[Andrea J.]

we have stayed pre and post timeshare nights at Manchebo.
loved the location, loved the beach, loved the staff....the rooms were very basic, older....but very clean and well cared for.

we have stayed a few times at divi/tam, again loved it and liked the restaurants.

my suggestion for folks that inquire about AI for their 1st trip is to DO IT. Once on island your meals are all set, your beverages are plentiful and deeeelicious. You have time to relax and vegetate on the beach. Get your bearings on the island, get settled, do some touring.............maybe eat off resort once or twice.......after all folks are gonna tell you that you HAVE to go to Madam Janette, Flying Fishbone, LGSmiths.

next trip...........do not do all inclusive and experience all of the great restaurants or if you LOVED the AI, go for it again and then again grab a few dinners off resort if you so desire.

again, Manchebo is on Eagle Beach and is situated on the best stretch of Eagle Beach

clear as mud right?

andrea

Originally Posted by Kymra

Hi everyone!

My husband and I are finally getting closer to planning our 1st trip to Aruba for February!!

I just need to wait for Jet Blue to let us book into February. At this point pricing out the same days of the last week in January, we can get a direct flight from Boston at around $1000 for both of us with tax. Not too bad!

Now comes the hard decision, where to stay.

I have it narrowed down to the Divi/Tam all inlusive, or Manchebo. When I first started looking into this trip I was leaning towards Bucuti but their prices JUMPED for 2009. Too bad.

Back to the choices at hand - Divi/Tam seems like the more bang for your buck option, as they are pretty similarly priced. I like the looks of Manchebo, but feel like I'd be limited on dining /drinks with just the one resort. I've never done AI - and want to make sure if we do it, we do it right!

For those of you who've been a few times, what would you suggest for 1st timers? Divi/Tam or Manchebo??

thanks in advance for your replies!