My 2-year-old daughter loves Elmo. So like millions of families, our weekday routine includes watching Sesame Street and saying “hi” to Elmo and pals. At the end of each show I’ve noticed a plug for Beaches Resorts, saying, “As a proud sponsor of Sesame Street, Beaches Resorts is pleased to welcome some fun and furry friends to all of its island locations.” I was intrigued. I thought, sun, beach, Elmo, what more could a parent ask for? I found the answer and if you have a child who would rather vacation with characters from Sesame Street than ones from Disney, this blog’s for you.
“Beaches Caribbean Adventures with Sesame Street,” gives children the chance to interact with Sesame Street characters like Elmo, Zoe, Cookie Monster and Grover, at each of its four all-inclusive sites for families. (Beaches is an all inclusive, family oriented resort located in Jamaica and the Turks and Caicos.) Similar to Disneyland, kids get the chance to meet, shake hands, and hug life-sized versions of their Sesame pals. In addition, the resort has designed a number of Sesame themed activities for children to participate in when they are not hitting the beach or riding down one of the resort’s water slides. Here is a sampling of what is offered:
Story Time with Elmo–where a human storyteller reads a Sesame Street tale before Elmo comes to interact with the children.
Baking with Cookie Monster—where kids mix cookie batter to be baked by kitchen staff and Cookie Monster stops by to visit and enjoy the fruits of their labor.
Dancing with Zoe—where Zoe helps kids master the line dance, ribbon dance and teaches them ring games.
Making Music with Ernie and Bert—where kids learn how to make music. After a practice session, Bert and Ernie visit the kids for fun and dancing.
Exploring with Grover—this activity includes nature walks and scavenger hunts and teaches children how to make art from recycled material. Later, Grover stops by to see what kids have collected, and shares in the fun.
For an additional charge your children can take part in a character breakfast, where they can start their day with their Sesame Street friends. Other activities include a character parade, where children and their Sesame pals dress-up, play music and parade around the resort. There is also a character movie night, where a Sesame Street friend appears before a children’s movie with snacks and beverages.
The week long vacation is an alternative to Disney, Nickelodeon, and other Florida theme park adventures. And for children, like my daughter, who can’t get enough of their furry friend Elmo this may be the perfect vacation.