Bermuda vs Western Caribbean with school age kids

Hello experience cruisers,

Trying to decide between Bermuda & Western caribbean (Bahama, Jamaica etc). Where will the kids have more fun? in terms of snorkling, beaches, water activities etc?

Thanks

When our children were young we took them on a couple of cruises of Bermuda and a couple of Caribbean cruises. I will tell you that hands down they enjoyed Bermuda the most. They had some time at sea in each direction to and from Bermuda and enjoyed the ship and on land we had a lot of fun in Bermuda. They have a couple of really beautiful beaches in including Horseshoe Beaches (one of the best we have ever gone to) as well as Elbow Beach. We enjoyed a nice horse and buggy carriage ride and the warm hospitality of the locals. Other then Dunn's River Falls in Jamaica I consider it very unsafe and would not want to go it alone with children and the Bahamas can be so-so.

I would go with Bermuda.

Keith

Time of year might factor into your decision. Neither Bermuda or the Bahamas are in the Caribbean. They are islands in the Atlantic, and have Florida-like weather. In the winter, you may find it chillier than you desire.

Dolphin Cove is located right near Dunn's river falls and is a great excursion for children. Scotchie's had great jerk chicken, and is a chain all over the island. We took our 2 year old to Jamaica, and have visited Jamaica 3 times in total. It is safe if you preplan an organized tour. It is not a great idea to just wander around or to pick a random tour in the port (you can hire a random cab for a tour of the island/ transport somewhere you'd like to visit in Aruba, but not Jamaica or Roatan)

Bermuda is quite lovely, and can be easily traveled by public buses. It is a great choice in the summer, when the Caribbean is really hot.