sithjedi333

Hi all,

Since you are such a well traveled bunch, my wife and I wanted your advice on great travel destinations. We are pre-kids and usually take a 10 day vacation in June or Aug, and a 10-15 day vaca in December. We generally try to combine a active/interesting component with a beach/relaxing component, and in the winter we try to go to the southern hemisphere where it is warmer. We are trying to go to places that will be more difficult once we start a family, and have been saving the US/Canada/Caribbean for future family travel.

Some destinations I've read about on this forum and heard good things about from other friends include:
Morocco
Turkey
India
Nepal/Tibet
Galapagos
Macchu Piccu
Russia
Maldives
Tahiti/Bora Bora
Tanzania/Botswana
Belize
More Middle East (but not sure where to go)

In terms of where we've been in the past:
Western Europe, Greece
Middle East/Africa: South Africa, Egypt, Jordan
Asia: China, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Japan, Taiwan, Australia, NZ
Central/South America: Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Costa Rica

Any help prioritizing the above ideas or any new ones that we've missed would be greatly appreciated! Thank you.

samftla

And an oft overlooked African destination that I find fantastic is Namibia.

SAM

Kagehitokiri

what kind of budget?

from your post and list id say >

- Maldives
- South Pacific

South Pacific rates have always seemed high to me, compared to Maldives for example, but i came across this property >
http://www.wadigi.com/ - $1880/nt
(exclusive use private island, all inclusive, near Fiji)

it doesnt seem like many of the places are really that family unfriendly though..

shawbridge

My wife and I traveled a fair bit and then again with kids after the youngest hit 5.

Places on your list that you might defer until kids are much older and thus would be good to hit now:
India
Nepal/Tibet
Galapagos - I haven't been there but supposed to be amazing and likely to close to visitors at some point
Macchu Piccu - amazing
Russia - my mother-in-law took my daughter when she was 12
Maldives
Tahiti/Bora Bora
Tanzania/Botswana
Iran
Bolivia
Bali
Most of Central America until water is cleaner

sithjedi333

Budget, ha, that's a interesting question. It seems that every time we go on a new trip, i get conditioned to higher and higher pricepoints. we usually mix up 1/2 the trip on Starwood points or within the $200-400/night range (near luxury or thereabouts for the active portion of the vacation when we will be out and about most of the time), and the other (usually resort/beach/scuba) half at $600-1000/night, or whatever gets us an ocean view room at a luxury resort. We can go above that, but the above ranges are squarely in my purely emotional comfort zone. In the past we've loved places like the Caesar Augustus in Anacapri, Canaves Oia on Santorini, Blanket Bay in NZ, Lizard Island on the Great Barrier Reef, the Four Seasons in Sharm El Sheikh and Amman.

I don't need to be pampered, but say at a beach resort I would rather pay up than have to get up early in the morning to stake out and guard our beach chairs, which is not very relaxing for me.

Nambia, thanks, I will check that out.

Kagehitokiri

Maldives
- Four Seasons Landaa Giraavaru
- One & Only Reethi Rah

would both be in that price range. Reethi Rah somewhat more for the beach villa with pool, but the pools seem pretty spectacular. >
http://www.concierge.com/images/cnt/...v_jan_06_p.jpg

both are very well regarded here.

if youre using award flights >
if UA has finalized QR rewards, you could fly WAS-DOH-MLE, and stopover in DOH or add on a sidetrip in the Middle East.

SQ flys from SIN, could do the same thing there.

(for the "active" part, if you exclude water activities like snorkeling and scuba in the Maldives)

busy

Why not one of the game lodges in South Africa followed by R&R in Cape Town or if your budget allows check out North Island, Fregate, or the Banyan Tree (Ranked by my preference) in the Seychelles.

sithjedi333

Hey all,

Thanks so much for the suggestions. I will check them out!^:-:

baccarat_king

Israel.....

obscure2k

As this thread is not specifically about Luxury Hotels, I am going to move this over to TravelBuzz.
Please continue to follow there..
Thanks..
Obscure2k
Moderator
Luxury Hotels

escog

Agree with most of this list, though I wouldn't include the Galapagos Islands. I've been, and I think it would make a great family vacation for kids around 4-5 and older.

Tanzania/Botswana have the added difficulties of being Malarial, and it's probably best not to expose young children to Malaria medicine. Though, there are Malaria-free safari areas in South Africa, and plenty of South Africans take their kids on safari like Americans would take their kids to Yellowstone.

Krakajax

Take the SAFER Road:

Tahiti/Bora Bora

Fiji

Australia / New Zealand


Skip the rest of your list, and breathe easier.

jahason

Northern Cyprus. You only have a few years before the rest of the world recognises this country and the crowds flood in. Possible to have a whole beach to yourself. can get there via Turkey or fly into Larnaca and cross the Green Line.

Northern parts of Pakistan (Gilgit, etc). Whole areas only became accessible to road transport after the Kharakorum Highway was built linking Pakistan to China. Can join a tour from Pakistan to China or do your own thing. Check out the Channel 4 Food Junkies programmes (http://www.channel4.com/health/micro..._food_junkies/) for some stunning scenes or Michael Palins Himalayas series coving this region.

brendog

The safer road is generally the boring road.

I would add Borneo to the list (Le Meridien in Kota Kinabalu is always a good place to start and end a trip. I dealt with several great ecotour companies for kayaking, scuba diving, mountain climbing, and the like. Plus, there are beaches galore. August is the high season for the Poms and the Aussies, however.

I would also add Patagonia, starting off from Puerto Montt and working south, or from Ushuaia working north. This is one of the most spectacular places on the planet.

Lastly, how about Kamchatka? This is on my list. 5,000m volcanos, enormous bears, and miles of untouched wilderness. Plus, getting there is a PITA, which is always a bonus. There's nothing like a rough flight in a windowless Tupolev that is held together with bailing wire and snot. The vodka really takes the edge off.

Save the boring places like the Carib et al for the mind numbing family vacations that may be in your future...

Kagehitokiri

i guess you didnt hear about the coup in fiji in dec 2006.


hasnt new zealand also had some fairly major issues on occasion?

from OP >
Morocco
Turkey
India (i doubt OP meant kashmir)
Nepal/Tibet (havent heard latest, maybe some issues there)
Galapagos
Macchu Piccu
Russia (i doubt OP meant chechnya)
Maldives
Tahiti/Bora Bora
Tanzania/Botswana
Belize