FlyingDoctorwu

I would vote for Turks and Caicos (Amanyara) or Four Seasons Nevis... say Adios to those Avios on American through Miami...

alternatively check out the RC Dorado Beach... also via American...

or maybe Amangani.. AA has good service to JAckson Hole

I am a big fan of keeping it as simple as possible when traveling with babies.. it isn't the easiest thing in the world... we went to Taiwan with a 20 month old and 4 adults and it scarred us for a loooong time...

FDW

bvipirate

I would certainly consider Kauai and suggest Poipu Beach as it has kid friendly beaches. There are also tons of hiking trails that would definitely keep you busy. Here is a link to some of the various hikes. http://www.hawaii-guide.com/kauai/hiking_trails I can't recommend any hotels or resorts in Poipu as it was a number years ago we visited and most of the resorts didn't exist but the scenery certainly did - the hiking is spectacular. The only downside - it is a long flight.

CMV

Thanks very much for all the replies. Contenders definitely include Amanjena and, closer to home, Amangiri.

Has anyone been to Amanruya in November? What would the weather be like? And what's the hiking like (long walks or more strenuous)?

Our daughter travels pretty well, but does have her limits. Hence the desire that we be able to get somewhere with only one stop from DC.

If it helps, we're thinking of around $2k/night at the outside, but we need a 2BR suite or two rooms.

Likely out: Hawaii is nice, but it always seems like a long way to go to go to the beach. And we were at the Costa Rica 4S just a year or two ago; it was alright, but we're not in a hurry to go back.

Kagehitokiri

zoe location has more acreage for itself and porto heli collection, plus greek/etc ruins
youre more interested in ruya? ruya/sveti havent revealed whether low season rates yet

mauritius seems to have some mountains etc, FS mauritius has villas and has a recent emphasis on activities, including with staff, dont fully understand if its fully complimentary or what

thought that might be an interesting combination, with BA longhauls

--

and what about aman/etc china? theres also tibet etc, and the banyan trees
maybe wait and see if aman lijiang opens in time before deciding? would aman lijiang be perfect?

Ericka

For weather on all the locations, I recommend:
www.weatherbase.com for monthly averages
And also
www.wunderground.com for historical data by the day and week. Obviously, early November can be very different from late November.

You could also ask jena, giri and ruya to email you their detailed activity word documents for more information on the hiking etc. They can also customize the activities for you if you are interested in doing more or less walking.

While November may not be the ideal time for sunbathing at some of these locations, it might be lovely weather for more strenuous outdoor pursuits. I think it was Musken who went to ruya in the summer and enjoyed the pools, but didn't go to see the ruins because it was too hot.

If you get serious about jena, do also consider Dar Ahlam as an add on. It would show you a different part of the country outside of Marakkech and they have tremendous activities and guides within the local area.

Musken

Do not think there is any two rooms option in ruya. They are going to build larger villas, but they are not there yet. You would then need to take two separate villas, they are not connected and thus not ideal. Also I would not go to any Mediterranean location in November. Too cold. It could be 20 degrees celcius during the day, but only half at night. Hiking and sightseeing would be possible, but Amanruya is so much better in spring/early summer/early autumn when one can still enjoy meals outside, use the pools and beach and also take advantages of the activities. It is true that it is too hot for some activities in the middle of the summer, but November is too late in my opinion.

Sveti Stefan is partly closed in winter, at least it was the last two years. I think the island is closed because of weather meaning it is not possible to get out there.Only Villa Milocher is open, and it would be a pity to go if island and many restaurants are closed.

Amanjena could be an option, but hiking etc. is not close by. There is a golf course and a small gym + spa, and one can enjoy the sightseeing and shopping in Marrakech.

quitecontrary

What about the newly renamed Sugar Beach Hotel ( formerly the Jalousie Plantation). You'd have hiking nearby - climb the Petit Piton and walks in the rainforest. This is a quote from Tripadvisor from someone ((with a baby) who stayed in one of the Residences last month -
"At the end of all this, all I can really say is that my family and I will be back---but not in one of the residences, next time we’ll do a combined Villa. And that is only the second resort we have stayed at in the Caribbean where we have ever done that (the other was Amanyara in Turks). "

Ericka

CMV, when in November are you thinking?

CGRA

IMHO At 20 months does mind traveliing and runnig around
Of course if he can't run around, he'll just scream

OP, not sure if this is your first one but you'll see a lot of change over the next 9months.

what's the weather in the Caribbean in November ? shorter ride than asia or africa

Altocumulus

We did Amanjiwo with our toddler in October and it was lovely. It would probably require 2 stops though, but maybe you could break it up with a few nights in Singapore - lots to entertain a toddler there (or even Hong Kong - Cathay are IMO consistently much superior for travel with young children than BA or any of the US airlines, at least in business long haul).

Loads to do at Jiwo for you (sunrise at borobodur, hiking in surrounding area, up volcanoes, through rice paddies etc... I believe Mark Swinton also does a fair amount of long-distance running so maybe you could join him..) and also for offspring (painting with an elephant, touring around the local villages in a pony & trap, examining stupas at Borobodur..). And they have a large and well-equipped playroom for your nanny and child to hang out in, so they have somewhere to go outside of your suite.

Everyone there was just amazing with our son - the minute we arrived he was whisked off by several staff members to play, and there was never any shortage of friendly people looking to entertain him (we travelled without our nanny for that trip, but got a babysitter from Amanjiwo who was lovely; we had her the whole week and would appear with about 5 minutes' notice at any time of the day or night..) This of course is fairly typical for Indonesia and we've had similar experiences in Bali - as others have suggested that could be great too.

One other thought - I would generally not choose to do mainland China for this trip. E.g. we went to Aman SP a few months ago but didn't bring our son and were glad we hadn't. It's a great property and there is a lot to see, but (at least IMO) the activities are generally not the type that would keep a toddler entertained, and even if you plan to just leave child with nanny at the property all the time, the property itself -while beautiful for adults - isn't as well geared to carefree-child-hanging-out. And China is not (again in our experience) the most welcoming place to travel with a very small child, especially compared with other options in the region.

MikeFromTokyo

Amanpuri two bedroom pool pavilion.

vuittonsofstyle

Mmm, I agree, but hiking?

MikeFromTokyo

There are definitely places to hike in Phuket, such as to mountaintop temples, or within the national parks where there are waterfalls. Apart from hiking, Phuket is a fantastic destination for active travelers in general.

Four Seasons Seychelles also comes to mind.

At Four Seasons Nevis it is a nice day hike to the top of Mt. Nevis.

vuittonsofstyle

Oh, OK! Not being into hiking, I had no idea!

Kagehitokiri

>
in aman thread >

one stop to bali then nonstop to jiwo

in beijing there is only great wall, but amanfayun and more importantly upcoming aman lijiang are different story, but maybe dont even consider if lijiang isnt open

some of us like low season discounts, i dont know if OP does
i said aman europe/china because of $2K/nt as well as hiking and possibly combine europe with mauritius
was thinking about higher cost of 2BRs at various amans/etc, some because high season (amanpuri)
although kila and jiwo do have connecting villas (as well as 7 nt discount and possibly a higher discount for 14 nts)