Fun with 3 year old
 

My wife is out of the country and I have few points (cat 6 max) for 5 night stay at a Marriott property within US/Canada end of September.

Any place fun for the kids (perhaps still warm with a pool or two) you would recommend? Doesn't have to be the beach, but free breakfast for Platinums would be nice :) (prefer full service, I doubt any resorts in US/Canada offer free breakfast).

as I recall,. Sharon noted "resorts" in her sticky that do............
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/marri...-weekends.html

Yeah, I am more concerned about the rest of the requirements ;)

then it might help if you narrow down your request as there are LOTS of places in the US/Canada..............are you going to drive/fly/walk.........

How about the Monterey Marriott? You can visit the aquarium for a couple of days, and the surrounding areas are good for sightseeing.

Swimming in late September? I think your best bet is the Southwest. Lots of options to look at. I think JW Starr Pass in Tucson is cat six and they have a lazy river and pool. I'd check with them to be sure it wil still be open.

Walk LOL

Obviously me and my 3 year old will walk ;)

I left it opened because I do have some airline miles I'll use as well.

Right now I even expanded to options in the Mexico and perhaps even Caribbean (out of Charlotte) but considering my travel dates are not that flexible (24-29th) many island options are out of the question as they only get once a week service.

Current options I am looking at:

JW Marriott Tucson Starr Pass Resort & Spa
Phoenix Marriott Tempe at the Buttes
CasaMagna Marriott Cancun Resort
JW Marriott Cancun Resort & Spa

If you're going to choose between the CasaMagna and the JW in Cancun, pick the JW. You'll be glad you did, and you can still walk across a walkway and use all of the CasaMagna pools if you want. The JW pools are much nicer. With a 3 year-old, JW has a bunch of suites with separate living space if you happen to get upgraded.

Starr Pass is very nice. I also like the JW Desert Ridge in Phoenix.

Wife put a stop to Mexico "due to safety concerns".

So right now JW Desert Ridge might be frontrunner but I'll need few more points to make it happen. (10k, not bad I could purchase that if need be)

I know JW Desert Ridge has great club you can pay to use but "no under 21" access :( even for a 3 year old accompanied by her dad for breakfast/lunch/dunner. Which will probably lead to us going outside for food :(

Phoenix should have good flight availability on US from CLT. There are things to do around Tempe and Scottsdale, although some of the top resorts and restaurants seem more oriented toward adults.

How about San Diego, especially with a heated pool? Zoo, beach, maybe a bit of the LaJolla seawalk, the big navy ships, Coronado Island and the haunted iconic hotel all could be fun for a small kid in reasonable amounts. I wouldn't suggest the Marriott Convention Center, but IIRC there's a Marriott Coronado and surely others in the area.

Do you have any interest in Disneyworld? I love it, and it's not too far for you. There are so many things fun for a 3 year old - lots to keep busy! You could stay at the Orlando World Center? Pools are heated I think, and it's so close to the theme parks.

There is always the new and excellent Langhorne SHS.

Stop laughing... It's attached to Sesame Place, outside of Philadelphia. Children love the place.

PHX for sure. Weather is great that time of year.

Five days alone at Disney with a three year old would be a very brave thing for a father to attempt.