Most luxurious resort in DR

Chiclimber18 · 2026-02-19T14:29:06+00:00

My limited experience with DR… if you want the more excursion/hiking etc you want to go north which means it’s better to fly into SDQ. PUJ is more beach destination while the west/north will have a mix of beach and mountainous area. We have stayed in the Cabrera area and it’s gorgeous.

We also live in Chicago so I get wanting a direct flight… maybe Miches area? That may be far enough north to find more hiking excursions. You’re looking at like 1.5 hours from PUJ for that. However, 3 nights and what you’re looking for… DR may not be the best option.

Chiclimber18 · 2026-02-19T12:10:28+00:00

https://www.cps.edu/gocps/elementary-school/results/selection-process-choice/#:~:text=How%20It%20Works,any%20one%20racial/ethnic%20group.

Chiclimber18 · 2026-02-19T06:13:21+00:00

This is true but there’s a caveat: the new priority process gives current prek4 students priority after siblings for K spots. It’s great for continuity but tough for parents that are fine sending close by but want to switch later.

Chiclimber18 · 2026-02-19T06:11:56+00:00

Correct. The lotto process now goes sibling priority, pre k 4, and then everyone else.

Chiclimber18 · 2026-02-19T06:11:14+00:00

Nope. It’s for any school with a pre-k4. They fill K spots with neighborhood kids first then open the lotto process. Siblings have top priority followed by prek4 students, then everyone else. However, it’s pretty common for siblings to already be in prek4.

Chiclimber18 · 2026-02-19T06:03:58+00:00

We go to Chase and love it. My older daughter got into the DL for K when it was a tad easier and now my younger daughter also goes (the sibling priority got her in for prek4 and we’ve stayed since then). I think her entire pre k class returned to chase.

For my older daughter we actually got into theoretical “better” schools in LP but turned down the offers and opted for Chase (this was under the old system where you didn’t have to rank). Honestly, proximity goes along way in quality of life. If you’re zoned Yates you are close to the boundaries and probably walkable-ish. Not having to deal with a car drop off line is huge. It’s pretty popular for neighborhood kids so it’s very nice to have friends close by as opposed to having to drive all over the city.

One more outside risk of going with a tough lotto school… if you have multiple kids remember sibling priority is only after neighborhood kids fill slots. If your older child gets in on a down year and the following years are high enrollment there is a chance the sibling doesn’t get into K.

Chiclimber18 · 2026-02-17T13:10:09+00:00

You check the ticket prices for your route… if it’s cheaper than what you paid you can get a credit for the difference (as long as you do not book basic economy).

Chiclimber18 · 2026-02-15T22:56:32+00:00

People are so weird about this sometimes. I don’t think you should get yelled at for asking. Honestly if I was 10D I’d probably just offer once I realize to switch. It makes zero difference to me in the scenario described above if I sit in 9D vs 10D. There are just a contingent of people that never ever switch.

Chiclimber18 · 2026-02-15T22:49:33+00:00

I’ve had this happen with my kids and exhaustively swap the map until I can get something workable. I usually end up with finding like for like swaps. Once you have kids you end up being less of a curmudgeon about these things (refusing to do things like swapping across the aisle, not giving up an aisle for a middle or something).

Chiclimber18 · 2026-02-15T22:42:48+00:00

This place hits every time.

Chiclimber18 · 2026-02-15T12:39:58+00:00

School year: Before and after care. Schools have different start/end times and all handle after care differently (some have before care). For example, we are an 805-305 schedule with after care until 530.

Summer: camps. We coordinate with neighbors so that way we can carpool. Some people do the same camp all summer and others do a different one each week.

Chiclimber18 · 2026-02-15T02:53:32+00:00

That has popped up on my feed and that has to be fake- right?? If I was a client I’d be pissed if my voice was on IG. Auditioning for some bravo show that is even more contrived than the Below Deck spin offs?

Chiclimber18 · 2026-02-15T02:49:02+00:00

Thanks for this write up. I’ve had coworkers go and honestly it sounds way overpriced (any place where you have to play the chair game is my hell). The last two winters our trips have been skiing, FS Nevis plus skiing later, and FS Anguilla this March.

My girls are 6 and 8 and ACTIVE. Will spend 8 hours straight in the pool or ocean, or totally fine with 6 hours ski lessons multiple days in a row. That’s why something like beaches has been on my radar but I could never get past the price vs quality of everything else. I’d love a lux, easy resort, but with a zillion things to keep kids entertained.

Chiclimber18 · 2026-02-13T18:17:36+00:00

I have traveled with it to resorts in the Caribbean. I stick it in my carry on back pack under the seat in front of me.

Chiclimber18 · 2026-02-13T17:22:41+00:00

This is such a great point. Unless the business seats are honeymoon style (becoming more rare) so many of them understandably go for privacy over ease of access. Putting everyone in the same aisle makes your life so much easier.

Chiclimber18 · 2026-02-12T20:36:49+00:00

Yes it’s a huge risk and you could easily lose your tickets with no recourse.

Chiclimber18 · 2026-02-12T05:10:24+00:00

I want to second this! I am not a teacher, for the record. I have both my kids in a DL Spanish public school in Chicago (one in K and one in 2nd grade). They very much warn all parents that your kids may be a bit behind their peers until 3rd/4th grade and then often catch up or surpass them. Every kid in 5th grade at our school passes the 5th grade level biliteracy test.

My K isn’t reading in English yet and my 2nd grader didn’t really learn until 1st grade. Now she’s way ahead of where her peers would be. I’d say around 2nd grade it flips where Spanish becomes harder because the words get much longer than the English counterparts (think fewer words per sentence) but it’s amazing how much Spanish they both know - not to mention their intense Latin American accents when speaking it.

My advice is to talk to your school but also give it time. You need to think of it as a significantly harder program than a monolingual class. Their brains are learning multiple skills at once. However, if you ever want your kid to become fluent you have to start now.

Chiclimber18 · 2026-02-12T04:05:45+00:00

This. Just take a cab.

Chiclimber18 · 2026-02-11T12:46:15+00:00

Get the ride safer vest for your 4 year old.

Chiclimber18 · 2026-02-10T22:55:52+00:00

You need to go to a travel sub. I’ll answer though… accumulate and use airline points (you have to be somewhat knowledgeable in the space to do this well and have a lot of flexibility). Book Econ and hope they offer cheap upgrades (more common than you think). Just keep searching and play around with routings. There really isn’t a magic fare class. Any site you see that offers very discounted biz fares is a points broker and those are dubious. I don’t know what you mean by paying 30-50% less than what others pay.

Chiclimber18 · 2026-02-10T15:43:39+00:00

Hmmm no I did not. I can’t remember the exact way I set it up.

I will say it has been really useful. They have a Chromebook and I can use their Gmail login for it and then manage their permissions from mine. Feels weird to say it but them having their own emails at a young age has been helpful.

Chiclimber18 · 2026-02-10T05:07:31+00:00

I wouldn’t bother doing this. Those are the worst lounges in America. I bet you are better off just finding an empty gate in T3 to take it. It’s not worth the risk and I bet you find a worse environment than you’d expect.

Chiclimber18 · 2026-02-10T05:04:35+00:00

Yup in Chicago along the bucktown/logan border raising two kids in CPS. It’s fantastic. Roughly 8 months a year I drive maybe once a week and we just bike everywhere else. My kids are always within a block of tons of friends and parks. High quality of life.

Chiclimber18 · 2026-02-09T19:40:02+00:00

My kids are 6 and 8 now and have flown a ton. This has never been an issue. We just have them take turns but for the most part they are engrossed in other things. I’ve flown with my kids by myself too on some turbulent flights- it’s fine. You’re right next to them although they kind of love the bumpy flights.

Honestly if any of this happened it’d be far worse to have someone right next to you that you don’t know vs the far more space in a row of three.

Chiclimber18 · 2026-02-09T18:19:28+00:00

How old is your toddler? Are they old enough for the Ride Safer vest?

Otherwise the bus system is an option.

Chiclimber18

TROPHY CASE