We stayed for a week with 3 children, aged 13, 11 (girls) and 8 (boy).

The 8-year old was in the older half of the mini-club while the girls were in the younger half of the "carwash"/passworld for tweens and teens. They all had a great time, as did their parents.

Great flexibility for the kids to participate part time, full time, or no time at all in the clubs. There were plenty of activities for all. My wife and I water skied almost every day and did not see the famous crocodiles, which never bother anyone even when seen (if they are not a resort legend to begin with).

The 13yr old water skied for the first time - note that 12 is the minimum age to water ski at this resort - sailed, kayaked, hung out with the other teens, played tennis with my wife, etc.

The 11 yr old loved the trapeze, including doing a release move to be caught by a GO (with lots of safety equipment, don't worry) and also kayaked, sailed and hung out.

Our 8yr old, who can be a bit shy, didn't want to miss a minute of the day time activities (less interested in the evening shows) and decided to kayak and sail instead of playing soccer since he could do that at home. We also had family games of bocce ball, played a little basketball and went on a day trip to Chitzen Itza, the big Mayan historical site. The kids' only complaint was that the full day to go to Chitzen was a little long, but they were still glad we went, even the little one got enough out of it, but you'll have to judge if your younger ones should do this. My only complaint on the activities was that the sailing instruction (on the little Hobie Cats) was VERY light both for us when my wife and I went and for the kids.

Back at the resort, everyone loved the variety of food, the way it was displayed and the way it tasted. The pool is a bit small compared to the size of the resort and there are, at times, a lot of pool chairs saved by towels, but this is minor. There was plenty of space otherwise, a great beach, nice people (most guests and all the GO's we met) and great weather in spite of the wind we had which made some activities difficult at times.

We were not in the newer, higher end Jade building and did not pay the extra fee to guarantee adjoining rooms. Instead, we called in advance of our arrival to ask for rooms next door to each other. This worked very well and the three kids shared one room while the parents took the other.

Others have advised trying to go Saturday-Saturday with kids to stay on the same cycle as the other kids. We went Sunday to Sunday (better availability and price when we booked) and did not find that this made much of a difference. All else equal, it may be worth it to try to go Sat/Sat, but, on the other hand, there were fewer arrivals and departures on the Sunday so maybe we were even better served.

On that note, we did not need the various concierge services offered and probably would not have spent any more time in our rooms (i.e. very little) if we had been in Jade than where we were, but good for you if you are willing and able to spend the extra for the luxury offerings. We booked our flights through Club Med as the price was comparable and included a very efficient transfer to/from the airport.

No issues with security at all - as other have said, the site is a great location and they clearly have put on extra security to make sure people are safe, and made it visible so people feel safe.

Overall, a fantastic experience - our best family vacation yet. I see more Club Meds in our future. It is not cheap, but all-in, comparable to a nice week skiing or a week at Disney.