Trip to Cancun...suggestions?

[Olao32]

Who’s been? Any advise on where to stay?

Will be going down in November and figured I should probably get my ass In gear and pick a place to stay. I already have my flights booked as it’s not just a there and back thing. So, now all I have to decide on is accomidations.

It will be my GF and I...was a toss up between Cancun and Playa Del Carmen, and really I still don’t know which one to pick. I am leaning towards the RIU Cancun, but if anyone can offer some other advise I’d be grateful.

[mac_gurl]

We stayed at the Riu Caribe in Cancun a couple of years ago, and had a great time. You can usually get a good price if you keep your eyes open ($1000 Incl. Tax)

[red sky]

Originally Posted by Olao32

Who’s been? Any advise on where to stay?

Will be going down in November and figured I should probably get my ass In gear and pick a place to stay. I already have my flights booked as it’s not just a there and back thing. So, now all I have to decide on is accomidations.

It will be my GF and I...was a toss up between Cancun and Playa Del Carmen, and really I still don’t know which one to pick. I am leaning towards the RIU Cancun, but if anyone can offer some other advise I’d be grateful.

You booked your flight but didn't book your hotel? Probably would have found a much better deal booking through a charter but I could be wrong. I hear good things about the RIU, never been personally. Stayed at the Iberostar just outside of Playa Del Carmen. Big resort but excellent beach and service.

[Olao32]

Originally Posted by red sky

You booked your flight but didn't book your hotel? Probably would have found a much better deal booking through a charter but I could be wrong. I hear good things about the RIU, never been personally. Stayed at the Iberostar just outside of Playa Del Carmen. Big resort but excellent beach and service.

Yes, the reason being is we are heading elsewhere first for a wedding. So it’s not just a Calgary-Cancun return trip (thus not applicable for a package deal).

[TurnedTheCorner]

Try and get away for a day outside of Cancun and go see some of the ruins - either Xel Ha down the coast or Chichen Itza in the interior. Cancun is like visit - fun to visit, but you want a little getaway time from it too.

[MacDaddy77]

Originally Posted by Olao32

Yes, the reason being is we are heading elsewhere first for a wedding. So it’s not just a Calgary-Cancun return trip (thus not applicable for a package deal).

My wife and I and a couple of friends stayed at the H10 Punta Tourqueisa (sp). It is an amazing resort. They have 3 big pools, good food and service. It is in between Playa and Cancun (About a $30.00 cab ride to Playa) There is a sports pub in Playa del carmen ( the end zone EZ)that plays all the Flames games. http://intheroo.com/view/end-zone
We went last year for a friends wedding and there were 40 of us wearing our Flames jerseys in Mexico watching the game. It was the game wher Kipper made that spectacular stick save against the Canucks.

[Knut]

Cancun Palace or the Moon Palace.... if you book there you can travel freely between all the Palace resorts. Ie. go to different restaurants and pools.

If you like to Club it... wait until after the hotel entertainment is finished and they will organize a shuttle to a big club (The City, or Senor Frogs).... usually it is 50 USD, but it includes transportation to and from the club, as well as drinks while there..

[Cowperson]

Originally Posted by Olao32

Who’s been? Any advise on where to stay?

Will be going down in November and figured I should probably get my ass In gear and pick a place to stay. I already have my flights booked as it’s not just a there and back thing. So, now all I have to decide on is accomidations.

It will be my GF and I...was a toss up between Cancun and Playa Del Carmen, and really I still don’t know which one to pick. I am leaning towards the RIU Cancun, but if anyone can offer some other advise I’d be grateful.

I've been there three times but not for a decade . . . . . however, there are certain things to note.

One part of the "L" of Cancun's tourist area has very calm beaches with virtually no waves and a long walk out while the other is a roaring forest of waves with a steep drop off . . . . . I can swim very well so I loved the roaring side . . .

Therefore, you might consider your swimming plans when you do your booking.

It's fun to go to Isla Mujeres on the chicken boat - got totally soaked on the way back to the mainland one time because I was sitting on the wrong side of the bow. The natives thought that was pretty funny. When I first went to the island in 1990 and it was still fairly deserted with fantastic snorkelling. The last time I was there a decade ago it was crowded and I found my snorkelling was mostly looking up the asses of fat old lady tourists swarming around me (shudder). Hopefully things have lightened up a bit because it's a wonderful place.

In 1990, we rented a car and went on an adventure to Chitzen Itza and Tulum, generally at an unsafe speed as that's a big loop and we wanted to be back by nightfall after a late opening of the car rental place. Not sure if that was safe villian-wise then or now as well, but something to think about.

Delightful weather though. I've heard good things about the resorts that have sprung up between Cancun and Tulum.

Have fun.

Cowperson

[troutman]

Renting a car is the best way to see the ruins at Tulum and Chichen Itza. Visit the cenotes (caves) in the jungle. There is a nature preserve near the border with Belize.

Scuba diving at Cozumel.

[fredr123]

Ride in a colectivo with the locals.

[Eagle Eye]

Originally Posted by MacDaddy77

My wife and I and a couple of friends stayed at the H10 Punta Tourqueisa (sp). It is an amazing resort. They have 3 big pools, good food and service. It is in between Playa and Cancun (About a $30.00 cab ride to Playa) There is a sports pub in Playa del carmen ( the end zone EZ)that plays all the Flames games. http://intheroo.com/view/end-zone
We went last year for a friends wedding and there were 40 of us wearing our Flames jerseys in Mexico watching the game. It was the game wher Kipper made that spectacular stick save against the Canucks.

Yup a very nice resort stayed there just after it opened.

It is nice to stay north of Playa del Carmen as it can take a little while (depending on traffic) to get to Cancun when you stay south of it.

[FurnaceFace]

I was just in The Mayan Riviera two weeks ago. We stayed at the Gran Principe Akumal, about 20 kms north of Tulum. We're not looking to party away the night, just hang out on the beach and do a few days of diving. For that purpose, the resort was good.

There are tons of different resorts down the coast and you can probably get good deals on them even in November. I think ours had somewhere around 1500 rooms in the whole complex and it might have been a third full.

Originally Posted by troutman

Renting a car is the best way to see the ruins at Tulum and Chichen Itza. Visit the cenotes (caves) in the jungle. There is a nature preserve near the border with Belize.

Scuba diving at Cozumel.

Definately agree on Chicken Itza. A few years ago we were in Cozumel and flew from there to Chichan Itza. It was awesome. First, the plane was some RUssian plane so it had cool Cyrrilic of the fasten your seat belt signs. The pilots flew us around the site so each side of the plane could take pictures. We were then met by a bus which took us to the deserted site and we had a fantastic guided tour. It was out ~20 people and maybe another dozen in the whole place. We were done by noon and as we were leaving the hordes of tour buses were just arriving from Cancun and the place was going to get busy fast. We had lunch, got back into the plane and flew to Cozumel. One of the best packaged excursions I've been on. If flying isn't an option, then self drive if you can and get started as early as possible to avoid the crowds.

One item of note, you can no longer climb the temple/pyramid at Chichen Itza. If you want to climb a temple, go to Coba.

Regarding diving, Cozumel was pretty heavily hit by the hurricanes a couple of years ago and I've heard mixed reviews since. If you are diving (or even snorkelling) and staying down in the riviera check out VIP Diving (vip-diving.net). They are a couple of French Canadian's who have a small operation. They took us to dive sites where we were the only ones out there instead of the resort dive shops who have a whole herd of people out on the boats. It was really good as we hit sites that were still in good condition.

If you're adventurous and an experienced diver they do cenote cavern dives too. Not as interesting looking at stalactites as it is looking at fish and coral, but it was an experience I can check off the life list.

[rubecube]

Originally Posted by mac_gurl

We stayed at the Riu Caribe in Cancun a couple of years ago, and had a great time. You can usually get a good price if you keep your eyes open ($1000 Incl. Tax)

I'll second the Riu Caribe. The staff there is a lot of fun, plus they have tequila volleyball everyday at around 11 AM. The only complaint people I know had about Caribe was that the pool wasn't heated.

Be careful if you rent a car. The cops down there are incredibly corrupt and will look to pull you over for just about anything. They threaten you with a ticket and then ask for a bribe that ends up being less than the ticket.

Cancun's nightlife is awesome. Check with your hotel because each club down there seems to have a specific night of when to go. The clubs are awesome because it's usually $30 cover to get in, and then free booze. You get preferential treatment if you tip the bartender or server $10 at the beginning of the night. Pub crawls are also a good deal. $50 will get you into four bars with unlimited booze.

If you only go to one bar while you're there, go to Coco Bongo.

[TurnedTheCorner]

They did close off Chichen Itza finally, huh? When we were there (this is about, I dunno, 5 years ago now), they said there had been rumblings about closing it to tourists. I'm glad I climbed it when I could, even though heights scare the bejeezus out of me.

[T@T]

Personally I wouldn't do Cancun at all as a traveling couple. Playa Del Carmen area is a much better stay, If you can get the Riu Palace Maya for a good price I promiss you you won't regret it.

http://www.riu.com/en-ca/Paises/mexi...maya/index.jsp