My husband and I took a vacation, without the children, in Puerto Vallarta. It was heaven. It was romantic. It was adventurous. It was stunning. It was just what we needed to rekindle our marriage, get to know each other again, and have some adventures together.
Great travel writers often begin with exceptional words, listing descriptors from A-Z about the place and experience. After hearing from Lavinia Spalding, author of Writing Away at the ROAR Retreat in Costa Rica, I attended Social Media on the Sand at Beaches Turks and Caicos. On the way home after learning, connecting with other influencers and seeing the perfection of Beaches Resorts in action, I made my list. Unfortunately there was so much to share and say that the individual words weren’t pared down – but I’ve certainly given loads of tips and tricks within my writing exercise!
Beaches Turks and Caicos A to Z:
A: Aisle Seat: Get one on the left coming and right going down from Miami to Turks. Fly in the daytime to you can see the white beaches against the turquoise water.
B: Books for schools. Bring a bag of supplies and items for local schools. The Sandals Foundation invests in sustainable projects in education, environment and community to improve the lives of residents of the Carribean community.
C: Coconut Water is serves out of a fresh coconuts after an exceptional early morning Zumba class.
D: Dunes in Key West Village house hammocks overlooking the blue water.
E: Elegance exudes from every staff member, the presentation of each meal and the luxury of each resort room.
F: Firepits light up the night at Key West’s restaurants, surrounding you with earth, water, air and fire.
G: Grover is available to read aloud to your kids at bedtime in your own room!
H: Happy Birthday banners hang all over the poolside private cabanas and towels are folded in artistic ways inside.
I: Icing Sugar Sand covers the 12 mile-long beach.
J: Jolt your tastebuds with drinks made by expert mixologists using premium liquor. (There are 14 bars to choose from…)
K: Kitty Katt is a great catamaran available and included for all guests.
L: Lazy River is a fun way to coast around the Pirate Island waterpark
M: Majestic Fountains are stunning at night in each of the four villages
N: No Tipping means true Freedom. Don’t you despise carrying a wallet on vacation?
O: Over the top desserts mean you may want to pay attention to ‘Z’.
P: PADI diving in the pool for kids aged 8+ means you can get them in used to diving two years before any other resort!
Q: Quaint sidewalk chalk sketches of Elmo are a joy to discover!
R: Raw Sushi at the Soy Sushi Bar is great – and I’m from Vancouver so I know my sushi. But if you don’t like sushi there are 19 other restaurants to choose from.
S: Scratch DJ Academy is rad for the teens and tweens.
T: Turquoise – If the easter bunny were blue, he’s leave eggs in the colour of the ocean
U: Undulate those hips as you dance at Club Liquid while your kids are taken care of by expert nannies
V: Vows – even renewing them are a magical way to experience Beaches Weddings
W: White Gloves worn by the butlers make you feel pretty pampered
X: X-Box Play Lounge. Related: I suck at video games
Y: Ye ol’ Pirate!
Z: Zumba like you mean it!
Needless to say, I highly recommend the trip to Beaches, and next time I go, there is NO WAY I am leaving the rest of my family behind!
What do you get when you cross 100 professional bloggers with a perfectly organized conference in a luxurious resort with staff who love that you’re there? Many, many happy, relaxed hard-working people with huge smiles. At the Beaches Resorts Turks and Caicos in October for Social Media on the Sand, I participated in an instagram scavenger hunt called #BeachesGoSeek (which has subsequently been nominated for a prestigious social media award). Although my family was not with me to help, I was determined to complete the challenge with creativity.
Beaches Turks and Caicos is divided into four distinct villages each representing a theme – Caribbean, French, Italian and Key West. Not only did the scavenger hunt allow us to discover most nooks and crannies of the resort, but we experienced the helpfulness of the butlers who interrupted CEO Adam Stewart’s evening so that I could snap a selfie, or the front desk staff who brought out the resort train for me and Stephanie Sassy Modern Mom on a day when it was not running. The staff loved every second and appreciated the buzz we were all creating for the resort. Though I did not win the scavenger hunt after a random draw of those of us who completed the full challenge, I couldn’t have been more thrilled with having participated and experienced the property to its fullest.
Instagrams below include many of the talented and kind women I have grown to love in the business including Colleen Padilla (challenge 48), Connie Peters (photo 11), Vera Sweeney (photo 25), and many fabulous beloved characters from Sesame Street!
The Instagrams (in random order!):
I became 4 again today… #giddy #BeachesMoms @BeachesResorts
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This is my wet. No makeup happy look. @LandsEnd @beachesresorts #beachesGoSeek #BeachesMoms pic 47
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The staff at @BeachesResorts have unbelievable smiles! #beachesGoSeek #BeachesMoms pic 40
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Toes in the sand at @BeachesResorts! #FlipOutSandals #BeachesMoms #beachesGoSeek pic 2
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@SandalsResorts gives me energy and relaxation! #BeachesMoms #beachesGoSeek Challenge 5
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Scuba diving is included at @BeachesResorts. #BeachesMoms #beachesGoSeek challenge 44
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@BeachesResorts sunset #TurksandCaicos #familytravel #BeachesMoms #beachesGoSeek Challenge 34
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