CLUB MED FAMILY STYLE

This June, I and twenty-one family members, met for a 3-night reunion at the Club Med Sandpiper Bay on the St. Lucie River in Florida.

It was wonderful. Everyone, young and old, enjoyed unique experiences and lots of relaxed, and easy, family togetherness. By our final day on the property we had commemorated the death of my beloved grandmother, Bema; the 4^th birthday of my nephew, Kian; Father’s Day with six fathers; and, the joyous fact that we were all together and no one had to cook.

I’d say Club Med Sandpiper is an excellent choice for families. There is also a serene, adult-only infinity pool and bar at the quietest end of the property but I’d use it more as an ‘escape’ from the kids than consider going to this resort without them.

Here’s a short list of my pros and cons:

• Club Med Sandpiper is the only mainstream all-inclusive resort in the US and has excellent infant, toddler and kid’s clubs with lots of great programming (all included in the cost).
• The deluxe family suite has a king bed in one room and twin beds in the other, 1.5 baths and a ground level patio- so it was ample space for our family of four. There are plenty of storage shelves in the room, though a dresser would be nice. Wi-Fi is not free in the rooms.
• The staff is friendly, helpful and diverse. The property is well-kept and clean.
• The beach area on the river is entertaining for toddlers (an ocean beach is a short drive away) and there are plenty of paddleboards and catamarans for older kids. Club Med staff is on hand to give instruction and assistance. One of our kids even saw a manatee
• The food is good and plentiful. There is one main buffet-style restaurant (and opportunity to order from a menu at off-hours) and they change up the selections daily. There are lots of healthy choices and a decent beverage selection- although the beers offered are lackluster and you pay $6 to upgrade to top shelf bar beverages.
• Wave runners are easy to rent and we reserved two for an hour, which was plenty of time to get all the kids out on the river for a few turns. Water sport rentals are not that expensive compared to similar activities elsewhere.
• Nightly entertainment is fun and awful at the same time. The kids loved it and wanted to go back every night – mind you it’s hard not to please little ones when there is loud music and lots of sparkly stuff to look at. The adults liked seeing the wait staff and lifeguards up on stage (in lots of sparkly stuff).
• There were plenty of towels and chairs at the pool and throughout the property- so no getting up at dawn to reserve a seat poolside.
• CIRCUS SCHOOL! Trapeze lessons for all ages.  My eight year old loved it.