Travel + Leisure Magazine is big on hotel award lists. And while they tend toward the upscale, luxury and higher priced properties, they can still serve as a good resource for business travel and vacation planning (it’s also kind of fun to read through their always lengthy lists of award winners and tick off the places I’ve already visited).
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DON’T MISS: Supersize Travel: The 29 Biggest Hotels in Latin America
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Among the latest Travel + Leisure awards are in the category of “best hotels for families” — and Latin America was well represented in the winners’ circle (predictably, they’re all in the upper end of the price category — but interestingly however, not a single hotel in the Spanish-speaking Caribbean ranked; stay tuned to LatinFlyer.com for a roundup of the best family-friendly hotels in Puerto Rico at a variety of price points). Congrats to Four Seasons and Marriott International for placing well in multiple destinations in the Travel + Leisure awards — but if you’re looking for something a bit more affordable, I’ve added some more value-oriented alternatives.
Best Hotels for Families in Mexico
1. Four Seasons Resort, Punta Mita
2. St. Regis Punta Mita Resort
LatinFlyer’s Alternative for Families on a Budget: The Fiesta Americana Puerto Vallarta, on Mexico’s Pacific coast, recently became an all-inclusive resort. The beachfront property has also added a new teens’ club (to complement its already existing kids’ club; both are included in the room rates) and offers spacious family guest rooms with large balconies and fold-out couches for the kids. (About $187 and up, all inclusive.)
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DON’T MISS: Top 5 Reasons to Vacation in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
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Best Hotels for Families in Central and South America
1. Four Seasons Resort Costa Rica at Peninsula Papagayo, Costa Rica
2. Inkaterra Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel, Peru
3. JW Marriott Hotel, Lima, Peru
4. JW Marriott Guanacaste Resort & Spa, Costa Rica
5. Los Sueños Marriott Ocean & Golf Resort, Costa Rica
LatinFlyer’s Alternative for Families on a Budget: In Costa Rica, the DoubleTree Resort by Hilton Hotel Central Pacific (about $218 and up, all-inclusive) packs in lots of amenities, including children’s activities, a teen’s club and special menus for the little ones. In Peru, consider the Radisson San Isidro in Lima (rates start at about $110), which has an outdoor swimming pool, rooms and suites with living areas and extra beds — all about half a mile from the ancient site of Huaca Huallamarca.
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DON’T MISS: Hot Properties: 10 Great Urban Boutique Hotels in Latin America
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Travel + Leisure Global Vision Awards
The renowned magazine also named the winners of its Global Vision Awards, which honors hotels around the world for special contributions and achievements.
Latin America didn’t take home any first-place awards, but its ranking in the Runner-up categories help to provide some great travel ideas about noteworthy upscale hotels in the region.
Travel + Leisure Global Vision Award: Culture (for “distinctive sense of place, that feeling of being surrounded by history and local traditions”)
• Ciudad Perdida, Sierra Nevada de Santa Maria, Colombia (runner-up)
Travel + Leisure Global Vision Award: Sustainability (for incorporating a lighter, more eco-friendly footprint into the guest experience)
• Pikaia Lodge, Santa Cruz Island, Ecuador (runner-up)
Travel + Leisure Global Vision Awards: Conservation (for taking responsibility of threatened landscapes and bringing endemic flora and wildlife under their care)
• Cuixmala, Jalisco, Mexico