mexico all inclusives

[IliketoPuck]

Nah, I just won't go back to the Barcelo. Out of sight, out of mind.

[Thor]

Sad, your loss its an awesome place.

[IliketoPuck]

Agreed. I appreciated my time there, and met my future wife there.

Once was enough.

[Sainters7]

Originally Posted by wpgflamesfan

That and the food is not as good.

This is true with Cuba. Honestly, if people don't care about going into the cities and experiencing the culture or whatever, and are just there to lie on the beach and drink & enjoy the resort, I'd advise against Cuba(at least when compared to other close Caribbean countries).

But if you're planning on going into Havana & checking out the local scene, I'd say its a must-do. Just such a cool, cool culture there, and the people are sooo laid back(and 100 times nicer than Mexicans, at least towards foreigners). Plus the best part is on the beaches, the Cubans selling stuff aren't allowed to bother you, you have to come to them. After being in Mexico the year before, this was a real treat in Cuba. It gets really annoying on those Mexican beaches with people getting in your grill trying to sell you pottery and blow every two minutes.

[MotoRacer]

Originally Posted by iliketopuck

and if you look to your left, right next to your jacuzzi tub, you can see a complimentary chalk outline.

No thanks.

:d

[Dentoman]

Stayed at the Paradisus Riviera on the Mayan Riviera with two kids, 3 and 1. Very family friendly for a 4.5 star resort. Very close to the Moon Palace. Short ride (20 min) from the Cancun airport, good food, smaller resort so very close to the beach. Very secure. Good kids program, lots of other kids for yours to play with.
Have also stayed at the Dreams Los Cabos near Cabo San Lucas. The Dreams chain has a great kids program. I probably wouldn't stay at the same Dreams again because you couldn't swim in the ocean due to the undertow, but I would stay at a Dreams resort because of the kids program ... program was better than the Paradisus.
I also found the 6 hour flight to Cancun to be doable with the kids .... if you tack on a long bus ride after, maybe not so much, but the Paradisus is nice and close.

[Philly06Cup]

BUMP.

Trying to plan a trip for my parents to an all-inclusive, preferably in Mexico. Chatted with a friend who mentioned that gang shootings have spread to the resort cities.

So.
Is a trip to Mexico still ideal, or should I consider alternatives?
What are some good resorts for an older couple looking to relax?

[FurnaceFace]

Gang shootings have spread to Calgary, are you afraid to live in this city?

The resorts are for the most part like gated communities. They all have security guards and are pretty careful who is around. Yes, the beaches are public so someone could walk up but it would be pretty rare. I would also say unless your parents like heading to say a club in downtown Cancun, and wander around drunk flashing cash and jewelery they're going to be fine.

The resorts of the Mayan Riviera are more remote than those right in Cancun and are likely quieter. Quieter still might be Cozumel.

I'm heading to Cozumel on New Years and crime hasn't been anything I've given one serious thought to. I've been more concerned about the weather as "el Norte" (the north winds) have been acting up.

I also have friends who just came back from Cancun/Mayan Riviera a week ago and they have no bullet holes in them.

[Doctordestiny]

We're heading to Mexico in January. How much in pesos is required for a week?

[FurnaceFace]

Originally Posted by Doctordestiny

We're heading to Mexico in January. How much in pesos is required for a week?

More info. Are you staying at an all inclusive or on your own?

If it's an all inclusive the US dollar bill is king. $1 bills to tip the waiters, bartenders, housekeepers, etc get you better service. You don't need to shower them with cash but a couple of bucks early in the trip will pay off with better service. We don't buy anything so we go with probably around $100-150 and a bunch of that goes to tipping whoever we dive with. If we know say there is a discount to pay the dive op in cash, we'll bring more but in general if you're staying on the resort all the time, a lot isn't necessary. If it's your first trip maybe take a little more, it depends what you like to do.

Remember excursions are extra money so snorkeling/diving, see the Mayan ruins, any other tours are extra. Generally these are payed for with the card to whatever travel group we went through. You'll have an orientation session your first morning where they will try and up sell you on all the excursions. If there is something you like, do it. Want to go see Chichen Itza? Pay the money for it. Who knows if you'll ever be back?

Also if you're going to Cancun there are visitor "guides" who meet you as you walk out of customs/baggage claim. They will give you 5 minute sell job on their excursions. Their offers sound like a good deal as they package up 3 of the trips for the price of two. Their goal is to lock you into doing the trips with them. They try a bit of a pressure tactic but it's not super heavy in my experience. The guys I've talked to are polite if you decline. I'd say unless you know you want to do all 3 things for sure, then book through the rep at the hotel. I don't know anyone who has booked from the airport guys so I can't comment but they're right there in the airport so I doubt if they were disreputable they'd be allowed to setup their booth.

If you're staying on your own at an apartment then I can't really help you. I have stayed in La Paz and eaten out at reastaurants. Many of them take cards, and many of them will be in dollars or pesos. You'd lose a little on the exchange maybe but The Locals want dollars as much as possible. Just get lots of small denominations as you'll likely get change in pesos. Really though, if you're just buying food and trinkets, if you end up spending an extra $5-10 in bad exchange rates it isn't a big deal. They can use the money more than we could.

[Doctordestiny]

Originally Posted by FurnaceFace

More info. Are you staying at an all inclusive or on your own?

We're staying at an all-inclusive and plan on doing a couple of excursions, including Chichen Itza by tour. We'll be spending most of our time at the resort but expect to get off the property a few times. Looking for advice on how much to have per day. Isn't it now illegal to use non-pesos?

[FurnaceFace]

Originally Posted by Doctordestiny

We're staying at an all-inclusive and plan on doing a couple of excursions, including Chichen Itza by tour.

If you can afford it, and they still offer it as an option, I highly, highly recommend flying. We were at Chichen Itza first thing in the morning, and through it by the time the hoards of tour buses arrived at lunch. In the morning there might have been a couple dozen people on the site, it was awesome. I have pictures with nobody in them, just the ruins. Once the tour buses get there it's full of people and the experience can't be as good.

We'll be spending most of our time at the resort but expect to get off the property a few times. Looking for advice on how much to have per day.

I can't really help you as I don't know what you typically spend or what you think you'll want to do. I'd say do some internet research on costs of what you're looking to do.

Maybe $50 a day as a rule of thumb and then use the ATMs (which are everywhere) or your CC.

Isn't it now illegal to use non-pesos?

My understanding is there are restrictions on how much foreign money Mexican nationals can deposit/exchange at the bank. This is to try and prevent the crackdown on money laundering. There is no issue with tourists using dollars. The only issue I see with using US dollars is you will get a poorer exchange rate. It's 12.something pesos to the dollar so I wouldn't be surprised if they converted 10 pesos per dollar when you're buying handcrafts and such. I don't think that extra little bit will kill any of us.

All that aside, I have a feeling most places in Cancun a tourist will see will have prices in dollars.

[FlamesKickAss]

Went to Puerto Vallarta in september, cant remember how much I spent, but I did pull money from HSBC and got a better rate that I did here at home!

[amorak]

I got married and spent a bunch of weeks at Secrets Maroma Beach in the Mayan. Amazing place, very much recommended. Expensive, but worth it.

Planning to go back next year.

[Frank MetaMusil]

Originally Posted by amorak

I got married and spent a bunch of weeks at Secrets Maroma Beach in the Mayan. Amazing place, very much recommended. Expensive, but worth it.

Planning to go back next year.

That place looks pretty slick. My wife and I are looking for somewhere to go in April, I'm going to email this info to her.

Thanks.

[amorak]

Originally Posted by Frank MetaMusil

That place looks pretty slick. My wife and I are looking for somewhere to go in April, I'm going to email this info to her.

Thanks.

No problem man. It's the most amazing resort I've been to, as well as the ~30 people we took down with us. No one could find fault with the place.... God I want to go back now.

[amorak]

Originally Posted by fotze

I'm going down to Mayan on Christmas day. Are there baby ativan available for the plane?

It's call booze. I assume you're on a charter with one of those 1-800-vaction jobs.

Just give your mom a tonme of free tequila and she'll be ready for the Mexico vacation of your lives.

Fotze's mom!

[bubbsy]

i stayed in mayan riviera in may. Loved it. Resort we were at was amazing, and food better than previous sandals hotels i've stayed at in the caribbean.

Not sure if it's worse off now wiht all this violence though.

[amorak]

Originally Posted by bubbsy

i stayed in mayan riviera in may. Loved it. Resort we were at was amazing, and food better than previous sandals hotels i've stayed at in the caribbean.

Not sure if it's worse off now wiht all this violence though.

There's no violence in the south east part of the country - the violence is all in the north west (american border -d rug trade) area. Touristy areas are still safe

[mykalberta]

So I take it you believe it was swamp gas that collected and exploded?