Fantastic fun for all the family in Florida
WOULD YOU FLY LONG HAUL WITH A YOUNG FAMILY? LOUISE COOPER JETS OFF TO THE SUNSHINE STATE OF FLORIDA TO EXPERIENCE THE LUXURY OF CLUB MED’S SANDPIPER BAY
WITH the world’s best theme parks and attractions, plus the promise of wall-towall sunshine, Florida is hard to beat.
But I took the bold move of the long-haul trip ahead of Round Two – with our second child due in the autumn.
We had two goals: relaxation and family fun.
Our trip consisted of a seven-day beach resort stay, topped up with a three-day whistle-stop trip to Orlando to see a world-famous Mouse and his pals – much to our daughter Annabelle’s delight.
After an exhausting nine-hour flight, our private transfer softened the blow and whisked us to our palm-tree lined resort.
We headed out of the hustle of the city some two hours north to Port St Lucie, where Club Med’s Sandpiper Bay resort is situated in the mouth of the river and the Atlantic Ocean.
As the name suggests, the luxury tour operator boasts resorts in idyllic locations in Europe’s most popular beach resorts.
But less known is the fact that it has many in North America, including Mexico and Jamaica, all complete with stunning vistas and exceptional service.
Club Med has drawn on its wealth of experience – it’s been doing all-inclusives for 60 years – and its formula clearly works. A huge draw for guests to the resorts are the leisure facilities and in-house childcare – and Sandpiper Bay has this in spades.
Along with a packed schedule of fitness classes, tennis and water sports, it is also home to a golf academy and putting range, four swimming pools and a circus school.
To allow parents to take advantage of the abundance of activities, or simply some muchneeded pampering at the on-site spa, the resort offers childcare with its GO’s (Gentil Organisateurs, or hosts) at its designated Mini Centre.
Our daughter was enrolled for sessions at Petit Mini Club in the Flamingos room which offered a selection of toys, a kitchen, mini trampoline, soft play equipment and books.
Outside, there was an undercover area – perfect for keeping little ones safe from the sun – equipped with a mini climbing frame and slide, tunnels and trikes.
The Mini Centre is surrounded by its own splash pool, a shallow children’s swimming pool and playground which are open to all guests.
The resort also offers a pyjama club – an evening creche service – to allow parents to sample The Riverside BBQ and Grill, an adults-only restaurant.
All other meals are offered in the buffet at the Market Place which enjoys views over the St Lucie River situated at the center of the resort.
Typical meals follow a rotating schedule of international dishes, including Asian, Italian, Mexican and American cuisine. Soft drinks and beer are on tap, and bottles of house wine are situated in chillers near the main seating area.
This was the first time I’ve stayed at an all-inclusive resort and I found it worked very well for our small family’s needs.
There are only a handful of ‘upgrades and extras’ available such as premium wi-fi, the spa and certain watersports, so in that sense it is a ‘true all-inclusive’.
Our family room was clean and very spacious with a twin bedroom and huge master bed situated in a living area with views of the bay.
Once the sun goes down, there are family-friendly nightly shows either performed in the open air or in the gigantic auditorium.
With so much to offer in-house there’s really no need to head further afield but for those who do, visits to Palm Beach and Kennedy Space Centre are within reach for a day-trip.
We found Club Med Sandpiper Bay has a winning formula and for those prepared to take the hit on the long-haul flight in return for guaranteed family fun.
But with such a big trip, we couldn’t help but stop at Orlando to check out Disney World and Legoland.
The first thing to get your head around about Disney World Resort is the sheer size. It’s vast, a whopping 40 square miles!
And for that reason it does require some degree of pre-holiday planning.
Fortunately, the free Disney app makes light work of planning your experience and can even be used to buy your photos and book your meals.
Despite my concerns that our two-year-old would be under the height restrictions, in Magic Kingdom particularly, we found most attractions were ideal for tots. She lapped up the classic Disney magic from simple fairground rides to small rollercoasters and interactive character experiences.
Our favourite family rides were Under the Sea: Journey of the Little
Mermaid – a neon-fuelled trip to meet Ariel and her buddies – and Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin, a shooting game on a moving spaceship.
Over at Animal Kingdom we packed in an authentic African safari, a thrilling race back in time to prehistoric worlds, and musical stage shows based on hit Disney films.
‘The Festival of The Lion King’ offered up jaw-dropping aerial displays and was a great way to introduce our daughter to the excitement of a live Broadway show in a shorter burst.
The live entertainment continued at Hollywood Studios as we checked out Disney Junior Live, a puppeted medley of songs from the Disney TV shows and Beauty and The Beast Stage Show.
Our trip ended at Disney Springs, an ever-expanding mecca of entertainment, shopping and dining. There are meals to suit all tastes, but be warned that prices come at an eye-watering $8 for a pint of beer. Nevertheless, It’s a great place to soak up the pre-Disney atmosphere.
Unlike Disney, Legoland is still a relatively – dare I say it – new kid on the (Lego) block! And, sadly for us, it clearly showed.
Our day didn’t get off to a great start with a queue of around 40 minutes to pay the princely sum of $22 to ‘self park’, amid a chorus of ‘I want to get out’ from our daughter.
Things improved somewhat upon entering and a Lego carousel was our first stop. After a relatively short queue our daughter was off merrily ‘trotting’ around. We packed in a train ride and tractor ride in Duplo Valley, both of which which she loved – and again with pretty much zero waiting time.
But after taking shelter from one of Florida’s notorious thunderstorms in LegoCity Burger Kitchen, we found ourselves waiting almost an hour for counter-service food.
Then, to rub salt into the wounds when we got out, many of the rides were closed due to the threat of lightning. Many stayed that way for another two hours, leaving us to wander aimlessly before opting to leave without experiencing the best of what is undoubtedly becoming a ‘must see’ on Florida’s tourist trail.