OT Aruba Marriott or Westin at St. John

[sillyguys]

I hope this is the right place to post this. We are considering taking a family vacation to one of these locations but don't know how child friendly they are. Has anyone taken young children (under the age of 5) to either of these places and would you recommend them?
Thanks so much.

 

[Loriannf]

We're owners (of a 3 bedroom, private pool villa) at the Westin St John. We bought before we had our daughter, now 5. She's been going every year since she was six months old. The Westin is extremely child friendly - there's a kid's area (maybe six inches deep) in the main pool, there's a playground, and if the child is over 3 and potty trained, there's a wonderful kid's club. The entire island is a paradise; granted the Westin's beach isn't the best on the island, but it's better than any beach I've seen in the states. The island has 39 beaches, and most rarely have more than 20 people on them. Alot depends on the time of year you go, but there's a great discussion board on VINOW.com where you could get much more information. Feel free to email me if you want more info.

Lori

 

[tanyaandallie]

I have visited the Marriott in Aruba a couple of times, both before I had kids. It's a beautiful hotel and we really loved it!!! I honestly can't even comment on the kid friendliness b/c we didn't have them with us. I will say that we stayed part of our time in the hotel and part in the vacation club area. If you stay in the hotel try to stay away from the casino area as it can be loud at night. The vacation club was awesome. Full kitchen, bedrooms, huge jacuzzi tub.

 

[momofbgtwins]

We just returned from the Aruba Marriott Surf Club with our 4 yo twins. We're owners. Aruba doesn't really have a lot to offer small children. The kid's club at the Marriott's are for 5 yo and older. The pool was great, and we spent most of our days there. The beach was OK - still under construction at the Surf Club - but the pools and beach at the Marriott hotel were nice.

I think we'll wait until the twins are a bit older before going back to Aruba.

 

[kaysmommie]

I have visited Westin St. John and Aruba Hyatt (saw the marriot though) both without the kids though. I would not hesitate to take my children to either of these places. St. John is the most gorgeous island in the Caribbean but it is mostly national park so is rather quiet. Aruba is a bit more commercial so to speak they have many shops, restaurants in town, Subway and Dunkin Donuts. Both places have a kids club and awesome large pools. IMO the Aruba Hyatt is on a nicer stretch of Beach than the Marriot and has a better pool and a few good restaurants. That said I only visited the Marriot one day and ate dinner there.

 

[nyyankeegirl]

I have been to both the Marriott in Aruba and the Westin in St. John. I would have to say that St. John would be a better choice for children. They are both beautiful resorts, but my all time favorite place is St. John. We were there last March and will be going back in March 2008. I can not wait!!
The Westin had a really nice play area, & the kids were all having a blast on the beach. The only problem might be with the distance of some of the rooms to the main part of the hotel & beach. Thankfully they have golf carts that can take you around the resort from your room. But St. John is just beautiful!