Hey stewarttm,

I've been having similar thoughts lately, so figure I can share what I've learned.

I have stayed at the Hyatt in Aruba, and can vouch for the beach area. It's really about all you can ask for - nice sand, bar, good swimming, plenty of activities and long enough to go wander down and see, well more beach and resorts! Now, the down side: the cost. Yes, it's a reasonable redemption on points but the food and beverage costs are steep. We stayed one night, had access to the club for breakfast and despite this, on a couple of lunches, one dinner and "a little" drinking on the beach, our bill for 2 people came to around $400. I'm sure you can walk across the road to eat at Burger King, but the on-site options are pricey. Hence my interest in the all-inclusives!

There's a definite value to the all-inclusives should you like to enjoy the odd cocktail by the pool or on the beach...but if you don't then the Andaz Papagayo in Costa Rica is a cheap points option (available with Chase card free night too). The Andaz Mayakoba in Playa del Carmen also seems like a good value redemption, with perhaps a nicer beach.

All the all-inclusives seem to get overall really good reviews, so I don't think there's necessarily a bad option there. From what I can gather, swimming in the ocean at the Cabo resort is not recommended with typical beach conditions, though the views look fantastic. So I'd narrowed it down to Montego Bay, Cancun and Puerto Vallarta. And each of those has its own merits depending on where you are based. We are now leaning towards Puerta Vallarta and the rates for the dates of interest are around $240 for a base room. At that price, I don't think I can bring myself to redeem Chase points at 20k/night!

Anyway, just my thoughts. Would be interested in knowing what you decide and how the trip goes.

Cheers