Where is a cheap warm beach we can fly to from NY anytime from now til end of April?

[HappyGrace]

Dh just needs to get away anywhere warm (has not had a vacation in 15 yrs) but we need the cheapest possible that is still nice. It would be for a family of 4, flying from NY, anytime from now til approx. end of April.

 

I don't even know where to begin to look! We had hoped to save money by driving but I have a bad back, and places that are closer than Florida (like Outer Banks) are still too cold this time of year. I'm thinking a condo or small house would be best, so we can eat all our meals there?

 

Should we go to a travel agent?

[AlmiraGulch]

Check out the Florida panhandle. Destin is amazing and I've rented houses there for not-too-horribly expensive.

 

The sooner you go, though, the better, because March starts college spring break season and you don't want to get caught up in that.

 

Anywhere on the West Coast of Florida is great this time of year, too.

[Murmer]

Don't know a destination but if you sign up for Jet Blue emails they tend to have really good deals from NY.

[Lanny]

Welcome to Colombia! We live in Cali, in a Tropical Valley, so there are no beaches where we live.

 

However, Colombia owns some tiny and beautiful islands, in the Caribbean Sea. The largest and most popular is San Andres Island. Those islands are approximately 400 miles North of our mainland. Here's a link:

http://www.colombia....h-and-vacations

 

DO NOT plan to go to San Andres Island, or other tourist spots in Colombia, during "Semana Santa" (Holy week). Everyone in Colombia is there at that time.

 

There are also beaches on our Caribbean mainland, in Cartagena (historical city) and in Santa Marta (snow covered volcano nearby), but I believe if you can go to San Andres Island, that would be better, for Snorkeling, etc.

 

This link is for Cartagena:

http://www.colombia....na-travel-guide

This link is for Santa Marta:

http://www.colombia....ide-santa-marta

 

Here is the weather forecast for Cali for today:

http://www.weather.c...lombia COXX0008

Our weather doesn't vary much during the year, because we are so close to the Equator. We have "Winters" (rainy seasons) and "Summers" (dry seasons).

 

Cali is much closer to Miami than Los Angeles is.

 

Stay warm and begin planning your vacation!

[Clarkd]

Instead of a hotel we use vrbo.com it gets us a big house with full kitchen for the price of a hotel. The cost of house to hotel remains the same, we are more comfy, and save money since we can cook our own meals.

[jennynd]

Well it's currently 77 in Miami right now. That sounds pretty darn great to me at the moment!

 

Wow. 77.? That does sound like a good deal. Which airline?

[Susan C.]

Not the beach, but go to Orlando! We like Orange Lake Resort (Holiday Inn). You don't have to be in a time share to stay there. Their rates for a 2 BR 2 BA condo are great right now. There are several pools, a huge lazy river, golf, and a lake w/water craft rentals. Join Holiday Inn Priority Club before you reserve. I go online, pick the room type, then call to reserve to make sure it works. We like North Village the best, quieter, not high rise condo.

[Cera]

I was going to recommend Jet Blue as well. They tend to have great rates to Orlando and then it's a short (hour or so) drive to the beach.

[PrincessMommy]

Wow. 77.? That does sound like a good deal. Which airline?

 

I think she meant 77 degrees not the price of airfare.

 

Still it sounds nice.

[Jennifer in MI]

Can you consider driving? We save a TON of money by driving to Florida. We LOVE the Gulf side. Check out VRBO for rentals on Anna Maria Island. Gorgeous beaches.

[lluv]

I love vrbo.com! Amelia Island, FL is 30 mins from JAX. Daytona Beach is about 1 hr from SFB. Destin and Panama City Beach have the most beautiful beaches and cheap condos if you are willing to drive.

[2girls4us]

If it were me, I would wait at least another 6 weeks. I live in Florida and was just at the beach on Saturday (gulf coast, south of Sarasota). The weather was beautiful, but the water was quite cold. I couldn't even sit with just my feet in the water because my toes were getting so cold. I would look into Siesta Key beach, it's won several best beach awards.

[songsparrow]

We had a fabulous family vacation in St. Martin a couple years ago. I highly recommend the Grand Case Beach Resort in Grand Case on the French side of the island. Using frequent flier points for our airfare, it was less expensive to go there for a week then to go to many places here in the US. It's only a couple hour flight, so you can be on the beach the same afternoon you leave. It does require passports, though, so that is an expense if you don't already have them.

[HappyGrace]

Wow, awesome ideas-thanks! I am going to start looking into these! :)

[milovany]

How about Puerto Rico? I've wanted to check into this.

[redsquirrel]

I have a friend whose mom lives in Texas on the Gulf. The pictures are AMAZING. It might be cheaper to go to Texas than Florida. But, I am a Yankee who never goes south, so what do I know?

 

my mom gets good deals to places in Mexico.

 

Just try to avoid spring break!

[Alicia64]

We visited the Delaware beaches last year: LOVE, LOVE, LOVE. There are several beaches each with it's own personality.

 

Our favorite was Rehoboth Beach that has an awesome boardwalk with rides, ice cream, pizza. The town of Rehoboth by the beach is ADORABLE.

 

Bethany Beach is the upscale one where the DC people go.

 

Dewey is a party beach. There's another one too.

 

Highly recommend Delaware beaches.

 

Alley

[bettyandbob]

Spirit Air has really cheap flights from LaGuardia to Fort Myers. You are only permitted one small carry on and it's known to be uncomfortable, but that's a less than 2 hour flight I think. The cheapest tickets (less than $100) and are mid week. 

 

The down side to consider is their pilots get paid less than probably any other airline and probably have the least experience. 

 

I think the gulf coast is nice and it's pretty easy to find inexpensive and expensive rentals within a short drive. 

[Spryte]

Ooooh, someone mentioned St. Martin.  We love St. Martin!  Great place.  I would have one caution - one of the beaches, I can't remember which right now, but semi close to the airport, has biting black flies.  Skip that one.  :)  Everything else is fabulous.  We like the French side the best.  

 

We were just in FL a few weeks ago, and it was 84 degrees.  We flew Jet Blue, and it was $89 from DC.  

[LibraryLover]

Looks like my recommendation has been rehabbed. :)  Not quite the same bargain.

 

St Pete's Beach. Lots of older hotels on the beach, and often good bargains. Pirate Cruises at John's Pass for the whole family.

 

Jet Blue or Southwestern to get there.

 

ETA.  I was thinking about Best Western Ft Myers Beach Hotel. The rooms are a bit dated, but you can't beat the location.  Prices aren't horrible, and there are small kitchens in the rooms, a play ground for kids, pool on the beach, and parrots in the lobby.

 

[meena]

Spirit Air has really cheap flights from LaGuardia to Fort Myers. You are only permitted one small carry on and it's known to be uncomfortable, but that's a less than 2 hour flight I think. The cheapest tickets (less than $100) and are mid week.

 

The down side to consider is their pilots get paid less than probably any other airline and probably have the least experience.

 

I think the gulf coast is nice and it's pretty easy to find inexpensive and expensive rentals within a short drive.

Quick highjack: Spirit pilots may be paid less than legacy airline pilots, but they are mostly on par with other low-cost carriers. The second part of your statement that they have the least experience is absolutely untrue. To even apply there as a first officer (aka co-pilot), a person must have a minimum of 4000 hours of total flying time/1000 hours flying multi-engine. Most applicants considered will have more than that. In the airline world, pilots for regional carriers make the least amount of money and typically have the least amount of experience--these are the smaller aircraft (like ERJs/CRJs) that are a lot of times contracted out by Legacy airlines like American and United. Just because the plane is wearing a Legacy logo does NOT necessarily mean the pilot is better qualified or compensated better. Anyway, Spirit may have crazy marketing techniques, but their pilot group is not substandard like it seems like you might be implying. Disclaimer: my DH works in the industry, though not for Spirit. I've flown on many different airlines to many places and always have had at minimum above average experiences on all my Spirit flights.

[meena]

Now on topic... :)

Central to South Florida in April is usually warm. As a Floridian, the water isn't warm to me by then but if you are used to colder water temps it might not seem cold. The Gulf side will be nicer than Atlantic. I would skip the travel agent and look into vrbo.com. Good FL locations: Destin, Clearwater Beach, Sanibel Island/Longboat Key/Siesta Key. Fort Myers would be okay to fly into but I'm not sure how nice the beaches are there compared to the others I mentioned above.

 

Going internationally, I really like the Pacific side of Costa Rica (Jaco/Manuel Antonio) but it is a trek from San Jose. I also like Puerto Rico. The rain forest (El Yunque) and the fort (El Morro) are beautiful and a good way to break up time at the beach.