely the nicest.

Ok, so within the nicest one, the most affordable one.

I realize I’m on DCUM but I’m a normal person. Royal Caribbean might be the best for us, not Beaches Turks and Caicos.

We cruise with Royal Caribbean frequently, OP, Loyal to Royal, as they say. I’d be happy to answer any questions you have.

Check out some of the on-line travel agencies (e.g., Pavlus, Vacations To Go, etc) which provide substantial rebates to you from their commissions, especially for cruises. Their agents can also make suggestions to you based on your preferred itineraries, vessel size, budget, and other considerations.

Costco also offers favorable pricing, but their discounts/rebates come in the form of less flexible Costco credits.

Anonymous wrote:The cheapest option is very rarely the nicest.

Ok, so within the nicest one, the most affordable one.

I realize I’m on DCUM but I’m a normal person. Royal Caribbean might be the best for us, not Beaches Turks and Caicos.

I’d never use a travel agent for domestic travel, especially a cruise. I like booking or rebooking myself if I find a better deal. I don’t want to have to contact a third party to make it happen. Also, too many ala carte options on cruises with prices that change often. Do it yourself and save the hassle.

The cheapest option is very rarely the nicest.

We want a vacation: cruise or resort is fine but would prefer the cheapest option, but also the nicest.

How to book cheaply? Costco? Travel agent?

I think you should think a bit more about what? You want? (On vacation)

Maybe then come back?
And we can steer you in the right direction?

(Right now it’s hard to know what to tell you).

Looking for Feb 2026. Kids will be 10,9,5.

Want a kids club, prefer all inclusive?

Options:
Cruise
All inclusive Caribbean?

Something else?

Want a vacation (island?) not a trip (Europe).