Sugar Beach Condo's vs Caribe Bay

Hello everyone,

This will be my second trip to the gulf shores area, but my first trip with children. I need some advice.

Last time I stayed in Fort Morgan %26amp; I enjoyed the solitude. This time I am bringing toddlers. I think they will get bored without a pool %26amp; if I remember jellyfish come/go at will making the beach water unsafe for toddlers at times? I didn%26#39;t like the reviews for the Morgan area resorts.

I%26#39;m looking at Sugar Beach %26amp; Caribe. Both seem to have the largest shallow pools.

I really like the Caribe resort, but it looks like a really far walk to get over to the the gulf water (even after the shuttle drops off) %26amp; I%26#39;m thinking it%26#39;s too far to drag toddlers, toys etc daily?

I can%26#39;t find any personal reviews for Sugar Beach other then one very negative review on Yahoo.

I%26#39;d love any advice!

Sugar Beach Condo's vs Caribe Bay

Sugar Beach and Caribe are two VERY different properties. Caribe is only about five years old and has huge floor plans. Although I personally don%26#39;t think the walk from Caribe to the Gulf is too bad, it might be a bit much for toddlers and parents lugging toys. Caribe has an excellent pool area, though.

Sugar Beach is an older property that runs perpendicular to the beach, so it has very few actual Gulf Front units. I don%26#39;t think that is a big deal, but some people do. Units at SB are much smaller, for the most part, than those at Caribe.

For toddler-friendly pools you could also check out Lighthouse and Southwind in Gulf Shores. They have zero-entry pools with play areas that kiddies seem to enjoy.

Sugar Beach Condo's vs Caribe Bay

Thank you very much for the reply.

The reason I narrowed it down to those 2 choices is that I really hate huge resorts/crowds. I have only been to one %26amp; it seemed like as soon as I sat on the sand 30 people would run over %26amp; set up camp right next to me :)

Sugar Beach looks big, but not super huge? %26amp; I was thinking maybe the insane prices of Caribe keep it less then full? (maybe wrong on that)

I will check out the properties you listed. I think I may have ruled out Caribe. I%26#39;d hate to spend that kind of money to find my kids prefer the beach then pool!

Thanks again!

When are you planning on coming? That will make a big difference in density of any property. Both the places I mentioned are Gulf Front, like Sugar Beach, so the beach and the pools are right there next to each other.

The pools and Lazy River at Caribe are great for toddlers. Check out Crystal Tower as well, it is super kid-friendly with lots of amenities. It is not Gulf Front but it has a Gulf Front pool and lazy river and it%26#39;s priced very reasonably. It has a pedestrian bridge over West Beach Blvd. that makes beach access easy and safe. As dd mentioned it really depends on when you plan on coming to determine the beach crowds.

We will come in peak time- June-Aug depending on where I decide %26amp; what kind of deals are out there

I will check out the info you have provided tonight once the kiddies are down.

Thanks so much!

Beware of Sugar Sands. You have to rent through Sugar Beach Realty. Here%26#39;s the scope:

We thought Orange Beach would be wonderful for our reunion that occurs every two years where folks come from all over the world. We contacted Sugar Sands Realty for our accommodations. Mistake.

Sugar Beach, Romar House, Romar Place and Romar Beach condos are represented by Sugar Sands Realty. Upon arrival, we find that the most important attendees had been moved - without warning - about 2 miles down the beach to another property. The patriarch couldn%26#39;t even be in the same area with his grown children who had traveled from Greece, Saudi Arabia, and Austria to see him! The realty company offered no apologies or compensation. Upon arrival, mice poop was everywhere.

Stay with me here. Now....back at the ranch (the real property that was booked for EVERYONE) two of the married couples at the reunion and on vacation with their spouses were moved without warning from the original reservations made with the realty company - a 2 queen bed room condo - to a one king bed and four bunk beds condo! So much for the planned holiday for one couple, huh? Again, no apologies, no compensation, just an uncaring attitude (and plenty of it!)

Oh...and watch out for the number of cars you want to park at Romar Beach. Yes, you do have ';parking space rights'; guaranteed by Sugar Sands Realty. Spaces available to you are based on the number of rooms in the condo you rent. But get this - the realty company wants $12.00 for every space you take!!!! Can you believe this? It%26#39;s off-season! There were all kinds of open spaces!!!!

Okay, sorry to rant. The beach WAS beautiful. The weather WAS wonderful. The reunion folks bonded immediately all over again as we always do. Great fun was had by all.

Until check-out.

Remember the two couples that were trying to figure out who would end up in the bunk bed room? Guess what was on the check-out bill. EXTRA charges! The realty company charges you 4% credit card fee on the required credit card deposit. If you want to pay the remainder on your bill with a credit card at check-out, another 4% fee will be on your bill. Also, they don%26#39;t tell you that you will be charged a housekeeping fee ($79.00), a processing fee ($30.00), and a damage waiver fee ($39.00, what is THIS?).

So, the agreed upon $250 off-season rental now adds up with all taxes and fees to (drumroll, please) - $451.50!

I know we should have gone back to talk with them about it, but after the attitudes the young women staffing the realty office gave us about the one parking pass we requested at arrival, we opted just to leave and chalk it up to experience. Hope you%26#39;ll learn from ours. Buyer beware.

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