My family has settled in to New York City from the UK. While we love the city, its winters feel eternal to us. To escape brutal February we jetted with the two kids and my parents to Marco Island, the largest of Florida’s Ten Thousand Islands along the well-named Paradise …

The Mayan Riviera in Mexico has everything my family likes in a winter beach getaway: sun, kid-friendly surf, culture, direct flights from New York and good value for our money. We’ve been there a few times, finally going to an all-inclusive resort for the first time last winter at the …