Cruise ships are pretty much floating resorts. So if you would be bored at a resort the ship could be even worse.

I don't know the guidelines for spending your win but I would choose an area where I wanted to be, get better accommodations than I normally would and wing it on my own from there. Better hotels will always give recommendations on what to do and see. Having breakfast where the locals eat is better than hiring any tour guide. Think about things you would like to do and plan your vacation where those activities are available. Whether it's just lazing on a beach or by a pool, or exploring a cave, eating at a world famous restaurant, taking a balloon trip, or visiting museums, make it yours.

I don't know where you live and what you have been exposed to. I am somewhat jaded because I took a peek at those resort restaurants and I can honestly say that nearly every type of food, perhaps with or without the fancy titles, they offer would be available within less than an hours drive of my home. But if I lived in the area my brother does, in the same state, it would be luxury dining. So it's really subjective. If I went to Costa Rica I would want to enjoy their food not some resort version of a World's Fair food. But everybody's different.

Read the cruise or beach thread for opinions about cruising.

Check for any area's off season dates. If I recall, Caribbean areas may be off season during most of the summer. Hurricanes, heat, rain.

Thanks for that. I did read that thread. It just made me even more indecisive. :OP

The only guideline is that I book through a certain travel agent. Otherwise, no restrictions.

I agree about the food choices for BOTH options. I assume that it's designed to appeal to the biggest majority. Not many people are adventurous with stuff like that. (SO is guilty of that) However,I'm not TERRIBLY picky about food, and hope that food will be the last thing on out minds while we're too busy having fun doing who knows what.

The reason I thought about a cruise is because there is a chance to get off the ship and explore places we wouldn't normally go. However, i also appreciate getting somewhere and staying put and relaxing.

So...back and forth......

Cruises come with a ton of entertainment options included, so IMO you have to try pretty hard to get bored. Each new port will offer different excursions, of course, but there are also tons of shows, classes, wine tastings and other activities on the ship itself. This is not the case with resorts so there I might be concerned about boredom.

However, a Caribbean cruise in the middle of summer WILL be full of kids, no question. Some of the other negatives surrounding cruising depend a lot on the cruiseline iteelf, but there are only a couple of lines that sail the Caribbean in the summer, so your choices will be limited. Are you looking at a Carnival cruise?

Yes. Carnival. There were not any on royal carribean in that time frame.

Carnival has the reputation of being a "party" line and very kid friendly even during the school year. Shorter cruises also tend to attract partiers and families. A 5 dayer in the middle of summer is going to be overrun with kids, guaranteed. If you want a relaxing atmosphere and the ability to use the pool or have a quiet meal, I would look elsewhere. Btw, I love cruising and we try to cruise every other year or so. I did one cruise on Carnival during February that was reasonably kid-free, but even so I started looking for a more "grown up" line after that. The beer chugging, hairy belly contest atmosphere just wasn't for me.

Not sure I can help as given that time frame, I'd do neither. Especially if I've never been anywhere. But so much depends on what you want to do. Do you want a vacay where turning over on your lounge chair on the beach is almost too much effort? Or do you want a vacay where you are seeing and doing as much as possible?

TBH, that time of year I’d head for Europe. No hurricane issues.

A riverboat cruise through europe is an incredible experience.

Carnival's reputation as a party cruise line is in error. Sure, there will be many pre-teens on a cruise in summer in the Caribbean, but Carnival has one of the best children's programs at sea. Often, after breakfast, the kids won't be seen again until late in the day (on those days when not in port). There are parts of the ship that are not adult-friendly and the kids have a blast meeting new people. With that in mind, the kids will not be running around. It just doesn't happen on Carnival.

A 5-day cruise into the Caribbean can be relaxing, you don't even need to get off the ship. Let others get off and you have lots of time for sun (near the pool), or a nap, or spa services, or sit in the shade on the open deck and read. However, if you have never been on a cruise, be advised that your middle ear will fight you are bit if you are prone to motion problems. There are medications that can help alleviate those issues.

Granada is a really neat island. It is considered a "spice" island and you will be tempted to bring home lots of spices you would not usually consider. However, you are stuck on the island. Whereas with Costa Rica, you can rent a car and drive into the mountains (much cooler) and experience a wider variety of flora & fauna.

There is no requirement that you eat/drink all day on a cruise. The same can be said for the resorts. You don't have to eat three meals a day.

Be sure that you know how to use a camera, when you return you will want to share lots of your experiences by showing pix. You will need passports, get going on that now. Don't tell old grump where you are going and why. If he has an attitude now, it won't improve. Make this your party!

Not sure what might have changed...in cruising.... but 23 years ago, on the cruise I was on, you had to pay for ALL the extras! Booze at the pool, all off shore excursions.. and they hoard you to their shopping strips!

Jim and Glenda cruise... hopefully they chime in.

For July I would go to the mountains, some nice resort town, where you can go hiking and shopping. ;)

Moni

No no no to Carnival any time of year. Grenada is out of the usual hurricane path. It is one of the places that sailboats go to hole up during hurricane season, and it's beautiful.

I've heard great things about Costa Rica, but hot and hurricanes.

I vote Grenada.

I would choose somewhere cooler for that time of year, but that is just me. Especially a cruise. Too hot and humid in that part of the world. I live in the south so would pick a cooler time of the year to go.

Have you thought about Hawaii? Or yes, a river cruise or even London in August or September? The weather there can actually be quite nice that time of year.

Follow Jim's plan.

I would do a cruise over a resort. I would find a resort boring after the first day or two, but I'm not a beach person. Cruises go to a new port every day, in addition to what's available onboard.

I've been on several cruises and never had a problem with loud kids, but Carnival is more kid-friendly and it is summer break so it might be different.

Have you considered a cruise to Bermuda? I did that 10 years ago and it was awesome. It left out of NYC.

It's also Alaska's season, and Alaska is a cruise I think everyone should do in their lifetime. So beautiful. There were very few kids on ours.

Since you asked :-) I'd personally go for the Sandals resort in Grenada. That's after considering a) that I'm scared of being far out in the ocean so cruising is out, and b) 5 minutes reading the TripAdvisor comments for the two resorts you've narrowed it down to. So -- your final decision may vary!

Like Jim already advised, START YOUR PASSPORT applications now. Having them in hand a month or two early will be much less stressful than wondering ... will they come in time?

I agree with Outside, not the season for either of what you are choosing either a cruise or resort.

You need to start over.

You might have mentioned it in the other thread, so excuse me if you did. But.....what are you interested in doing?

DH and I love Costa Rica and we go every winter. We love being surrounded by the jungle etc. and close to the beach. We travel to different boutique hotels and never, ever feel bored. That said my sister and BIL would be very bored! They love history, old architecture, wandering around cobblestone streets. I like this too, but in moderation, not for an entire trip.

We don't know where you live so suggesting things that might be way too far and will not help you. Maybe just give us the state you live in and again what you enjoy doing.

What was your favorite vacation and why?

Traveling is such a personal choice kind of thing...so I get your frustrations. If I had a choice to go somewhere like you do I’d go to a place that wouldn’t be crowded or sweltering hot. My two top contenders would be Alaska or Iceland both of which are amazing.

When we vacation, we don't sit and read/relax, unless we're on a plane or in transit. We're surrounded by restaurants at home(like watchmelol said). We want adventure & to experience the culture. Make memories. Make every second count. We're worn out when we arrive home, sleep deprived. :0)

So it depends on what your "into". Do you want to tour castles in Europe? Churches? Museums? Hike a rain forest? Go on Safari? Dive with whales?

Of the three, Sandals Grenada. You might want to read this about cruises.

https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/m/463eb61f-56ee-3992-bd19-2cbec64d1160/ss_disappointing-photos-show.html

My favorite vacations have always been US national parks...Bryce being tops, but also loved Yosemite, Yellowstone and Grand Tetons. While the others I've seen come in 2nd, it is a very, very high second and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend any of them. The Canadian Rockies are uber spectacular as well.

A resort(like Sandals) is usually a prepaid all inclusive. A cruise certainly is not - we like cruising but your ticket entitles you to run of the ship, all meals, room, shows (although some of the really big ships apparently have pay shows also), Anything else, drinks(soft and hard, special coffees, etc), shore excursions, spa, etc. is extra. At the end of July, you need to be out of the hurricane belt - I'm not sure about Grenada, we were there a number of years ago after a hurricane - the island was pretty decimated but still receiving tourists. The ABC Islands (Aruba, Belaire etc) are not usually bothered by hurricanes. In addition, it will definitely be hot. Lots of decisions.

You do know you will both need a passport. You need to start now to get one.

We went to Punta Cana, Dominican Republic last November for our daughter's wedding. It was HOT! 90 degrees. You had to be in the pool or in ac. It was all inclusive, and that included all alcohol. It was beautiful and I did enjoy it more than I thought I would, but, like I said, it was hot. I personally wouldn't go anywhere tropical in the summer time. But that's me, I hate the heat.

I also think an Alaskan cruise would be fabulous. I would also love to go to Ireland and Scotland someday. I also agree that you should get your application in for your passports now.

Do you want to go out of the country?

Are you restricted to a location? Can you go anywhere in the world?

Have you considered the Dominican Republic? There are very nice resorts there and the prices are fairly reasonable, at least a few years ago. You may be able to get a lot more for your money.

One cruise, two days of sea sickness = no to cruises!

And yes, jump on the pass ports!

I've been on Carnival multi times, up to Platinum status with some extras.

Last time I cruised, was on Royal Caribbean, and have one scheduled for Feb 2019, for 10 days to Southern Caribbean, all the St islands.

Love cruising, and always with a balcony.

Tauck tours is great for river cruises. Went to a presentation the other night and they have great itineraries

Tauck River cruises

Thanks all for your comments. I live in Alabama for those that asked. As far as restrictions go, there are none as far as redeeming the voucher. The reason i narrowed it down to those options was because they are relatively close, and although we are looking forward to getting away, we cant take a very long vacation. SO is a truck driver and can take off as he wishes, but i cant and have to work around my coworkers to take my vacation. I would prefer to be settled back at home 2 or 3 days before i have to return to work if possible.

I would love to take a couple months and go explore the castles in Europe,its just not feasible right now. I asked SO about going to Scotland, (half-jokingly) and he said, : "Wherever you want to go my love, but I'm not wearing a skirt." :OP Anyway, history doesn't interest him as much as it does me, and i want this to be more fun for HIM, as he takes such good care of me all the time. He works 6 days a week, up to 12 hours a day driving, and i work 12 hour night shifts 4-6 nights a week. I want to just go somewhere, and let someone else worry about entertaining me. I dont want to have to rent a car, plan any activity, worry about logistics once we get there. Not this time. I want to look at whats offered and say "lets do that" and let someone else take care of the details. (Hence the choices i picked)

To add to the confusion, this morning, for some reason, SO started to actually take an interest in this topic (go figure) and has been wearing google out all day. So we may end up on Mars for all I know. ;o)

We are going to get our passports this week. I wonder if that will suffice on Mars?????

We went to Alaska on a Princess cruise which included a land tour in June.

No mosquitoes and great weather. I get motion sickness but had no problems. I always carry Sea Bands. They really work well.

No matter where you go, have an exciting adventure.

You don't need to be home three days before you start back to work. So...how much time DO you have for this? Only five nights...you're hardly there before you are packing to return home.

Remind me of the value of the prize again; we can't send you very far if the flights would eat the whole prize.

Costco's travel department has some good value packages, if you could apply your freebie to one of those. It sounds like the travel agency wants a 'one and done' package -- not to have to make all kinds of reservations for air, lodging, rental car, tours, etc. (For a short trip, the package can be an advantage because it 'covers' you regarding delays, problems, whatever.)

$2500

SO is willing and expecting to pay whatever it costs over that amount to get what we want.

I know I don't NEED to be home 3 days before I go back to work,but I would prefer to be home at least 2 days before. I don't want to arrive home and have to go straight back the next day. That would stress me out and ruin my whole trip,worrying about delays,having to rush to unpack and get everything back in order, then going right back to the grind. Stresses me out just thinking about it.

The travel agent seems very willing to help book whatever,including drivers from the airport to the cruise port,if that's where we go. She's not pushing me one way or the other. She just told me to let her know what I want, and she will make it happen.

Good to hear your SO is onboard with the planning. He might surprise you with a great suggestion. It’s hard, I know, to come up with something that can meet the work schedules. He was probably just wanting you to decide since you won it!

Did you talk to the travel agent about what else might be recommended for that time of year, climate-wise, that would fit your idea of all-inclusive and an itinerary-based trip? The Alaska cruise through the inside passage would work nicely since you generally get to select from several options for the land tours at the ports of call. We did a Regent Seven Seas cruise which was all-inclusive, including tips. Food and staterooms were wonderful and all land tours except a few were included in the choices. You could pay the extra surcharge for some of the tour choices. Small ship, 600 max iirc.

Good luck with your planning.

We have done all those things: a Carnival cruise, a stay in a resort on a beach in the Guanacaste region of Costa Rica, and twice stayed at Sandals resorts ( both on Jamaica instead of Grenada).

We hated the cruise. We are not water people and were seasick. Yes, we wore the bracelets - didn't work. Every time the ship was in port we high-tailed it off. Too claustrophobic on the ship for us. We went in the winter so not a lot of kids running around. But I would never consider it in the summer with a large population of non-adults. The older I get, the less tolerant I get.

Both Sandals resorts we stayed at (Montego Bay and Ocho Rios) were clean, safe, and fun. Lots of restaurants on-site, and we are golfers so we did that off-resort several times. When we were there, you could hop on a bus and visit (for free) the other Sandals resorts on the island. Jamaicans for the most part were very accommodating of tourists as the tourist trade was an important part of their economy. At that time, though, everyone recommended we stay away from Kingston as it wasn't safe.

Costa Rica was fun too. We didn't spend much time on the beach because that's not our thing, but we golfed and did several organized tour-type things. A motorcoach up in the mountains and a visit to a pottery, a horseback ride through the jungle and down the beach, a guided raft float trip, tour of an aloe plantation, etc. etc. A jungle zip-line was available, too, but we didn't do that. Iguanas and monkeys were everywhere. It was interesting.

In that case, I'd definitely do a go someplace and stay rather than a cruise. We took our one and only big ship cruise in alaska, and we are not cruise people. I know people love it and do it a lot, but it's not for us. It's like a city vacation, but just on the water. You're on a ship with a few thousand other people, and wherever you land, you bring the crowd with you.

We have however really enjoyed riverboat cruising which is more like a 100-200 people.

So if it were me, I'd opt for the beach thing...sounds like you guys can really use some deep relaxation with your busy schedules, so yeah...get so relaxed that turning over on the lounge chair seems like too much effort!

Many, many years ago (the 1980s?) we stayed on St Martin and did take a sail boat across to Anguilla to see their sugar sand beaches. Now that was relaxation!