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Good Cancun All-Inclusive?

phdhorn

By phdhorn
in Food and Travel

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phdhorn

phdhorn 6224

Posted
Posted

New site, no stored info, so putting it out there again.

Needs to be Cancun (or somewhere on the coast that uses Cancun's airport) because of how our plane fare works out.  Looking for quality of offerings (not cheapass, nice accommodations, beach proximity, safe hotel zone, adults only possibly, etc.).

This would be 'bout late Aug for me and the missus.  I'm sure a buncha them are about the same, but anything you thought was a good time, and in particular a good value.

Not interested in the dregs, but also not necessarily accommodations worthy of a Saudi Oil Emir (unless a good price).

I'd even check back on Eskimo Scat, but don't wanna rifle through poop gifs.  Thanks in advance.

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utee94

utee94 15671

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Cancun itself isn't great.  But I love Playa del Carmen, and lots of folks around here really like Isla Mujeres.  You fly into Cancun for both of those.

In Playa del Carmen proper, I really like The Royal as an AI.  On the beach, right in town so there are tons of activities to do outside the hotel, food is very good, and drinks are real.  Oh and it's adults-only.

There are also many non-AI hotels in Playa, and VRBO type places as well.

I don't know anything about Isla Mujeres but lots of shagsters (surlsters?) are big fans and you'll probably get plenty of recs from them.

Edited by utee94
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Etexhorn13

Etexhorn13 2995

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Posted (edited)
2 hours ago, utee94 said:

Cancun itself isn't great.  But I love Playa del Carmen, and lots of folks around here really like Isla Mujeres.  You fly into Cancun for both of those.

In Playa del Carmen proper, I really like The Royal as an AI.  On the beach, right in town so there are tons of activities to do outside the hotel, food is very good, and drinks are real.  Oh and it's adults-only.

There are also many non-AI hotels in Playa, and VRBO type places as well.

I don't know anything about Isla Mujeres but lots of shagsters (surlsters?) are big fans and you'll probably get plenty of recs from them.

I don’t know anything about Cancun AI, but we stayed at The Royal on our honeymoon and thought it was very nice. Playa del Carmen is much less busy than Cancun; it was a nice change of pace for a week with the wife as opposed to how crazy everything is in Cancun. 

Edited by Etexhorn13
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Liteitup

Liteitup 135

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El Dorado Seaside Suites. Between Playa and Tulum. Only downside was it's an hour from the airport, but they picked us up in brand new Lincoln Navigators as part of the package. Best service and food we've had at an AI. We're not shaggy surly  1% and don't travel that much so take that into account. It was also during the time hurricane Harvey was hitting Texas and only about 1/2 full, so the staff was hustling for tips(I assume).

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BearSchlong

BearSchlong 7965

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I went to an AI in Cancun once so this hits close to home.

But I was blackout drunk the whole time so I don't even remember the name of the place I stayed. But I sorta recall that it was nice.

Use lots of sunscreen. I do remember that I got so sunburned that I required a cortisone shot upon my return to SATX.

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CooterBrown

CooterBrown 17695

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Stayed at the Royal Haciendas in Playa last year. It is absolutely a picture perfect resort. However, the food was underwhelming. There was rarely Mexican food available. Italian, Chinese, and Tony Roma style bbq were there. It was a pasty Midwesterner’s dream I’m sure. 

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longhorndude

longhorndude 146

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El Dorado Seaside Suites. Between Playa and Tulum. Only downside was it's an hour from the airport, but they picked us up in brand new Lincoln Navigators as part of the package. Best service and food we've had at an AI. We're not shaggy surly  1% and don't travel that much so take that into account. It was also during the time hurricane Harvey was hitting Texas and only about 1/2 full, so the staff was hustling for tips(I assume).


Seconded. Headed down to seaside suites again in a month. El Dorado Royale is also a solid choice. All inclusive is the way to down there in my opinion. The Karisma properties all have great food, high end booze and immaculate properties.
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gsoda3

gsoda3 3187

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we were at the grand fiesta americana coral beach for thanksgiving.  it's right next to where the ferry takes off for isla mujeres.  the place was awesome.  they really do take care of you if you're grand club or higher.

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DFWTexEx

DFWTexEx 270

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Haven't done Secrets on that side of Mexico, but the Secrets in Cabo has been great.  NO KIDS.   Fairly high end booze.  Good enough food and nice, high-end resort feel (dress codes in restaurants...the women dress up).  Did I say that there are no kids?  I know there are super luxury places to stay, but the no kids thing on this sort of vacation is important.  Not a usual fan of AI, but I have enjoyed Secrets.  Despite the name and the weird marketing campaign, it's not swingers spot.   There are normal couples, groups and a fair number of singles of all ages.  The main pool can be a good party scene, but the rest of the place is pretty elegant.  I am sure the formula for the Cancun area locations is the same.  The Marona Beach location has been recommended to me.

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TornACL

TornACL 7652

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I went to one near Playa del Carmen a couple of summers ago...was expecting it to be like a cruise ship that doesn't move (full of Walmart trash) but it was actually not bad.

Pro-tip, just because it's an all-inclusive don't be a cheap ass. In fact, the best thing to do is get to the pool early in the morning, say Hola Amigo to the bartender on duty, slap down a 20 and tell him you'll be there all day. After day 1 with some spotty service we started doing that each morning and it was a big success. It got to the point that they would just fucking ignore people who had been waiting and serve us first if we came back up to the bar.

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HookEm

HookEm 2432

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Went to the Hyatt Zilara last summer with the wife.  It is smaller than the Hyatt Ziva, but all of the rooms are ocean front and there are NO KIDS.  We had a great time, especially considering that we stayed for free on Hyatt points.  The entire 4-night trip cost about $200 out of pocket and that was all tips.

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wood

wood 10786

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On 4/8/2018 at 12:02 PM, Hate said:

Make sure you take a carbon monoxide sensor.

If you're going to the trouble, get a combo natural gas & CO detector, & you might as well use it in your own home as well. That family didn't die from CO poisoning. They died from asphyxiation due to a natural gas leak displacing the air, and both happen in the U.S. as well.

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wood

wood 10786

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On 4/8/2018 at 6:30 PM, utee94 said:

See, I told you the IM mafia would show up. :D

 

VAB, how 'bout some recommendations on hotels, food, etc? 

We had an extensive thread at the other place with lots of great recs. Here's what we have so far here...

 

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  • 4 years later...
mchookem

mchookem 15429

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we stayed at Excellence Riviera Cancun as part of a wedding party a few years ago. we do not generally do AI resorts.

that place was absolutely phenomenal.

I don't anticipate we'll ever return to Cancun, but in case there's another winter apocalypse and we have to, i'd happily stay here again. it was outstanding. 

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  • 8 months later...
wackawacka

wackawacka 165

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Despite my best effort, we are effectively doing this for a week next month. Any suggestions? We have a private house rented with a chef, etc. Not as bad as an all-inclusive but close to it. I think the house is 45 mins south of Cancun.

Where can I escape to that is actually fun and not a tourist shit hole?

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rage-a-holic

rage-a-holic 4237

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1 hour ago, wackawacka said:

Despite my best effort, we are effectively doing this for a week next month. Any suggestions? We have a private house rented with a chef, etc. Not as bad as an all-inclusive but close to it. I think the house is 45 mins south of Cancun.

Where can I escape to that is actually fun and not a tourist shit hole?

WTF? 45 minutes south of Cancun is not Cancun.

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NeverMarryAStripper

NeverMarryAStripper 21765

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3 hours ago, wackawacka said:

Despite my best effort, we are effectively doing this for a week next month. Any suggestions? We have a private house rented with a chef, etc. Not as bad as an all-inclusive but close to it. I think the house is 45 mins south of Cancun.

Where can I escape to that is actually fun and not a tourist shit hole?

That should put you in the Akamai area which is pretty nice.  The kids and I have rented there a few times.  A house on the beach in that area with a private chef should mean you don’t need to escape anywhere.

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rage-a-holic

rage-a-holic 4237

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1 hour ago, NeverMarryAStripper said:

That should put you in the Akamai area which is pretty nice.  The kids and I have rented there a few times.  A house on the beach in that area with a private chef should mean you don’t need to escape anywhere.

I assume you mean Akumal; Akumai is a mail service.

45 minutes south of Cancun is not close to Akumal, it's maybe Playa del Carmen with no traffic.

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DFWTexEx

DFWTexEx 270

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Excellence Playa Mujeres is great. But I enjoyed Secrets Maroma Beach better overall.

Both are blown away by Secrets Moxche Playa del Carmen. It just opened last year and it’s awesome. Great food, awesome pools (including a huge sand entry lagoon) and great staff. Beach is ok. If you want to level up, do Impressions Moxche. We are checking out Impressions Moxche for a birthday in July.

All these places are adults only.

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Ghost of LL

Ghost of LL 15225

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19 hours ago, BurntOrange&White said:

The best part of the excellence club is the private shuttle from the airport and back and then having a cooler of beer in the Escalade. 

We spend a couple weeks there during the pandemic and let the kids do zoom school from the beach.  It was a great experience all the way around, but you're right that you feel pretty good getting in an Escalade at the airport while everyone else is getting into a shitty tour bus.

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