With summer looming, families should nail down vacation plans now.

Perfect timing for Parents magazine's list of favorite beach resorts. The best bargain: Sheraton Grand Bahama Island Our Lucaya Resort, where rooms start at $129 per night.

The roundup is limited to places priced at $500 per night or below. Other honorees include: Club Med Punta Cana, Dominican Republic; South Seas, Captiva Island, Florida; Atlantis, Bahamas; Disney's Vero Beach, Florida; Beaches Negril, Jamaica; Hilton Hawaiian Village, Honolulu; Ocean Edge, Brewster, Massachusetts; Loews Coronado Bay, San Diego; and Rio Mar Beach, Puerto Rico. 

Each has a supervised child-care program, children’s menus and parent-child activities. Neurotic parents (that includes me!) will be comforted to know they all have non-smoking rooms, lifeguards and CPR-certified staff.

(Photo: Rio Mar Beach Golf Resort Casino & Spa)