Aruba- we rented a car from Jays. They greeted us at the port and had the car waiting for us, we drove it to Baby Beach, which is a fabulous beach with fun snorkeling and calm for kids, not too crowded.. There is a “river” of ocean water created by the reef, which has a gentle current and you can float down the “river” while seeing decent fish/coral. This river was a cool experience. The older kids hiked around the point and saw the sea arch and waves crashing against the rocks. The hike is on jagged lava, so need good shoes, beautiful scenery.

Curacao-rented a car from Smart Wheels- they have a stand at the port and we took off straight from there, drove over to downtown, parking near the pedestrian bridge on the street is free. We spent some time in the morning walking through the downtown and our kids played on the fun playground there. Then we drove toward Playa Porto Mari, stopping at the flamingo lagoon, which had exactly one flamingo. Playa Porto Mari was $3pp and 3.50 per beach lounger. Nice snorkeling, fun sandy beach for kids.

St Lucia- used OCEAN ANGEL water tours and they were excellent. The roads in St Lucia are nauseating. Avoid all road tours if you are even a little sensitive to motion sickness. The water tour took us to the Cinderella slipper, where we were able to jump off the cliff and he also drove the boat right through the tunnel! Spent a few hours at the sugar beach, between the pitons. Lunch included of locally caught marlin and other local options. I highly recommend this outstanding company for a great day

St Kitts- used Poiciana Tours for a hike up the tallest mountain/volcano on the island, mom and the younger kids did not come. It was a great hike, takes about 5 hours if you go slow. One woman in our party was a bit out of shape and really struggled, so if you are not fit, I don’t recommend it but if you are up for something different, this is an outstanding option. They met us at the port and drove us to the trailhead and then guided us to the top.