Beaches Boscobel Resort & Golf Club Family Activities

It's the rare resort that manages to cater to -- and successfully hold the interest of -- kids of all ages. But Beaches Boscobel has more than a trick or two up its sleeve to capture the attention and enthusiasm of everyone from toddlers to teens.

Kids' Camp
For kids 10 and under, the Kids' Camp -- a sparkling clean and modern facility on a small hill near the hotel's entrance -- houses several rooms including the Tiny Town Nursery, with its soft sponged floors and toys galore for kids up to age 4, a chill out area with books and cushions for the five- to seven-year-old set. A Survivor Camp area displays craft tables and an indoor amphitheater of sorts where older kids can relax and watch movies, celebrate birthday parties or interact with Sesame Street characters who make regular appearances. Nannies supervise the area from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily, and the indoor activities are interspersed with age-appropriate outdoor diversions such as reggae dances on the lawn for one- and two-year-olds and trips to the slide pool for the older set. One thing to know is that all kids must be picked up daily at the camp at 5 p.m. for shower time back in the rooms. Then parents can drop kids back off at the Kids' Camp at 6 p.m. for a chaperoned buffet dinner at the Bayside Restaurant and post-dinner activities back at the camp. Extra fees are charged if your kids want to take part in the Martha Stewart craft programs, which involve fancier materials and techniques than the standard cut and paste, tie dying and coloring crafts. Be sure to bring along a few white t-shirts so your kids can tie dye a shirt. Every Friday, the Kids' Camp holds a Sesame Street birthday party, free for all the kids that had birthdays during the week, with character appearances and cake. And private birthday parties can also be arranged onsite for your child. While the Kids' Camp closes at 9 p.m., nanny service is available afterwards for $10 per hour for up to three children ($15 per hour after 11 p.m.). There are no toilet training requirements for your child to participate in the Kids' Camp.

Teen Center
There's a teen coordinator to keep the older set engaged, and in addition to the Xbox 360 Games Garage, with unlimited free play on 12 stations and two Xbox Connect stations, teens tend to hangout at the beach, poolside or at Club Liquid, an under-21 nightclub with blue glow lighting and pumping music nightly.

Pools & Water Park
The main water play area, where kids up to age 13 or so tend to congregate, is the Pirate's Island Water Park, where eleven slides with varying adrenalin factors attract different age groups. Kids must be at least 3.5 feet tall to ride the big spiraling slide, but parents can accompany littler kids on some of the other slides. There's an infant and toddler zone with zero-entry access into a pool in the water park area (removed from where kids are flying off the slides) and gentle misting and splashing features. A netted waterplay area showcases sea creature stepping stones that entice the age three and up set and still another area with a large, spiraling slide that gives older kids the requisite adrenalin rush. Adults tend to congregate around the resort's central, sprawling freeform pool, which can get crowded when occupancy is high. There are three additional pools on the property, including one that's dedicated to Scuba certification instruction (an extra fee). There's a swim-up bar at the main pool and, nearby, two whirlpools. The water park is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and the main swimming pool is open around the clock, although lifeguards are only on duty during daylight hours.

Beach
Set on 22 acres, the resort is a sprawling place, and it's a solid five-minute walk from the Kids' Camp to the beach. The beach, while not too large, is a fine family hangout spot situated in a cove of sorts and buffered by a pier and a jetty, so the water is generally very calm. You can access the beach by elevator from the pool deck, or by walking down four flights of stairs. There's lots of shade thanks to the huge thatched umbrellas covering large swathes of the beach. While some guests complain about the outside vendors selling crafts from boats just offshore from the beach, they are under strict orders not to harass guests. The beach is where families find all of the resort's water sport offerings: kayaks, sailing, snorkeling, windsurfing, paddle boats, banana boat rides, glass bottom boats, aquatrikes and scuba diving trips (for certified divers) are all included.

Golf
Beaches' guests also get access to Sandals Golf & Country Club in Ocho Rios, with free hour-long golf lessons given on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. It's an ideal way to get in introduced to the game if you've never played before. Youth with a handle on the game can play for free on the course after noon.