March 14-20, 2004

 

This was our first trip to an all-inclusive, much less a clothing optional resort, so we had no basis of comparison.  We loved our vacation and are considering a return trip in September or November.  My husband never wanted to go to Cancun in the first place, and only went after considerable begging and pleading.  Now he wants to go back right away, and is willing to pass up a trip to his beloved Amsterdam.

 

Air:

We flew US Airways.  Although we made our reservation and paid for the ticket, we had no seat assignments until the 40 minutes before the Cancun flight departed Philadelphia.  While we had seats, it was very vexing for me to wonder if we were going to make the flight.  US Airways did ask for 10 volunteers to alleviate the overbooking.  Additionally, US Airways served nothing but a snack, so bring food, or each during the connection.  We did have a movie.  Get to the airport early with US Airways.  The line was very long and it took 1.75 hours to get checked in. 

 

Transportation:

We used Carlos’ service and couldn’t have been happier.  He was waiting for us upon our arrival at Cancun Airport, and he picked us up right on time for the return trip for $40 USD.

 

Carlos de la Mora Alpuche, general manager

De Luxe Transportation Services

Ph. 01-99-88-74-02-56 Y 01-99-88-46-66-81

Email: cdm119@hotmail.com

 

However, we will likely rent a car next time.  We ended up renting a car onsite for a day trip, and it cost a fortune.  Lesson learned.  We may want to do a few more day trips, so a car will make more sense next time. 

 

The Resort:

Our room was in building 24, which was one of the furthest away.  It took 5 minutes at most to get to the pool and dining room from our room.  The grounds were pretty and well maintained.  Security was prevalent, especially at night. 

 

The beach was beautiful, but to be honest, other than a couple of walks, we didn’t spend any time on the beach.  We are going back to spend a day or two on the beach.

 

I did use the spa and looked at the gym.  The spa services were good, the steam room clean, and the gym looked nice.  I’ll bring workout clothes next time. 

 

There was also a tennis court or two, but I didn’t notice it until our last full day. 

 

Our Room:

I was a little disappointed to get a queen size bed, but the room was clean and we liked having drawers and the mini-fridge.  My only complaint was because of our building location, we were often the last rooms cleaned, so it could be 5 p.m., and we’d want a nap, and the cleaning service was just then getting to the building.  The area was very quiet, given the distance from the lobby and the disco. 

 

The bathroom lighting was a little poor, and I didn’t like the open shower because of the mess it would make on the floor.

 

Considering how little time we actually spent in our room, the rooms were just fine.  The towels shaped into swans and hearts was a fun touch.

 

The Pool and Hot Tub:

We spent a large chunk of our vacation at the pool and hot tub.  My only wish is that there was a little more shade and a few more chairs.  It was a good thing I tend to get up early, because by 9 am, the chairs were all saved.  The pool was big and cool, a nice refreshing break from the hot sun.  Bar service was mostly good and the beach proximity was nice.

 

We generally would go up to the hot tub at 4:00 p.m. to get our seats for the evening festivities.  This is where we met some really great people.  And the talk and sexual energy and entertainment were the best on most nights.  The water temperature ranged from just right to very hot.  I didn’t think it was ever cool.  Bar service was good on most nights but Thursday, despite tipping.

 

The Food:

The food was mostly adequate.  To be honest, breakfast was my favorite meal of the day.  I think the restaurant could lose Chinese night and even international night, as even I didn’t find a lot to eat on those nights, and I’m not picky.  The biggest complaint was the soggy cakes at the dessert bar.  I don’t know why all the cakes were like soggy with water.

 

I never ate lunch in the restaurant, I always ate either at the pool grill (love the poppers and guacamole) or the beach barbeque (mmm, good sausage and skirt steak and pork chops).

 

The a la carte restaurant was nice, I just needed to have had less to drink that day to fully savor it. 

 

My biggest complaint with food is that there was no food available 24 hours a day.  There is a late night service from 11 to 1 (or 2, sometimes).  However, the hot tub and disco are still going, so if I left the hot tub at 3, there was no food, and I was always hungry.  Since I hadn’t eaten in 8 hours, I really wanted something to eat.  Sometimes there were leftover sandwiches, or cold, leftover remains from the food service.  Perhaps some snacks could be restocked until 3:30 a.m., instead of ending it before the venues close.  In the future, I will go to a store and pick up a few snack items to prevent the 3:00 a.m. munchies or I’ll have to go get something to eat in between the disco and going up to the hot tub.  Alternatively, they could serve snacks at the hot tub.

 

Water:

We drank everything we got, plus refilled our bottles.  Brushed my teeth with tap water (didn’t swallow the water), never got ill.

 

Disco:

I like the disco and liked meeting our new acquaintances there, but damn, the music just sucked!  I don’t know why the DJ would not play more suitable music if no one was dancing.

 

The contests were fun, and we liked the poles.  The theme nights were good.

 

We did visit the play room, and even used it once, when it was empty (I’ll be braver next time).  I did try to use it on our last night, but there were no towels in the room, so we just went back to our room.

 

PDA/PDS

Yep, saw it all in different locations.  It was great.  There was no pressure to swing and most people respected “no thank you”.

 

Snorkeling:

We did do the snorkel trip from the resort dock for $25 pp.  I thought it was worth it.

 

Overall:

I think we’ll be going back.  It was very liberating, friendly, relaxing, high-energy… all at once.  Maybe September, but maybe we should try Hedo II or III for comparison.  However, I like the couple aspect of Desire.

 

I want to thank Kurt and Goldie, Goldie’s sister and brother ;-), Edwin and Jennie, Stan and Jeanette, the Oklahoma couple (I’m sorry, I’m bad at names), Tammy and Jim, Paul and Donna, and everyone else I may have forgotten.  Being able to hang out and talk with all of you was a treat and it made the trip for us.  Thanks to Kurt for getting Mark’s back on at least one night, and thanks to the relatives for helping us with telephone service to extend our trip two days. 

 

I can see why people say it isn’t about the resort, it’s about the people!